Maersk Line, the world’s largest ocean carrier, and Swedish telecommunications company Ericsson announced a partnership to equip Maersk Line’s entire fleet with mobile and broadband satellite communications technology to solve the world’s communication “blind spot”—the oceans.
Over the next two years, Ericsson will outfit 400 Maersk Line vessels with Ericsson antennas and GSM base stations to increase mobile connectivity and new ways of communicating from sea to land and vice versa, according to a January 11, 2012 report by gCaptain.com.
“The result will be automated and simplified processes, higher productivity, real-time information allowing quicker, more informed decision making and problem solving,” said Hans Vestberg, president and CEO of Ericsson, as quoted by gCaptain.com.
For the shipping industry, mobile communication provides new and efficient ways to address fleet management, manage delivery times, improve interaction with vessels, resolve issues faster and enhance information-sharing capabilities.
“We’re quite pleased to be the first fleet to be connected with mobile communication technology. We believe it would provide us good opportunities to run our fleet more efficiently,” said Søren Toft, vice president, Maersk Line Operations.
Until now, Denmark-based Maersk Line’s ships have been equipped with satellite connectivity that supports communication only for vital shipboard functions. Ericsson’s maritime mobile and VSAT (very-small-aperture-terminal) satellite technology will bring extended connectivity to the entire fleet for immediate access to remote expertise, improved information sharing, and efficiency in the vessels’ daily operations.
Photo from Maersk Line
