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Crew welfare thanks to fast internet and WiFi throughout your vessel

3 July 2014

High costs and low bandwidth mean that crews often have limited access to satellite communication. Alphatron Marine offers an excellent alternative, providing fast, reliable internet for the crews of vessels sailing in areas covered by UMTS, such as coastal waters, harbours or inland waterways. Our integrated solution using bonded UMTS and the WiFi system, manufactured by the US company Ruckus, gives you extremely fast internet and WiFi coverage, in maritime terms, over pretty much the entire vessel.

This system was fitted in April on board Van Oord's new transport and installation vessel, Aeolus, which was deployed for the construction of offshore wind farms, and met with great success. The vessel can carry 74 people. As Dennis Winterswijk, Communications, IT&AV Solutions manager for Alphatron Marine notes, 'Van Oord was looking for a good data solution for personnel on board. Together with Van Oord and our suppliers, we integrated the UMTS network and WiFi systems.' Bundling SIM cards Alphatron supplies a bonded UMTS network that bundles 8 SIM cards into one large bandwidth bundle with speeds of up to 100Mbit/second. The fact that more than 1 SIM card can be used has the advantage of producing redundancy: the customer can use SIM cards from a range of providers, and consequently there is less chance of failure. Maritime UMTS aerials along with aerial boosters ensure that the UMTS network remains operational as far as possible off the coast. WiFi system We have integrated the bonded UMTS network with the WiFi system manufacturered by the US company, Ruckus. Its unique aerial design with directional aerials at the access points guarantees maximum continuous coverage and automatic roaming between the various access points. A water-tight WiFi access point even means you’re connected on deck, allowing crew members to be anywhere without losing their connection. Is it for you? If coastal shipping is your business, then bonded UMTS may be an attractive solution, in particular for vessels with a large crew and a great deal of space.

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