Robust connectivity turns ships into floating offices

“Development of advanced digital technologies and high-speed communications networks is revolutionising maritime and offshore operations, with significant benefits for organisations and seafarers alike,” said Inmarsat Maritime president Ben Palmer.

“To fully harness the benefits and steer clear of the potential challenges brought by shipping’s new digital wave, fast and reliable connectivity with consistent global coverage - including in hotspots and remote locations - is indispensable.”

Of the seafarers surveyed, 89% said they rely on connectivity for both work and leisure, while the remaining 11% can only access the internet for work purposes.

On average, the respondents use digital tools for five hours a day while working, with 82% using them to communicate with friends and family in their spare time.

The survey results also revealed that, overall, crew see connectivity loss as having a more significant impact on their leisure time than on their working practices.

“Seamless communications between vessel- and shore-based personnel improves decision-making to support safer and more efficient ship operations, while the ability for crew to communicate with friends and family, browse the internet, and stream entertainment promotes wellbeing on board,” said Mr Palmer in the report.

“Yet while the industry’s digital transformation is bridging the gap between ship and shore, it is also making vessels and their crew more vulnerable to the effects of sudden connectivity loss,” he continued.

“So critical is connectivity to modern maritime and offshore operations, in fact, that any outages can have a severe impact on efficiency, safety and seafarer welfare.”

The report described the importance of a cohesive and collaborative approach to data management based on five supporting factors: a common data language, effortless connectivity for both operations and crew, secure and safe connectivity, globally approved systems and a willingness to share data.

"This supports a centralised data management system, fosters innovation and agility, facilitates behavioural change for safety and operational efficiency, and reduces costs”

“The transformation of ships into floating offices and homes is also seeing the emergence of a new maritime and offshore business model characterised by considerable investment in digital technologies,” said Mr Palmer.

“A cohesive and collaborative approach to data management increases the accessibility and accuracy of data across an organisation. This supports a centralised data management system, fosters innovation and agility, facilitates behavioural change for safety and operational efficiency, and reduces costs.”

While LEO constellations offer low-latency and high bandwidth, technology developments mean GEO satellites can also support applications such as video conferencing and cloud access, requiring these characteristics.

Software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN) technologies and compression programs can significantly reduce latency over GEO and in multi-orbit environments. SD-WAN optimises and prioritises business-critical traffic.

These have enabled shipowners to consider their assets floating offices with cyber-secure networks, connectivity resilience and maximised uptime. In a hybrid communications network, data may take different routes, but its journey will be optimised to start and finish at the same point.

Riviera Maritime Media’s Vessel Optimisation Webinar Week will be held 17-20 June to showcase AI-powered weather routeing, ECDIS, data analytics and new approaches to fuel optimisation. Use this link for more information and to register for these webinars

Riviera Maritime Media’s IACS URs E26 & E27: Bridging the gap between regulation and implementation webinar will be held, in association with Inmarsat, on 19 June at 08:00 during Riviera’s Vessel Optimisation Webinar Week. Use this link for more information and to register for this webinar