[SatNews] Marlink has been selected by the world’s third largest container shipping group CMA CGM to upgrade the majority of its fleet to Wavecall.
Specially developed to meet the requirements of crew members a WiFi service over five access points per vessel will be provided using Astrium Services’ Xchange platform. As CMA CGM’s fleet covers global trade routes extensive Ku-band coverage was a key requirement when choosing Wavecall, as was improving crew communications in order to meet the commitments of the new IMO Maritime Labour Convention.
The WaveCall proposition to CMA CGM is based on a cost-effective 5 GB/month data plan, which enables a significant increase in email, web browsing and voice calling, when compared to the 200MB/month FleetBroadband packages used before. In combination with the XChange solutions platform from Astrium Services, WaveCall will be installed on over 35 CMA CGM vessels, including the CMA CGM Marco Polo, CMA CGM Alexander Von Humboldt and CMA CGM Jules Verne, one of the largest container vessels in the world.
As a responsible employer committed to the welfare of its crews, improving on board communication is important for CMA CGM’s commitment to meeting the new IMO Maritime Labour Conventions, which among other important aspects of life on board, will establish new standards for crew facilities, including communications. An important part of this is the XChange solutions platform, which provides enhanced control and management of connectivity as well as a comprehensive set of Internet-café like crew communications features.
The WiFi service will be established with XChange, allowing crew to connect to the Internet using mobile devices and laptops in the privacy of their own cabins. Using XChange, CMA CGM is able to provide crew services at prices similar to shore based connectivity, without increasing its own communication spend and can easily re-bill crew.
“CMA CGM is the world’s third largest shipping company so we are committed to the welfare of our 2500 seafarers permanently at sea,” said Ludovic Gerard, Executive Vice President CMA Ships, CMA CGM. “Our desire to meet increasing demand from our crew members for reliable, low-cost Internet access on board was a primary driver for choosing VSAT from Marlink and combining it with XChange, which offers full control of the network.”
Other value added services provided to CMA CGM include a VPN connection for safe and reliable operational connectivity and @SeaWebControl, which provides the ability to filter content based on the company’s IT policy. @SEAwebControl blocks access to specific websites, restricts access to bandwidth-consuming services and gives priority to legitimate Internet usage.
