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Integrated bridge systems installed on emergency response vessels
Abeking & Rasmussen shipyard in Lemwerder, Germany, has built one and is building two multipurpose vessels for the German Federal Waterways and Shipping Administration
Germany’s latest series of emergency response vessels feature the latest integrated navigation and bridge systems (INBS), with multifunctional workstations and dynamic positioning.
Abeking & Rasmussen shipyard in Lemwerder, Germany, is building these multipurpose vessels for the German Federal Waterways and Shipping Administration (WSV).
The first, Scharhörn, is already delivered and operating in Kiel Bay, and the other two – Mellum and Neuwerk – are expected to be completed in the next two years.
Each are replacing ageing vessels that have kept German coastlines safe from distressed ships and oil pollution since the early 1970s, with Scharhörn replacing a vessel that has been deployed since 1974.
As with Scharhörn, these new vessels will have Anschutz’s Synapsis INBS technology, to support crew with safe navigation, manoeuvring and vessel operations.
Each integrated system will have six Synapsis NX multifunctional workstations, dynamic positioning and propulsion controls, ECDIS for navigation and voyage planning, autopilot, roll and pitch sensors and controls and interfaces with radar, an oil spill detection system and sonar.
Scharhörn, with up to 145 tonnes of bollard pull, is designed to carry out a wide range of tasks, including maintaining sea marks, water policing, pollution control, firefighting, emergency response, ship towage and the deployment of hydroacoustic equipment.
“Synapsis is an efficient, standardised integrated navigation system that we can customise to meet specific customer requirements,” said Anschutz head of commercial sales, Philip Kankelfitz.
“Its modular architecture ensures straightforward and secure integration, enabling adaptation to the wide range of operations carried out by these vessels,” he said.
WSV is responsible for ensuring safe, smooth flowing and efficient shipping traffic in 23,000 km2 of maritime waterways and 7,300 km of inland waterways.
It said Scharhörn arrived in Kiel from the shipyard and went to Norway for ship-towing and firefighting testing in March 2026.
These multipurpose vessels will have LNG-fuelled propulsion and accommodation for a crew of 17, plus over 30 other personnel, such as trained firefighters.
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