THE COMPLETE GUIDE TO VSAT 2019

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This issue of VSAT is sponsored by

2019 • A supplement to Maritime Digitalisation & Communications

ANALYSIS Billion-dollar market opportunity

OPERATOR FEEDBACK Nordic Hamburg and Seaspan speak out

SATELLITES A multi-orbit-HTS future awaits

CYBER SECURITY How to protect satcoms

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Contents

The complete guide to

Published May 2019

www.maritimedigitalisation.com

Regulars

Editor: Martyn Wingrave t: +44 20 8370 1736 e: martyn.wingrove@rivieramm.com

3 Comment 4 VSAT analysis 40 Last word

Opinion

Sales Manager: Paul Dowling t: +44 20 8370 7014 e: paul.dowling@rivieramm.com

6 Cloud services tailored for shipping digitalisation 7 VSAT terminology explained 8 IoT and welfare applications drive VSAT investment 9 How to make the right VSAT decision 11 VSAT saves shipowners money 12 Flexible connectivity and multi-beam redundancy

Sales: Jo Lewis t: +44 20 8370 7793 e: jo.lewis@rivieramm.com

Operator feedback

Production Manager: Richard Neighbour t: +44 20 8370 7013 e: richard.neighbour@rivieramm.com

14 Container ship connectivity is critical 15 Why tanker owners invest in VSAT 16 How to attract the best seafarers

Satellites

18 Combining the benefits of multi-orbit VSAT 20 New platform will treble vessel VSAT throughput 21 HTS constellation completed with final satellite launch 23 Investment in additional VSAT satellites

Head of Sales – Asia: Kym Tan t: +65 9456 3165 e: kym.tan@rivieramm.com

Chairman: John Labdon Managing Director: Steve Labdon Finance Director: Cathy Labdon Head of Content: Edwin Lampert Published by: Riviera Maritime Media Ltd Mitre House 66 Abbey Road Enfield EN1 2QN UK

Antenna technology

26 Tri-band antennas enable multi-orbit connectivity 27 Illuminated apertures and software architecture 28 Antenna-airtime partnerships in perspective 29 Integrated VSAT packages and regional Ka

www.rivieramm.com

Platform technology

Š2019 Riviera Maritime Media Ltd

ISSN 1742-2825 (Print) ISSN 2051-056X (Online)

30 New generation of IT platforms for LEO-based VSAT 31 IT platforms enable efficient satcoms management

Cyber security

32 How to keep satcoms cyber secure 33 Questions on how to prevent attacks 34 VSAT systems are vulnerable to hackers

VSAT services

36 Crew wifi portal added to VSAT service 37 Operations and seafarer welfare applications

R&D

38 LEO and flat panels will change VSAT forever 39 Future technology demonstrations and contracts

www.maritimedigitalisation.com

Total average net circulation: 11,000 Period: January-December 2017 Disclaimer: Although every effort has been made to ensure that the information in this publication is correct, the Author and Publisher accept no liability to any party for any inaccuracies that may occur. Any third party material included with the publication is supplied in good faith and the Publisher accepts no liability in respect of content. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, reprinted or stored in any electronic medium or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission of the copyright owner.

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

COMMENT | 3

2020 vision for maritime VSAT

W Martyn Wingrove, Editor

VSAT is being installed every year on thousands of ships� www.maritimedigitalisation.com

e are approaching a fulcrum in the ship satellite communications market, where the number of ships with VSAT on board will be equal to those without. There is a tipping point coming, where there could be more ships with VSAT than those solely using L-band either this year or in 2020.

Shipowners, managers and vessel operators are benefiting from VSAT investment, while providers are making installation easier. Higher bandwidth from technology means owners can reduce operating costs through improved fuel consumption monitoring and downloading better voyage planning information.

VSAT is the conduit for weather reports, electronic chart updates, training programs, port and safety information.

Owners can use connectivity to remotely monitor and control IT systems and diagnose problems, reducing the need to send experts to ships at high costs.

Many of these applications, requirements and technologies are detailed within this year ’s Complete Guide to VSAT, a supplement to Maritime Digitalisation & Communications.

Managers and owners can save time and costs by providing better crew welfare services, especially internet access, which seafarers now rate the second most important requirement after wages (see page 16).

Think of the recruitment and training costs required if seafarers were lured away from a fleet of ships to rival operators. Think about the loss of experience and mentoring these crew members could provide.

With these arguments, it makes greater sense to invest in VSAT, whether it is Ku-band or Ka-band with 60-cm or 1-m diameter antennas. Which is why VSAT is being installed every year on thousands of ships and L-band is being pushed into secondary communications.

Inmarsat installed more than 2,000 Fleet Xpress terminals on ships in 2018 (see

page 11) and KVH Industries added 1,000 vessels in about nine months, pushing its fleet to 9,000 VSAT marine terminals (see page 8). There have been similar successes from other VSAT providers. It is estimated that 30,000 vessels have VSAT and another 3,000 are awaiting upgrades in satellite communications. Analysts estimate there are another 35,000 ships without VSAT, which demonstrates there will soon be a swing in VSAT's favour.

We are at a point where shipping companies not deploying VSAT will lose out commercially to those that have.

Selecting higher bandwidth for vessel operations and crew communications has commercial benefits, which owners do not want to miss out on.

Going forward, more connectivity will be required for digitalisation and internet of things adoption in all shipping sectors (see page 14).

There will be more pressure from regulators for monitoring and reporting fuel consumption and emissions and further requirements for using weather routeing to reduce oceanographic effects on ships, cargo and passengers.

E-navigation will require higher levels of connectivity as data is exchanged in realtime with greater frequency between ships and shore centres.

Port authorities will need more information from masters and cargo owners will expect regular updates on product conditions.

VSAT for operations will need to be segregated from crew broadband as more seafarers expect to use their own devices to contact friends and family through video links and social media.

There are growing reasons for investing in VSAT, keeping ahead of the competition is just one of them. Within a year, the number of ships with VSAT will exceed those without. Owners will be driven to deploy this technology or be left behind in a wave of connectivity and digitalisation. VSAT

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

VSAT 2019 VSAT PENETRATION IN SHIPPING

2012 8,000

2014 17,500

2018 30,000

(VESSELS WITH VSAT)

2016 23,000

2020 *35,000

CONNECTIVITY AT SEA IoT applications Data transmissions in real-time Fuel consumption monitoring Vessel performance monitoring Predictive maintenance

*Forecast based on expected installations over 2 years

BANDS AND BEAM SIZES L-band C-band Ku-band Ka-band

HTS spot Ku beams

Operational needs High speed Resilience and redundancy Flexible packages Voice and video services Voyage optimisation Virtual private networks e-reporting e-learning

Crew welfare Onboard connectivity Social media VoIP Media content

GLOBAL MARITIME SATELLITE COMMUNICATION MARKET

US$ 1.8Bn

US$ 2.4Bn

US$ 4Bn

2016 value

2018 value

2023 forecast value

Inmarsat – Fleet Xpress (Ka)

Telenor – (Ka/Ku)

Intelsat – Flex Maritime (Ku)

45,000

compound annual growth 2019-2023

vessels to adopt broadband by 2027

SES – HTS network (Ku) Eutelsat – (Ku)

MAIN SATELLITE OPERATORS

(in terms of maritime VSAT coverage)

Viasat – (Ka) Thaisat – (Ku)

7%

Telesat – (Vantage HTS/LEO)

Sky Perfect JSAT – (Ku)

Asia Broadcast – (Ku)

SATELLITE PROCUREMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION PROCESS Mission Architecture

⊲

Satellite purchase

⊲

Satellite construction & Testing

⊲

Satellite launch

⊲

Transfer to orbit

6 | OPINION

Cloud service tailored for shipping IoT Shipowners and managers can reduce operating costs by using cloud-based applications and system monitoring delivered over VSAT

Marlink provides VSAT using Intelsat-operated high-throughput satellites

C

ollaboration on communications and digitalisation is an important strategy for providing the best connectivity to ships using VSAT. As Marlink and Microsoft have discovered, their partnership is spawning innovation to deliver data analytics and cloud-based services to shipping.

Maritime Digitalisation & Communications spoke to Marlink president of maritime Tore Morten Olsen about the partnership, its next steps and future trends in VSAT.

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

“Our main purpose in engaging with Microsoft is to jointly develop communications solutions that benefit vessels, as most cloud services are based on industries where there are no bandwidth limitations, which are encountered in maritime,” he explains.

“It is about giving shipowners options that can be tailored as cloud-based solutions for maritime.”

Together, they have created an ecosystem using Microsoft’s Azure Stack where owners and developers can create their own solutions.

“We are running trials with Microsoft and some of the largest operators in the merchant shipping market are seeing real benefits,” says Mr Olsen, who cannot name the shipping companies for contractual reasons. Marlink provides VSAT connectivity using its Sealink Ku-band service to access Azure Stack.

They are jointly developing a virtual local data centre to manage business, IT and internet of things (IoT) applications. This will use the same application model, self-service portal, and interfaces the Azure public cloud has, providing continuous deployment and integration of pay-asyou-use services.

“Cloud-based solutions need VSAT connectivity,” says Mr Olsen. But access is only one element, as ships do not have enough bandwidth for real-time access. The answer is a hybrid cloud service that replicates services on board vessels. “A hybrid cloud can be delivered through our Xchange server, but in the long run, ships will need a dedicated server on board.”

Marlink and Microsoft will invite service vendors to join them in cloudifying their maritime applications for onboard administration, seafarer management, fuel and energy management, and maintenance operations.

“We will enable the connection of onboard sensors to shore for remote diagnostics, condition monitoring and fuel optimisation as owners have

www.maritimedigitalisation.com

OPINION | 7

their own contracts with third-party suppliers, and shipmanagers may want to establish their own software across their fleets.”

There are also rising requirements from shipowners for managing onboard IT over VSAT. Marlink provides ships with Palantir’s advanced IT solutions to address this trend. “Owners want connectivity and a fully ICT-managed solution so they can outsource IT services,” says Mr Olsen. “This is gaining traction in the market to overcome the challenges of managing onboard IT.” There is also a growing trend of VSAT suppliers partnering with startup companies to deliver services that can reduce operating costs for owners. Marlink partnered with Dutch start-up We4Sea in Q4 2018 to offer a monitoring solution that helps owners reduce fuel consumption and improve vessel operations.

“Our We4Sea start-up has captured interest from owners,” says Mr Olsen. “We are into the development phase for the core services that involves digital-twin technology and operations optimisation.”

VSAT is delivered through collaboration, with each partner playing a vital part. For example,

Key VSAT terms Description of the main terms commonly used in maritime satellite communications

Antennas ACU: antenna control unit BUC: block up-converter IF: intermediate frequency IMA: integrated maritime antenna LNB: low-noise block down-converter RF: radio frequency Rx: receive Tx: transmit VSAT: very small aperture terminal

Radio frequency bands Radar frequency bands according to Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers standards are: VHF: very high frequency; 0.03-0.3 GHz UHF: ultra high frequency; 0.3-1 GHz L-band: long wave; 1-2 GHz C-band: Compromise wave; 4-8 GHz X-band: Crosshair (military-only); 8-12 GHz Ku-band: Kurz-under; 12-18 GHz Ka-band: Kurz-above; 27-40 GHz (Kurz is German for ‘short’)

Onboard connectivity 3G/4G/5G: third, fourth and fifth generation of mobile phone networks ACM: adaptive coding and modulation CIR: committed information rate DVB-S2: digital video broadcasting over a second generation of satellites FEC: forward error correction Gbps: bandwidth (billion bits per second) GSM: global system for mobile communications (mobile phone networks) IoT: internet of things IP: internet protocol Kbps: bandwidth (thousand bits per second) LAN: local area network LTE: long-term evolution (4G standard for wireless broadband) Mbps: bandwidth (million bits per second) MIR: maximum information rate SDPC: single channel per carrier TDMA: time division multiple access WAN: wide area network Wifi: wireless fidelity

Satellite Tore Morten Olsen (Marlink): “Owners want connectivity and a fully ICTmanaged solution”

www.maritimedigitalisation.com

GEO: geostationary Earth orbit HTS: high-throughput satellite Hz: measurement of frequency LEO: low Earth orbit MEO: medium Earth orbit

Marlink works with Inmarsat to deliver Fleet Xpress connectivity, a combination of Ka-band and L-band.

For its Sealink VSAT, Marlink uses Ku-band and C-band coverage from satellites operated by Intelsat, Eutelsat, Telesat, SES and Asia Broadcast Satellite.

“We have 30 different satellites and 50 different beams,” says Mr Olsen “For network quality, we have overlapping beams, especially in congested areas, where we have wider orbital spreads to reduce blockage issues.”

On ships, Marlink installs hardware from antenna manufacturers, below-deck equipment including modems from iDirect, and its own Xchange.

With more development coming in Ka-band and expanding highthroughput Ku-band, there is greater need for dual-band antennas.

“It is important to have hybrid antennas on board to switch between the frequencies of Ku and Ka,” says Mr Olsen.

He thinks ships also need L-band for redundancy, which is vital when managers want to remotely monitor onboard operations. “As soon as ships have sensor data on board, vessels cannot afford to have a breakdown in communications,” he explains.

There are other methods of ship connectivity when vessels are close to shore, such as port wifi and coastal 4G networks, with higher speeds and lower latency than VSAT when vessels are in range.

“This is smart connectivity, where we optimise usage depending on speed and availability, selecting the most effective route for communications,” says Mr Olsen.

Marlink’s goal is to deliver a platform specifically designed for the maritime environment “that will provide fast, reliable access to digital applications regardless of the availability of communications services,” says Mr Olsen. “Ultimately, it will allow the shipping industry to release the potential of cloud functionality to optimise business and operations.” VSAT

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

8 | OPINION

IoT and welfare applications drive VSAT investment Higher bandwidth enables shipowners to invest in IoT to reduce fuel and maintenance costs while improving onboard crew welfare

V

SAT technology is an increasingly important investment decision for shipowners to allow them to monitor daily operations and improve crew communications. Owners use VSAT to deploy internet of things (IoT) technology on vessels and allocate controlled online access to seafarers.

KVH Industries, one of the largest suppliers of Ku-band VSAT worldwide, lays out the benefits of using VSAT rather than remaining with L-band satellite communications. KVH has seen more than 90% growth in year-on-year VSAT installations and in February this year, its maritime VSAT sales surpassed 9,000 terminals.

KVH co-founder and chief executive Martin Kits van Heyningen says shipowners are investing in VSAT because they want higher bandwidth, larger data plans and reliable broadband for cost-saving applications on ships.

“There is no such thing as enough bandwidth,” he tells Maritime Digitalisation & Communications. “Owners want more bandwidth, but at lower prices for more applications and speeds.” There is also a trend towards providing enhanced VSAT services over new constellations of highthroughput satellites (HTSs).

“People want the HTS network, more content, better coverage and VSAT for their business models. They want it allinclusive with installation, content and network controls.

“Some owners want to pool bandwidth across the fleet – with category controls and applications allocated across

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

KVH’s TracPhone V3-HTS VSAT is a 37-cm diameter antenna

multiple crews – and no bill shocks,” says Mr Kits van Heyningen.

Crew welfare remains a major driver for VSAT installations, but operational and monitoring requirements have greater importance in decision making.

“A big driver is IoT applications and business models that depend on getting the data off vessels and integrating ship IT,” says Mr Kits van Heyningen.

Data comes from sensors on ship machinery, providing fuel consumption, performance indicators and information on operating conditions. This data can be managed on board, allowing masters to reduce operating costs, and packages can be sent ashore. Or this data can be fed in real time to shore, which uses much more bandwidth.

VSAT benefits include allocating bandwidth and controlling access to

online services. Owners can meter bandwidth use, can charge seafarers for what they use, manage traffic settings, maintain cyber security and prevent bandwidth misuse.

“Ship operators want faster and better coverage with hardware that has more features and dynamic selection to block harmful and datahigh applications to mobile devices on vessels,” says Mr Kits van Heyningen.

This is necessary if crew bring their own devices on board, because smartphones and tablets automatically synchronise, download and upload video and images when they identify and connect to a wifi system. “Owners do not want phones to soak up the available bandwidth on a vessel,” Mr Kits van Heyningen continues.

“We provide the ability to disable background traffic or any unwanted traffic for owners.” Background traffic could amount to 50 GB, if sharing Dropbox folders or cloud services, and is something owners need to avoid.

“This can be toggled on or off to slowdown bandwidth use or crew can be asked to pay by the MB,” he says.

“There is no ability to turn this off on the phone, so owners need to disable background traffic.”

Owners can block access to high bandwidth applications, such as streaming services, if they do not want to be stuck with a high bandwidth bill. Operational bandwidth can also be separated from media content distribution.

KVH delivers media content by multicasting it during quiet periods

www.maritimedigitalisation.com

OPINION | 9

on a ship’s broadband. “IP-MobileCast removes media from the network,” says Mr Kits van Heyningen. “It provides news, sports, films and training videos by multicasting it out to the fleet of ships on top of daily communications with no impact on the vessels’ data plans.”

Other bandwidth uses are voice over IP (VoIP) and video conferencing. “We can

provide controlled connectivity for Skype, Facebook and other social media,” he says. “Owners can block access to video chat applications if they do not want to be stuck with a high bill, or provide crew with a way to pay for the bandwidth,” says Mr Kits van Heyningen.

KVH has incorporated iDirect’s technology into its Integrated Commbox Modem (ICM). “This provides crew allocation, communications management, and links to our IP-MobileCast content delivery service,” he explains. It has a VoIP adaptor, network management software, built-in wifi and Ethernet ports.

KVH offers Videotel training films, updates to navigational charts, weather forecasts and corporate video with its media service. Shipowners can use IP-MobileCast to send their own video messages to vessels in the fleet from headquarters. KVH intends to introduce a new media service this year that will integrate content into its overall service.

VSAT technology

Snapshot CV

Martin Kits van Heyningen Since KVH Industries was founded in 1982, Martin Kits van Heyningen has steered the company to become one of the largest providers of VSAT in the maritime sector. Under his leadership, KVH has transformed maritime VSAT with its own series of antennas, below-deck equipment and two networks. It expanded into maritime training content through acquiring Headland Media in 2013 and Videotel in 2014.

Mr Kits van Heyningen is a graduate of Yale University and prior to founding KVH, was a marketing consultant with New England Consulting Group for two years.

www.maritimedigitalisation.com

KVH provides its VSAT services with TracPhone antennas and the ICM belowdeck unit. It runs two VSAT networks for maritime users, one using widebeam Ku-band and the other including spot beams of high-intensity Ku-band from HTS constellations.

Owners can select either a TracPhone V3-HTS VSAT, a 37-cm diameter antenna or a TracPhone V7-HTS unit with a 60-cm diameter antenna. There is also a TracPhone V11-IP antenna with 1.1-m diameter dish.

“Our HTS network is primarily provided by Intelsat’s EpicNG constellation and Sky Perfect JSAT,” says Mr Kits van Heyningen. This includes the Horizons 3e satellite now it is fully commissioned, to provide HTS coverage over the Pacific Ocean and Asia Pacific area.

“We will run the original network for several more years, so we will not force owners to migrate to the HTS network,” he continues. New customers will automatically go on the HTS network and existing clients will be switched over when they decide to replace or

upgrade onboard equipment.

Shipowners can obtain downlink bandwidth of 10 Mbps and uplink speeds of 3 Mbps using TracPhone V7-HTS. “Our TracPhone V3-HTS is smaller than rival L-band terminals, but it can deliver speeds of 5 Mbps down and 2 Mbps on the uplink, making it an economic solution for fishing, workboats and leisure vessels,” says Mr Kits van Heyningen. VSAT

Editor comment:

How to make the right VSAT decision For shipowners yet to adopt VSAT technology, knowing the right technology to invest in is vital. This decision comes down to finding solutions for onboard challenges and issues. Owners need to consider the following questions: • What type of connectivity is needed?

• What will the main applications of VSAT be?

• What is the monthly price per vessel? Is this fixed?

• Will crew assist in meeting the monthly costs for welfare services?

• How much will extra services cost?

• Which VSAT band of radio frequencies should be used – Ku, Ka or both?

• Which provider of L-band back-up should be used?

• How large should the antenna be – 37-cm, 60-cm, 1-m or larger?

• What type of below-deck equipment should be installed?

• Which VSAT supplier provides all this at the optimal cost with the best ongoing services?

• How long will installation take per vessel, across the fleet?

There will be many other questions to answer for more detailed studies into the reasons for selecting a VSAT service and provider, depending on what services owners need, but the above should be an initial checklist.

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

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OPINION | 11

How VSAT saves shipowners money

K

ey drivers in industry-wide VSAT adoption are improving business efficiency, modernising working practices, supporting the wellbeing of crew and attracting and retaining quality seafarers.

Satcom Global chief operating officer Alex Stewart thinks VSAT has led to a fundamental shift in ship connectivity and business interaction between vessels and shore.

VSAT has enabled a host of new applications and is helping shipping companies “work in a different way than they could before” to remain competitive and profitable.

“VSAT allows progress in more timeefficient practices and operations,” says Mr Stewart. “It is helping the maritime community view communications as a longterm investment rather than a one-off cost.”

He explains there is desire to exchange information in real time, while implementing time- and cost-efficient processes. “There is an ongoing shift to paperless business, contributing to greater profitability and sustainability for vessels,” says Mr Stewart.

There are demands for operational data exchange from charterers, logistics chains and regulatory bodies. “Shipping companies are committed to keeping up with advancements in technology to future-proof their vessels,” says Mr Stewart.

There are several operational benefits and enabled applications, including realtime business chat between shore and vessel and downloading content, such as training materials and large files.

“Having access to quality and reliable connectivity for business operations remains a primary requirement in the maritime industry,” says Mr Stewart. Part of that is introducing internet of things (IoT) on board ships.

“We are seeing more data collection and monitoring, as well as real-time automatic transfer from ship to shore,” Mr Stewart explains. This is useful for identifying onboard issues and monitoring machinery.

www.maritimedigitalisation.com

VSAT has driven a fundamental shift in ship connectivity to lower operating costs and improve profitability

Another VSAT application is “the ability to remotely access the vessel IT systems and network from shore,” says Mr Stewart, adding shipmanagers can carry out remote administration of vessels’ computers and software from shore.

“These are all cutting down on requirements for onboard visits for systems maintenance, upgrades and troubleshooting,” says Mr Stewart.

VSAT enables owners and managers to adopt electronic documentation including digital training, record keeping and regulatory compliance.

“We are seeing the benefits of access to video conferencing from sea coming into play, improving team management and business relationships,” says Mr Stewart.

VSAT also improves ship-port interaction with improvements and efficiencies in docking and loading turnaround in port.

“As vessel operators throughout the maritime industry begin to implement new technology, we will likely see a more fundamental shift in order to remain competitive,” says Mr Stewart. “Not least with direct competitors who are embracing a move to digital technology and exploring potential benefits and efficiencies.”

There are drives to maximise real-time working practices in line with the rest of supply chains. “Vessel operators need to aim to be the best to work with, to create a truly competitive service and product for their customers, and to stay ahead of the rest of the industry,” says Mr Stewart.

Flexible connectivity

Sanjay Singam (ITC Global): “Information is critical for operations and reporting”

To remain competitive, vessel owners increasingly need VSAT packages flexible enough to raise and decrease bandwidth and data allowances in parallel with operational requirements.

Inmarsat Maritime vice president for offshore energy Eric Griffin says this is especially the case

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

12 | OPINION

for offshore support vessels (OSVs).

“It is important to be able to upscale and downscale bandwidth over the course of the contract period because every requirement is different, and customers have varied connectivity needs,” he explains.

These personnel require connectivity for operational and social requirements. Some expect access to internet and social media channels and others intend to download media using the vessel's broadband. To accommodate these requirements, owners may need higher bandwidth for weeks or months at a time, says Mr Griffin.

“OSV owners may want to do live video from ROVs and cameras on board, while additional workers may need access to corporate networks,” he says.

“There may be additional monitoring of equipment and the vessel, which all needs increased bandwidth. But, once the project is over, owners may need to downgrade again to basic levels.”

Inmarsat can increase maximum information rates to 10 Mbps over the downlink and 5 Mbps uplink if required through its Fleet Xpress service. This combines connectivity over Ka-band frequencies from the Global Xpress (fifth generation) constellation of geostationary satellites and L-band from FleetBroadband using Inmarsat’s fourthgeneration constellation.

When charterers go on board vessels, owners can either incorporate them into the onboard broadband or offer secondary subscriptions to these clients. These are additional to the basic plans owners have in place and provide another level of flexibility.

“This allows charterers to have their own connection through the same terminal and

OSVs need flexibile satellite communications because the number of people on board can change during contracts. Vessels hired for offshore work often require subcontractors and charterer personnel on board for contracts including: • Survey work.

• Servicing drilling rigs.

• Supporting offshore fixed and floating installations.

• Subsea construction.

• Offshore maintenance work.

• Offshore renewables projects.

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

hardware on the vessel,” says Mr Griffin, adding there needs to be flexibility in this secondary service that “can be extended for as long as vessel operators and charterers need them.”

Some OSV owners install a second terminal to mitigate the risk of losing the signal from satellite beam shadows. Inmarsat offers a dual-antenna solution with two Global Xpress terminals linked, allowing a seamless switch between them, managed by the network service device. “Owners can add switches and wifi points, depending on what the vessel needs over the network,” says Mr Griffin.

Multi-beam redundancy

In addition to adding more terminals, vessel owners should look for redundancy in satellite beams from a VSAT service to prevent lapses in service. This is available if service providers have agreements with different satellite operators and overlapping beams, says ITC Global chief technology officer and vice president of global engineering Sanjay Singam.

“We are leveraging our network to enable shipping operations to be more efficient,” he says. “We want to provide redundancy in the satellite capacity of up to five satellites by investing in infrastructure to be more robust and reliable because information is critical for operations and reporting,” explains Mr Singam.

ITC Global, a subsidiary of Panasonic Avionics, provides VSAT from around 300 beams on 45 satellites worldwide, including high-throughput satellites.

Mr Singam says adopting IoT is one of the business-critical applications of VSAT, for applications such as monitoring machinery and deploying safety equipment.

One application is monitoring lifebuoys and rafts. “Home offices know if lifebouys hit the water and can start rescue operations quicker than having to wait for the captain to phone the office,” says Mr Singam.

Shipping companies could use this information to reduce insurance premiums.

“If liferafts and buoys have not been deployed this could demonstrate their safety records. Lower insurance can be a significant saving for companies.”

This demonstrates that VSAT business applications can create more value than the costs of investing in this connectivity. VSAT

Snapshot CV

Eric Griffin Eric Griffin has more than 18 years of experience in communications, including seven years with Inmarsat.

He worked for Consolidated Communications for seven years prior to becoming manager of engineering sales at Stratos Global from 2007 to 2011. He joined Inmarsat in 2012 and rose through the ranks in enterprise solutions, energy and then in the maritime division. In January 2018 he became vice president of offshore energy.

We want to provide redundancy in the satellite capacity because information is critical for operations and reporting” www.maritimedigitalisation.com

14 | OPERATOR FEEDBACK

Box ship connectivity is critical Owners of container ships see VSAT as essential technology for their business and maritime operations

D

igitalisation of maritime logistics chains is driving investment in VSAT for container ship owners, operators and managers.

VSAT provides connectivity for monitoring and managing vessel operations and containers, while providing bandwidth for crew welfare.

Seaspan, which manages 107 container ships worldwide, selected Ku-band VSAT for its fleet to optimise ship operations and fleet management. It chose KVH Industries VSAT to expand its communications capabilities, enhance crew welfare and support IT operations.

KVH completed installing the VSAT hardware across the fleet in March, including TracPhone V7-HTS and TracPhone V11-IP antennas. These open KVH’s AgilePlans and mini-VSAT Broadband connectivity to the managed vessels in its global fleet.

VSAT was chosen for the end-to-end solution that could be customised for business requirements, says Seaspan manager of process improvement Rajesh Gopinathan. He explains that Ku-band VSAT is “helping our business succeed”.

“We see the VSAT solution as critical to our business operations,” says Mr Gopinathan. This includes 24/7 support. “KVH assists us in continuously improving the features and functions as our business requirements change.”

Seaspan invested in VSAT to improve welfare and media delivery to its 4,500 employees. Seaspan executive vice president of ship management Torsten Holst Pedersen says close communications between seafarers on these vessel and shore offices is a key aspect of successful ship operation.

“We can keep seafarers abreast of current initiatives and updates in the company,” he says.

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

IP MobileCast delivers news, sport, entertainment and operational content to seafarers on Seaspan ships

Seaspan subscribes its ships to KVH’s IP-MobileCast content delivery service that multicasts news, sports, entertainment and operations content to the vessels. It uses IP-MobileCast to send custom video messages to the managed fleet once a month to instruct and encourage seafarers.

“We recognise that video is a particularly effective format for this communication,” says Mr Pedersen.

“We plan to use it increasingly as a communication channel, both to deliver dynamic content and to conduct calls.”

Seaspan’s monthly operational update videos highlight accomplishments, convey safety information and discuss critical operational topics.

KVH installed CommBox network management devices on Seaspan vessels. These have integrated tools for managing separated onboard networks for operations and crew, email servers and firewall facilitating remote IT management, least-cost routeing and bandwidth management.

KVH installed TracPhone V7-HTS, 60-cm diameter Ku-band VSAT antennas that deliver data speeds up to 10 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload.

These have two services: a high-speed

data channel and an unlimited-use data channel. Some Seaspan ships had TracPhone V11-IP, 1-m diameter dual-band antennas that connect with satellites over C-band and Ku-band.

Another container ship operator, Nordic Hamburg, has installed KVH’s VSAT hardware and connectivity for faster operational communications and crew welfare. Nordic Hamburg operations and insurance manager Jacobus Varossieau says VSAT AgilePlans provides flexibility in communications for its fleet.

Nordic Hamburg uses network management solutions, fast data speed and crew welfare services on the vessels.

“This solution enables us to offer our customers exceptional value and connectivity,” says Mr Varossieau. “This applies to both our operational efficiency as well as offering our valued crew fast, effective, and reliable communications.”

VSAT enables Nordic Hamburg to adopt more digitalisation applications across its fleet. “We now have a service that helps us future-proof our shipboard communications in line with today’s digital demands.” VSAT

CONTAINER SHIP CONNECTIVITY BENEFITS

• Improves operational efficiency • Ship monitoring/management • Container information • Digitalisation applications • Crew welfare • IT remote management • Bandwidth management • Segregated operations/crew VSAT channels • Conveys safety video information • Communications with clients

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OPERATOR FEEDBACK | 15

Why tanker owners invest in VSAT Teekay, Euronav and Transpetro have upgraded VSAT to adopt digitalisation and provide better connectivity for seafarers

V

SAT connectivity enables tanker owners to adopt new digitalisation applications in a cyber-secure ecosystem to improve ship efficiency and reduce operational costs. VSAT also provides better crew communications and welfare services, improving seafarer recruitment and retention.

Which is why Teekay upgraded VSAT connectivity and services on its fleet of tankers this year. It selected NSSLGlobal to update VSAT and incorporate Cruise Control+, CrewVision and Insight value-added services for a fleet of more than 100 ships.

Teekay strategic development contract and category specialist Deborah Sloan says this technology renewal enhances operations and communications on these tankers. “This upgrade will help us to eliminate some of the challenges created by digitalisation,” she explains. “And VSAT gives us more freedom to focus on each vessel’s operational and crew welfare priorities.”

Improving security and reducing administration were reasons for adding new services to this contract. “Cyber security assurance and IT-managed services are provided by the Cruise Control+ upgrade,” Ms Sloan says.

Teekay’s tankers have Ku-band and C-band VSAT, with L-band as a back-up, through NSSLGlobal’s VSAT IP@Sea service.

Virtualised Cruise Control+ provides Teekay with seamless integration of communications, entertainment and IT services on board its tankers, with embedded virtual private networks and integrated unified threat management.

Euronav turned to Satcom Global’s Aura VSAT for its fleet of crude carriers to improve crew communications and internet access on its ships. It has optimised tanker connectivity and improved reliability with 99.5% uptime on VSAT coverage, says Euronav group IT

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manager Rudi Vander Eyken.

“Crew welfare is of great importance to Euronav, and the improved onboard connectivity VSAT brings is a big step forward for our crew offering,” he explains.

“We installed a solution that provides the optimal VSAT connection in terms of consistent service availability and reliability,” Mr Eyken continues. “With service quality guaranteed, we know our crew enjoy an excellent user experience.”

This is despite Euronav prioritising communications for tanker operations and client reporting requirements over crew welfare connectivity. “There is no detriment to the connectivity required for the operational demands of our vessels,” says Mr Eyken. “VSAT is helping us deliver on our promises and Satcom Global is committed to the ongoing development of the service as our needs grow.”

Brazilian state energy group Petrobras’ tanker operating subsidiary Transpetro started upgrading its shipboard VSAT last year to use high-throughput satellite (HTS) connectivity.

This was made possible after Intelsat commissioned EpicNG satellites with Ku-band spot beams over South America in 2017. KVH Industries provided the VSAT services, TracPhone V7-HTS antennas and below-deck equipment.

Transpetro chief information officer Jose Ricardo Esses says this connectivity “will enable us to improve operational efficiency and provide crew welfare” on these tankers.

“Another deciding factor in choosing VSAT was the ease of having one provider for the complete connectivity solution,” he adds.

VSAT is being installed on 45 Transpetrooperated tankers, a mixture of newbuilds and existing tankers, over a 12-month period in Brazil. VSAT

Teekay

(NSSLGlobal VSAT) adopt digitalisation cyber security assurance IT management prioritise operations

Euronav

(Satcom Global VSAT) improve communications reliability enhance crew experience tanker internet access

Transpetro (KVH VSAT)

adopt digitalisation crew welfare ease of use

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

16 | OPERATOR FEEDBACK

How to attract the best seafarers Shipmanagers highlight the importance of VSAT to crew welfare, connectivity and efficient vessel operations

Integrating their VSAT systems with robust cyber security software is a must”

S

eafarers look for full internet access when deciding which vessel to work on. Mariners are becoming more selective and connectivity provisions are a major deciding factor. Which is why shipowners, managers and operators with VSAT installed have an advantage when recruiting and retaining the best-trained and competent seafarers.

It is cost-effective and business-efficient to retain a happy crew as there is a lower turnover of staff, reduced recruitment costs and training requirements. Crew retention is increasingly important as managers tackle the challenges of an ageing workforce and recruiting seafarers to crew new ships entering their fleets.

Seafarers want to use their own devices on vessels in the privacy of their own cabins during their off-duty time for social media and family communications.

This connectivity needs to be costeffective and cyber secure, says Thome Group president and chief commercial officer Claes Eek Thorstensen.

“To attract the best calibre of seafarer, shipmanagers need to provide uninterrupted connectivity on board,” he tells Maritime Digitalisation & Communications. “The VSAT providers that can offer this at affordable prices will ultimately win a lot of business from the world fleet.”

It is not just VSAT investment required.

Ships should also have infrastructure that supports wireless communications in the accommodation, at least in common areas and preferably with access in seafarer cabins.

“A key requirement which many ship operators and managers need from VSAT providers is a fully integrated crew wifi element in all onboard systems,” says Mr Thorstensen.

Wifi stations around a ship can be linked to onboard VSAT through a dedicated router or an integrated modem device in the belowdeck electronics rack.

Seafarers use the wireless network to

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

Claes Eek Thorstensen (Thome): “Shipmanagers need to provide uninterrupted connectivity on board”

access social media, internet applications and media content. “As mostly millennial crew members, having grown up in the digital age, they want full internet access at sea just like they have come to expect when they are ashore,” says Mr Thorstensen.

His colleague, Thome Group chief marine human resources officer Hanus Mikkelsen, highlights the importance of vessel connectivity for seafarer wellbeing. He says onboard connectivity “allows seafarers to keep in contact with their loved ones and keep updated on what is going on back home”.

Seafarers want to use email, news services in their native languages, educational media, voice over IP, live messaging and electronic banking. For entertainment media, vessel owners can download films, video and prerecorded sporting events to ships.

Owners can segregate crew communications from the operational requirements of the ship’s broadband and request that seafarers pay for

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OPERATOR FEEDBACK | 17

the bandwidth they use for social media, live messaging and online applications.

An essential requirement for shipowners and managers is that connectivity should remain cyber secure, regardless of the applications seafarers use. “Providers must not lose sight of the fact that in making ships connected there must be safeguards in place against cyber attacks,” says Mr Thorstensen.

“Integrating their VSAT systems with robust cyber security software is a must.”

The need for secure connectivity and crew internet access was highlighted by V Group chief commercial officer Martin Gaard Christiansen at Riviera Maritime Media’s Annual Offshore Support Journal Conference, held in London in February this year.

Mr Christiansen said vessel owners and managers need to focus on the latest crewing issues, including rising demand for better connectivity, maintaining onboard safety and adopting more digital applications. He believes owners need to “respond to market changes and optimise vessel performance” to remain competitive, which can be achieved by retaining well-trained and experienced crew that can operate vessels effectively and safely.

Mr Christiansen believes a challenge faced by vessel owners and managers in a competitive market is using vessel connectivity to adopt ship intelligence and data analytics delivered through cyber-secure VSAT.

Efficient shipmanagement

Shipmanagers use VSAT to operate their clients’ vessels safely, efficiently and profitably. They use business applications enabled by VSAT, including updating navigation systems with the latest charts and weather forecasts, data monitoring and

managing onboard software.

VSAT helps shipmanagers deliver value and effective management to clients, says MSI Ship Management head Sanjay Ramnathan. “VSAT is helping us achieve this by providing us with a dependable and highperformance communications service for safe and efficient business operations.”

Mr Ramnathan says VSAT services need to be cost effective and competitively priced for vessel operators, managers, and seafarers who may be expected to pay for the connectivity. MSI uses Satcom Global’s Aura VSAT on ships it manages, which he says is “at a very competitive price”. Mr Ramnathan expects this Ku-band VSAT will be installed on more ships as they are added to the MSImanaged fleet later this year.

Providing value to shipowners and welfare for crew are also reasons why Zodiac Maritime uses VSAT on board ships it operates. Communication needs to be reliable, consistent and without restrictions or delay to be valuable to both operator and crew.

Zodiac provides VSAT as it values the workforce on the ships it manages and charters in. “We have a responsibility to ensure the welfare of our clients’ valued workforce and we appreciate that access to communications is a key part of that,” says an unnamed Zodiac vessel manager. “We want the crew we manage to be able to communicate with the wider world without restriction or delay.”

VSAT also provides Zodiac with technical advantages on its ships as it can monitor performance, optimise efficiency and maintain the expectations of its customers. “It is essential that technology on board our vessels performs to the highest standard and we are happy with our VSAT choice,” says the manager. VSAT

VSAT delivers consistent connectivity to seafarers Parakou Shipping invested in VSAT for the vessels it manages to provide stable and effective crew welfare.

Parakou fleet director Moh Chong Boon says Ku-band VSAT provides seafarers with the online experience they increasingly expect on ships.

“An important driver in our adoption of VSAT was to provide our crew with reliable and consistent connectivity,” he says. “A guaranteed information rate commitment gave us confidence the crew will have an improved experience while sailing for extended periods.”

VSAT services are supported by Satcom Global, which supports the fleet manager’s migration to Aura services. “VSAT is already making a huge difference to vessel connectivity,” says Mr Moh Chong Boon, who expects to install more terminals this year.

LEFT: A fleet of ships are lined up with Aura VSAT on board for improved communications (source: Satcom Global)

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The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

18 | SATELLITES

Combining the benefits of multi-orbit VSAT Investing in GEO and MEO satellites will deliver improved broadband connectivity for cruise and commercial shipping to meet requirements from crew, passengers and operations

Thales-Alenia Space built O3b satellites for SES at its Rome facilities

S We have already placed SES-12, SES-14 and SES-15 into service and we are investing in SES-17”

ES is launching new geostationary (GEO) and medium Earth orbit (MEO) satellites to deliver faster throughput and bandwidth for cruise, offshore and maritime markets.

It operates a fleet of GEO satellites worldwide that provide connectivity to ships in C-band and Ku-band. SES also has 16 O3b MEO satellites that provide high-throughput broadband in Ka-band, with four new MEO satellites launched in March 2019.

Investment in the GEO satellites has focused on building a high-throughput satellite (HTS) network to cover the main areas of activity in maritime and other sectors. SES maritime segment leader Greg Martin explains to Maritime Digitalisation & Communications that this has included launching three HTSs and investing in a fourth. “We have already placed SES-12, SES-14 and SES-15 into service and we are investing in SES-17,” he says.

SES-12 was launched in June 2018 to

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

provide Ku-band spot beams in the Asia Pacific region. Others were launched out of sequence with SES-15 introduced in 2017 for high-throughput coverage over North America. SES-14 was launched in January 2018 to deliver Ku-band to Latin America.

“These provide North and South America coverage, up to Alaska, and some over the North Atlantic,” says Mr Martin.

He explains that the coverage in Alaska will become more important as new expedition cruise ships head into those waters with passengers looking to upload holiday photos and video, and use social media.

“This will expand the frontier of opportunity through satellite technology,” he explains.

SES-17 will be the next GEO satellite SES commissions. This will provide Ka-band spot beams over the Americas after its launch, expected in 2021.

This additional satellite capacity will be crucial for maritime as bandwidth demand is rising due to crew welfare, passenger and

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SATELLITES | 19

operational requirements and increasing use of internet of things (IoT) technology on ships.

“Ships are becoming online offices and with IoT, more systems will be connected for centralised monitoring for fuel management and condition monitoring,” says Mr Martin.

“Crew welfare will be a growth driver in VSAT for connecting seafarers to family, friends, their companies and online training, which is important for crew retention.”

He explains that SES is also investing in the O3b MEO network for current maritime and cruise market needs, and for the longterm future. “This is a period of tremendous growth, with demand rising very rapidly.”

There are 16 MEO satellites in orbit and the last four have arrived in Kourou, French Guiana, to be launched by Arianespace by the end of March. “It will take time to place these in their orbital position. We expect these to be online in H2 2019,” says Mr Martin.

“We have seen unprecedented demand for MEO; these will provide additional capacity in main demand areas.” For cruise lines this will provide additional capacity in the Caribbean, Mediterranean and Asia Pacific.

MDC witnessed these four remaining O3b satellites being tested at Thales Alenia Space’s factory in Rome, Italy, in December 2018.

At that time, SES executive vice president for technology programs and innovation Stewart Sanders discussed how the GEO and MEO constellations complement each other for cruise ship connectivity.

“GEO has good geographic coverage, while MEO has low latency, reduced by two-thirds compared with GEO,” he told MDC. Both constellations deliver point-topoint linkage that cloud services, used for uploading and downloading media, require.

A downside to the O3b MEO constellation is its coverage, which is from the Equator to +/-50˚ latitude. which includes the main cruise-ship hotspots, such

as the Caribbean, Mediterranean and most of the Asia routes.

Mr Sanders said the final four satellites to the constellation should extend the coverage to higher latitudes of the northern and southern hemispheres to around 55˚.

However, outside this coverage ships need to fall back to GEO constellations, which extend to +/-70˚ latitude.

Ships using both constellations will require multi-band and multi-orbit antennas.

For example, Carnival Corp’s Princess Cruise line is currently deploying MedallionNet, an exclusive feature of Medallion-class ships, which uses SES’s O3b MEO and GEO satellite constellations, and has installed tri-band antennas on its vessels. These are at least 2.4 m in diameter and operate in Ku-band and C-band for GEO coverage and Ka-band when ships are within the O3b MEO satellite service areas.

SES Networks pioneered Royal Caribbean Cruises’ Zoom internet service and has recently announced MSC Cruises’ new mega-build ships will be powered by SES Networks Signature maritime solution, using the latest innovation in dual-band antennas on its ships for seamless connection between all satellite bands.

For the long term, SES investments will focus on the next generation of MEO satellites, O3b mPower. Boeing Satellite Systems has started engineering and fabricating seven MEO satellites to be launched in 2021.

These satellites will have phased-array and beam-forming capabilities. This constellation will have over 30,000 fully shapeable and steerable beams that can be shifted and switched in real time to align with shipping’s quickly changing growth opportunities.

O3b mPower will provide coverage to an area of nearly 400M km2, which represents four-fifths of the Earth’s surface. VSAT

Snapshot CV

Greg Martin Greg Martin is maritime segment leader for SES and has more than 20 years of experience in information technology. He previously worked with SES Networks and was director of IT operations for Royal Caribbean International, where he was instrumental in leveraging satellite connectivity for guest experience maximisation.

FUTURE SATELLITE CAPACITY AND FLEET UPDATE – COMMITTED LAUNCH SCHEDULE Satellite

Region

Application

Launch Date

SES-12

Asia-Pacific

Video, fixed data, mobility

Jun-18

SES-14

Latin America

Video, fixed data, mobility

Jan-18

O3b (satellites 13-16)

Global

Fixed data, mobility, government

Mar-18

O3b (satellites 17-20)

Global

Fixed data, mobility, government

Mar-19

Americas

Fixed data, mobility, government

2021

Global

Fixed data, mobility, government

2021

SES-17 O3b mPower (satellites 1-7)

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The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

Thor 7 was built with 30 spot beams and one steerable beam of Ka-band

20 | SATELLITES

New platform will treble vessel VSAT throughput Downlink bandwidth to ships will be boosted to 100 Mbps on Ka-band following an upgrade to modems and VSAT technology

T

elenor Satellite is launching a new platform over its Ka-band coverage to almost treble bandwidth capabilities to vessels. This will boost capacity from 35 Mbps at present to 100 Mbps to a single ship.

The Norway-headquartered satellite owner has been ploughing its own technology route in maritime VSAT. It operates a regional Ka-band service from the Thor 7 satellite over Europe and the north Atlantic that stretches from the Mediterranean to the Arctic.

Telenor Satellite director of data services Jan Hetland explains

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

to Maritime Digitalisation & Communications why the company is upgrading its VSAT platform to deliver more bandwidth to seafarers and guests on cruise ships and ferries.

“Our highest profile on Ka-band is with 35 Mbps downlink and 6 Mbps uplink,” he explains. “We are pushing the boundaries of the current platform and will launch a Newtec Dialog platform early Q3 this year to keep up with rising requirements from offshore vessels, ferries and yachts.”

This new platform will “be able to achieve more than 100 Mbps using

selected beams on Thor 7”. This will increase capacity for voice, data, email and internet communications.

“Our current customers have a mix of requirements. There is increasing demand on our network for social media applications such as Facebook and YouTube. It can represent more than 50% of the traffic,” he says, adding that voice over IP is also an important application over Ka-band VSAT. Thor 7 provides broadband communications coverage primarily for maritime from Svalbard, Norway and over the Barents, Norwegian and Kara seas. Coverage stretches over the north Atlantic, west of Iceland to south Greenland and to Newfoundland after Telenor Satellite switched beams from the Middle East. “We also have excellent coverage in the Mediterranean

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SATELLITES | 21

and Black Sea,” says Mr Hetland.

The passenger vessel sector is the biggest market for Thor 7 in terms of data usage, while the fishing sector has the largest number of connected vessels.

Telenor Satellite is a leading provider of communications on ferries sailing north European routes and delivers Ka-band VSAT connectivity to several ferry lines in the Mediterranean as well.

“We expect to add more ferries to Ka-band in the months ahead,” says Mr Hetland. “Passengers need more bandwidth and wifi is being rolled out on ferries. These vessels also need VSAT for their own office requirements.

Passenger traffic is driving growth and for that reason, Telenor Satellite needed to invest in the new platform.”

Thor 7 also delivers VSAT to a growing number of offshore support vessels (OSVs) with around 70 using the Ka-band service, and at least another 30 expected to sign up. Telenor Satellite initially encountered barriers to entering the OSV market as owners were reluctant to replace existing Ku-band VSAT hardware.

“But in the past 12 months, we have tripled the number of OSVs going on Ka-band,” says Mr Hetland. “As more equipment is replaced and vessels are upgraded we are seeing more OSVs selecting Ka-band and replacing the old Ku-band antenna.” This is for OSVs including platform supply vessels, crew boats, anchor handlers and offshore

Telenor Satellite fleet

Thor 7 – has a Ku-band payload and a high-throughput Ka-band payload of 30 spot beams for maritime VSAT. Thor 10-02 – owned jointly with Intelsat with Ku-band transponders over Europe and the Middle East.

Thor 6 – with 36 Ku-band transponders over Scandinavia, central and eastern Europe.

Thor 5 – with 24 Ku-band transponders over Scandinavia, Europe and the Middle East.

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windfarm support vessels.

“Offshore vessel owners want robust quality of service, but with good value for money,” he continues.

“Our contended services are priced significantly lower than comparable single channel per carrier services while providing near the same quality.”

Telenor Satellite has also added small fleets of oceangoing and coastal tugs to its VSAT services. “We were surprised to see VSAT demand from small tugs and workboats as they usually operate close to shore and we thought they would not consider VSAT,” Mr Hetland says.

Fishing vessel VSAT

There has also been considerable growth in the number of fishing vessels connected over Thor 7. This is partially because vessel owners need to comply with European regulations, reporting fishing quotas, and need to react quickly to customer requirements.

“Fishing operators need to produce catch reports and this is a driver for installing VSAT,” says Mr Hetland.

“We hear fishing factory vessels want to tailor what they deliver to shore. They need real-time information about requests from customers, such as the number of boxes of different fish needed. This is sent over satellite communications as data from onboard equipment that is increasingly monitored from shore.”

Remote monitoring is a growing trend for all vessel types as fleet managers consider managing operations in real time. “VSAT is used for remote monitoring, maintenance and configuring systems,” says Mr Hetland. Suppliers use VSAT to remotely connect to onboard systems for diagnostics and remote maintenance.

Security and safety concerns can also be addressed using VSAT. “There is more CCTV on vessels with video sent over VSAT, enabling people onshore to see what is happening on board,” he explains.

Telenor Satellite also provides Ku-band connectivity for maritime

users, primarily through its part ownership in the Thor 10-02 satellite, which has coverage from the Indian Ocean up to the seas around Svalbard. It also uses third-party satellite beams to provide Ku-band coverage. The Norwegian business operates a teleport outside Oslo for maritime VSAT and broadcast services across Scandinavia.

Anker VSAT

During Q4 2018, Telenor Satellite introduced Anker Ka-band VSAT with three products – Anker Speed, Quota and Custom. These provide different elements to meet variable vessel operator requirements. Anker Speed provides a guaranteed committed information rate (CIR) with the ability to rapidly increase bandwidth for a short period, with bursts up to 24 Mbps download and 6 Mbps upload.

Anker Quota is for owners who need a fixed amount of data each month in one package, with the ability to add more. It offers quotas in 5, 10 or 25 GB, with top-up packages of 5-200 GB available if required, Anker product manager Geir Anders Varanes explains.

“When owners reach 50% or 90% usage they will be notified by email that they need to top up,” he says.

“Speed will be reduced down to CIR, unless owners top-up the quota after spending their monthly amount.”

Telenor Satellite then introduced a customised version for vessel operators that need more capacity than offered by the Quota and Speed products.

These include operators of offshore and research vessels with high data transmission requirements that need large data packages.

“Anker Custom provides full flexibility and the possibility to create a profile suitable for any requirement,” says Mr Varanes. This can include symmetric and asymmetric profiles for vessel owners. “The Speed and Quota products were created to fit the most common use cases. Custom products with full flexibility have a higher overhead and will be slightly more expensive.” VSAT

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

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SATELLITES | 23

HTS constellation completed with final satellite launch The EpicNG highthroughput satellite constellation will enable shipowners to implement IoT, retain crew and implement vessel monitoring

BELOW: Horizons 3e delivers faster connectivity to shipping around Asia and in the Pacific (source: Intelsat)

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I

ntelsat completed its EpicNG high-throughput satellite (HTS) network in March, commissioning the Horizons 3e (H3e) satellite. This enables ships to remain under spot beams of highintensity Ku-band around major shipping routes worldwide.

H3e provides Ku-band spot beams around Asia-Pacific maritime areas and completes Intelsat’s EpicNG phase one constellation, says Intelsat director of maritime Shane Rossbacher.

“It is the last one of this generation,” he tells Maritime Digitalisation & Communications. “Our EpicNG 1.0 constellation is completed. Now we are looking at the design of satellites for EpicNG 2.0.”

Boeing built the H3e satellite, which was launched on 25 September 2018 on an Ariane 5 vehicle from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana into an orbital slot at 169ºE. It has both C-band and Ku-band payloads to deliver faster

connectivity to the region and is jointly operated by Intelsat and Sky Perfect JSAT Corp.

Intelsat has five other EpicNG satellites providing spot beams of Ku-band over the Americas, Atlantic Ocean, Africa, Europe, the Indian Ocean and the Southern Ocean. H3e completes this constellation with coverage over the Pacific, East China Sea, South China Sea, Malacca Strait and the eastern side of the Indian Ocean.

H3e has more advanced technology than the first satellite, IS-29e, commissioned in 2016, says Mr Rossbacher. EpicNG 2.0 satellites will have the latest technology for more flexibility in Ku-band coverage.

“We are looking at softwaredefined satellites that will allow us to reshape and refocus satellite beams,” he explains. “We will be able to focus coverage to where it is needed.” This will enable Intelsat to provide focused coverage for one end-user, such as a cruise ship, or to focus connectivity for maritime areas of high demand.

Intelsat will continue to invest in traditional widebeam satellites as it replaces older units or provides more maritime VSAT coverage. Mr Rossbacher says the next satellite to be brought into service will be IS 39. It is scheduled to be launched this year to extend widebeam coverage over the Indian Ocean. There are 12 HTS and widebeam satellites in Intelsat’s network providing substantial ocean coverage “and we will be adding to this network as it expands” he adds.

Mr Rossbacher thinks it is important for all maritime end-users to have multiple satellite beams, including a mixture of wide and spot beams, to

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

24 | SATELLITES

maintain connectivity. “We want to have multi-layers of satellite coverage to provide depth and resilience and prevent ships having line-of-sight blockages,” he explains.

HTS applications

This is increasingly important for shipowners and managers as they invest in internet of things (IoT) technology and vessel monitoring across their fleets. “Bandwidth and connectivity to ships means savings on fuel and port stays,” says Mr Rossbacher. Owners can use data from vessels to make more informed decisions on routeing, machinery performance, reducing fuel costs and optimising time in port.

“When owners rely on this

Snapshot CV:

Shane Rossbacher Shane Rossbacher has more than 25 years of maritime satellite communications experience. He is Intelsat’s director of maritime and is responsible for a portfolio that includes the Flex Maritime platform.

He previously held leadership roles at Globe Wireless and Rydex, and was Inmarsat’s vice president of business development and portfolio management for maritime.

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

Operations would be put at risk if the satellite coverage was not there” connectivity for IoT, these operations would be put at risk if the satellite coverage was not there,” Mr Rossbacher warns. Which is why there are choices in beam coverage. “We can provide another satellite beam to prevent the ship from falling back to L-band,” he says.

Owners can have two Ku-band antennas on board for additional redundancy, in case vessels are operated in beam shadows such as close to an offshore drilling rig or platform.

Mr Rossbacher says owners are increasingly investing in VSAT for IoT and vessel monitoring, for better reporting and compliance with regulations, and for improving crew welfare and retention. “Shipowners can make savings from crew retention,” he says. There are lower recruitment and training costs if seafarers are retained.

“Owners and managers do not want crew to be dissatisfied,” Mr Rossbacher continues. “Seafarers are being more selective of which ships they will serve on.” Ship connectivity is a major differentiator.

Intelsat provides ship VSAT through service providers and does not go direct to the end-user, says Mr Rossbacher. It can offer single channel per carrier or time division multiple access depending on end-user requirements. It offers widebeam Ku-band with service providers leasing gigabytes of capacity on satellite beams. Intelsat also provides services through its Flex Maritime service, which is based on the iDirect Velocity platform and includes the EpicNG spot beams.

Its Flex Maritime customers include KVH Industries, Navarino and KDDI in Japan. VSAT

Additional satellite investments Other maritime VSAT satellite operators are also investing in their fleets.

• Telesat brought Telstar 18 Vantage HTS into service in Q1 2019 after it was launched in September 2018. It provides C-band and Ku-band wide beams across Asia and the Pacific and spot beams of high-intensity Ku-band focused over Indonesia and Malaysia.

Telstar 18 Vantage was built by Maxar Technologies and launched

by SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket in Florida, US. It provides coverage from southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand, across the Pacific Ocean to Hawaii and Alaska. Telstar will next launch Telstar Vantage 19 to offer Ku-band widebeam and Ka-band spot beams over the North Atlantic, South America and the Caribbean.

• Eutelsat is planning to launch two satellites in Q2 2019. Eutelsat 7C will provide Ku-band coverage over the Middle East, Turkey and Africa.

Eutelsat 5 West B will deliver Ku beams over Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Eutelsat is scheduled to start operating its first Quantum and Konnect satellites in 2020 if they are launched as planned by year-end.

In 2018, Eutelsat signed a multi-transponder contract with an unnamed service provider on multiple satellites for capacity dedicated to maritime connectivity. It relocated and renamed the 33C satellite 133 West A, sold its interest in 25B satellite to Es’hailSat and de-orbited 59A. Together with Yahsat, Eutelsat also started operating the Al Yah 3 satellite to provide connectivity over Africa.

• Viasat has ordered three new satellites from Boeing Satellite Systems for a global constellation it is building. The first ViaSat-3 satellites will be launched by SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket after a contract was announced in 2018. The third ViaSat-3 satellite, ordered in 2018, will serve the Asia Pacific region.

www.maritimedigitalisation.com

Tanker Shipping & Trade

Conference | Awards | Exhibition 26-27 November 2019, London

The Tanker Shipping & Trade Conference, Awards & Exhibition returns on 26-27 November at the Amba Hotel, Marble Arch, London.

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After several false starts the tanker market looks like it is climbing out of the recovery phase of the shipping cycle and entering the foothills of the next boom phase. But, the regulatory hurdles are approaching fast, and the November 2019 Tanker Shipping & Trade Conference will be the last before the IMO 2020 global sulphur cap is introduced on 1 January 2020. By November 2019, owners and operators will be completing their fuel compliance preparations and looking to share and learn from their peers.

This combination means that Riviera’s Tanker Shipping & Trade Conference, Awards & Exhibition is a must-attend for anyone operating or associated with tankers.

What the industry says: “Very useful content – issues were addressed head-on and solutions proposed” Sanjay Patil, Eaglestar “Excellent range of topics covered in sufficient depth by experts” Faisal Al-Thinsseini, Bahri Chemicals “Well organised, informative and good networking” Gordon Cooper, Future Care

Visit www.tankershippingconference.com or for more information please contact Chris Tims on +44 20 8370 7015 or at chris.tims@rivieramm.com

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26 | ANTENNA TECHNOLOGY

Tri-band antennas enable multi-orbit connectivity VSAT antenna technology connects ships to geostationary, medium- and lowEarth orbit satellite constellations

v240MT particulars Manufacturer: Intellian Reflector diameter: 2.4 m Radome height: 4.3 m Radome diameter: 3.9 m Weight: 880 kg Elevation range: -15˚ to +120˚ Bands: C, Ku, Ka Power requirement: 100-240 V AC, 50~60 Hz Transmit frequencies: 5.856.43 GHz /13.75-14.5 GHz /27.5-30.0 GHz Receive frequencies: 3.634.2 GHz /10.7-12.8 GHz /17.720.2 GHz BUC power: C-band 100-250 W, Ku-band 40-125 W, Kaband 40 W

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hips need antenna technology to connect to satellites in different orbits for seamless connectivity worldwide and lower latency. Antenna manufacturers have recognised this growing requirement by developing dual- and tri-band terminals.

These can connect to medium Earth orbit (MEO) and geostationary constellations of satellites in C-, Ku- and Ka-band. In the future they will also transmit and receive from low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites.

Intellian has installed tri-band antennas on cruise ships for C-, Ka- and Ku-band VSAT requirements, says vice president for global marketing Paul Comyns. “We now have the capability to offer not only tri-band operation, but also reliable links to satellites in different orbits,” he explains to Maritime Digitalisation & Communications.

“This allows us to provide a single antenna that essentially does it all, ultimately providing flexibility and futureproofing for our service provider partners and end-users.”

Intellian’s first tri-band and multi-orbit antenna is the v240MT, which has a single 2.4-m reflector and an intelligent mediator for auto-switching between bands and satellite orbits.

“For vessels sailing globally, having compatibility with global and regional services on all VSAT frequencies can save significant amounts of time and money by streamlining deployment,” says Mr Comyns.

“The added ability to use MEO and geostationary satellites gives access to a wider scope of services for more choice.”

He thinks orbital spread is important for future development of digitalisation and cloud-based operations in maritime.

“Hybrid networks which combine multiple frequencies and orbits are the optimal way to keep a vessel connected,” says Mr Comyns. He expects hybrid networks to grow as more MEO and LEO constellations

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Intellian v240MT antennas were installed on Carnival cruise ships

are commissioned.

“Non-geostationary satellites will bring significant benefits to maritime service providers and users, not least much lower latency than we experience today,” says Mr Comyns.

“We are very close to the nongeostationary sector, through our development of antennas for land Earth stations, and this knowledge is being transferred to our maritime antennas, considering the v240MT’s multi-orbit capabilities.”

Outside of multi-band, Intellian developed a new generation of standardised antennas for simplified installation and servicing. It is introducing new antenna designs based on the Intellian NX platform, including v85NX

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available now and 1-m and 1.5-m diameter NX systems coming in Q2 2019.

“NX antennas are built with fewer parts than previous generations, making them lighter and therefore easier to handle and lower cost to ship,” says Mr Comyns.

“They share many of the same components, regardless of size or radio frequency (RF), enabling service providers to reduce spare-part inventory by at least 30%, alleviating cost, storage and logistical burdens.”

He says the NX platform addresses challenges at the installation phase, including reducing cabling requirements. “Autocommissioning, a single cable, and a reliable step-by-step installation wizard saves time and money and ensures a quality installation for faultless operation at sea.”

Intellian improved RF performance and the Ku-band feed on v85NX. It enhanced the pedestal and damping structure for vibration and shock on NX antennas. It redesigned the graphical user interface, Aptus NX, for all antennas with a built-in spectrum analyser, logging system and preventative maintenance indication.

Intellian also introduced a high-power variant of the 1-m Ka-band maritime terminal in 2018, which is type-approved for use on Inmarsat’s Global Xpress network. This GX100 variant has a 10-W block up-converter (BUC) and enables upload speeds of 5 Mbps and over 10 Mbps download capability on the Fleet Xpress service.

There is an upgrade kit for operators that want to retrofit existing GX100 antennas.

“We can offer standard or customised antenna versions, including military-spec variants, larger BUC sizes and higherpowered antennas for Global Xpress,” says Mr Comyns.

Illuminated apertures

Cobham Satcom has developed a tri-band capable 2.4-m diameter maritime antenna.

Sea Tel 2400 can be a single C-band, dual- or tri-band antenna as required by cruise ships and offshore energy users. “This system has a number of key upgrades, most notably the ability to stretch from single to tri-band, as well as the software architecture to support it,” says Cobham Satcom vice president for maritime Christian Kock.

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Sea Tel 9711 IMA particulars Manufacturer: Cobham Satcom Reflector diameter: 2.4 m Radome diameter: 3.7 m Response rate: 100˚/sec Elevation range: -15˚ to +110˚ Bands: C, Ku, X Transmit frequencies: 5.856.75 GHz /13.75-14.5 GHz Receive frequencies: 3.4-4.2 GHz /10.7-12.8 GHz Ship motion: +/- 25° roll, +/25° pitch

Cobham Satcom designed Sea Tel 2400 based on the 9711 antenna

Christian Kock (Cobham Satcom): “Primary illumination occurs in C-band, with both Ku- and Ka-bands ‘bounced’ off independent sub-reflectors”

Sea Tel 2400 has a 2.4-m illuminated aperture in all three bands (C, Ku and wideband Ka) “essentially leaving all options on the table for future consideration,” he says.

Its mechanical design supports up to four independent 160-W Ka-band amplifiers “mounted close to the feed for maximum efficiency, covering all potential polarisations” says Mr Kock.

This is required to support LEO, MEO and highly elliptical orbit satellites that are planned to provide VSAT coverage in polar regions. “With the coming stampede of mega-constellations set to launch in 2022, the focus has been on ensuring the system is future-proof,” says Mr Kock.

Cobham used the Sea Tel 9711 IMA antenna technology to develop the 2400 series, including RF solutions exceeding 2 kW in amplifier power.

“Meaning primary illumination occurs in C-band, with both Ku- and Ka-bands ‘bounced’ off independent sub-reflectors,” Mr Kock explains, adding this design resulted from “extensive analysis of multiband RF characteristics”.

The beam-width produced by a 2.4-m antenna is much narrower at Ku-band than it is at C-Band. “This means that even a small pointing error (of +/-0.1⁰ typical for maritime VSATs) for a Ku-band antenna will result in a higher level of cross-polarisation interference than the same single reflector antenna

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28 | ANTENNA TECHNOLOGY

operating at C-band.”

Satellite operators generally limit RF power into antennas with poor cross-polerisation isolation (CPI) to avoid causing interference among different users operating on the same satellite at different polarisations.

“This translates to either reduced quality of service to the user or increased cost in resource to the operator,” says Mr Kock.

“Neither scenario is ideal.”

Cobham’s Sea Tel 2400 maximises CPI performance and tracking precision based on the characteristic properties of each frequency, “therefore delivering a far better result for partners and end users”.

For merchant shipping VSAT, Cobham supplies 60-cm, 80-cm or 90-cm diameter Sailor VSAT for Ku-band. It also offers Sailor 100GX and Sailor 60GX for Global Xpress connectivity. “The super-light design shaves off thousands in transportation and installation costs, while the antenna works even on small fishing vessels operating in the roughest of seas,” says Mr Kock.

Cobham also introduced high-power versions of its VSAT technology. Its Sailor 900 VSAT high power has a 20-W BUC to improve RF performance and reliability in humid climates without the need for air conditioning systems in the antenna.

Cobham updated the electronics and precision of the reflector dish, while the radome was tuned for optimum performance on both Ku- and Ka-band frequencies. Sailor 900 VSAT high power is delivered factorytested, balanced and ready to go with only one cable needed between the antenna and below-deck equipment.

Antenna-airtime partnerships

South Korean antenna manufacturer KNS has teamed up with Castor Marine to provide VSAT bundles in global maritime sectors. Their InternetAtSea bundle includes a KNS Supertrack VSAT system and Ku-band airtime supported by Netherlandsheadquartered Castor Marine.

KNS says this bundle is a “one-stop combination package” for maritime satellite communications that includes hardware, connectivity, installation and servicing.

Hardware components incorporate Supertrack terminals and below-deck equipment that includes Z-series Mk2, Mk3 and Mk4 antennas. The Ku-band coverage

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KNS Supertrack VSAT Z Series (MK2, MK3, MK4) Z4-Z12 MK2 - Ku Z15MK2 - Ku Z24MK2 - Ku Z6MK3 - Ka Z7MK3 - Ku Z8MK3 - Ku Z10MK3 - Ka Z10MK3 - Ku Z12MK3 - Ku Z15MK3 - Ku Z10MK4 - Ka

Supertrack Z10MK4 – Ka particulars Manufacturer: KNS Reflector diameter: 1.05 m Antenna height: 1.52 m Antenna depth: 1.44 m Weight: 110 kg Radome material: honeycomb FRP Transmit frequency: 29.030.0 GHz Receive frequency: 19.2-20.2 GHz Operating platform: 3-axis BUC: 5-10 W Elevation angle: -18˚ to +110˚ Tracking speed: >90˚/sec Temperature range: -20˚C to +55˚C Humidity: up to 100% @ 40˚C Antenna input power: 48 V direct current, 4.18 A

KNS developed a Mark 3 version of a Kaband antenna

includes most of the main shipping routes and world’s seas.

KNS is also working with Telespazio, a joint venture between Thales and Leonardo, to provide VSAT packages to shipping. One of the latest contracts for this partnership was with Grimaldi Group to provide VSAT to Neapolitan Shipping.

They worked on contracts to upgrade satellite communications on fleets of specialised cargo and roro ships, and on passenger vessels.

This included installing Supertrack VSAT on multipurpose roro and pure car and truck carriers in the Grimaldi fleet. Telespazio and KNS are also providing satellite telecommunications for passengers and crew on ferries operated by Neapolitan Group in the Mediterranean Sea from Greece to Spain, Italy to Tunisia and Morocco.

In addition, KNS VSAT systems have been installed on a seismic exploration vessel in Turkey and an oil tanker in China.

Turkish partner, Anka Marine Electronics, installed two KNS Z12MK2 antennas and below-deck equipment on Barbaros Hayreddin Pasa, an Ulstein-designed 3D seismic research vessel. This upgraded the vessel’s satellite communications to a dualVSAT system for Turkish Petroleum. Turksat will supply the Ku-band connectivity to this SX133-design ship, which can deploy eight streamers each of 6 km in length, or six 8-km streamers.

In China, an Z8MK2 VSAT system was installed on 2008-built, 58,416 gt crude oil tanker Bei Hai Zhan Wang.

KNS has developed three Z-series of

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ANTENNA TECHNOLOGY | 29

Supertrack antennas. These are three sizes from the smallest Z4MK2 for Ku-band up to the largest Z24MK2-Ku-band. In the newer MK3 range there are antennas for both Ku-band and Ka-band, including a 60-cm and 1-m diameter antennas for Ka-band.

The largest in that range is 1.5-m diameter Z15MK3 for Ku-band. There is one MK4 antenna in the series, Z10MK4 with 1-m diameter antenna for Ka-band.

These Supertrack terminals enable highspeed access to the internet, email and multiple voice over IP phones on a ship.

These antennas have automatic satellite search and skew control, an unlimited azimuth and brake system and accurate signal acquisition using KNS’ algorithms.

There is an antenna control unit with three types of gyro data input and radio frequency control module. The motor drives are integrated into one module.

Integrated VSAT packages

KVH Industries supplies its own antennas and Integrated Commbox Modem (ICM) below-deck equipment as part of its VSAT packages. Its latest TracPhone antennas connect to both widebeam Ku-band and spot beams from high-throughput satellite (HTS) constellations.

Its range includes TracPhone V3-HTS VSAT, a 37-cm diameter antenna and TracPhone V7-HTS unit with a 60-cm diameter reflector. There is also a TracPhone V11-IP antenna with 1.1-m diameter reflector, and an HTS version was developed this year.

Ships can receive downlink bandwidth of 10 Mbps and uplink speeds of 3 Mbps using TracPhone V7-HTS. They can obtain

KVH TracPhone V11-IP switches between C-band and Ku-band

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5 Mbps down and 2 Mbps on the uplink using a TracPhone V3-HTS. This goes up to 20 Mbps downlink using a TracPhone V11-HTS. This antenna can automatically and seamlessly switch between C-band and Ku-band radio frequencies.

Regional Ka-band

Germany-based EPAK offers a regional Ka-band service using connectivity from Telenor Satellite and its 90-cm antenna.

EPAK’s DSi9 Ka terminal transmits to and receives from Telenor’s Thor 7 satellite that has coverage over the North Atlantic, northern European seas, into the Arctic and down to the Mediterranean and Black Sea. Trials in 2018 using this 58-kg antenna demonstrated that around 6 Mbps of bandwidth can be achieved through these antennas and high-powered spot beams from Thor 7. More bandwidth would be possible, up to 15 Mbps, depending on the configuration and power of the BUC The antenna remains connected to the satellite through motions that counter the ship's movement. If the pointing is off by more than 0.2˚, the connection fails and the transmission to the satellite must be halted to prevent interference with other signals.

During Telenor’s assessment of EPAK antennas they were successfully tested for pointing accuracy, automatic beam switch, robustness and ease of handling.

The DSi9 Ka-band antenna is part of EPAK’s Evolution Series of VSAT terminals that combine two sources of gyro data for orientation and stability of connection to a satellite. EPAK says if this connection is lost, then its antennas can re-acquire the signal 30 times faster than conventional tracking technologies.

Within the EPAK Evolution series is DSi9 Ku-band and DSi9 Ku-Pro, each with 90-cm diameter reflectors. DSi6 is 60-cm for Ku-band and DSi13 Ku-band with 1.3-m diameter reflector.

Orbit Communication Systems' range of antennas includes the latest single and dual-band OceanTRx terminals. Orbit supplies OceanTRx 4 and 7 terminals for Ku-band connectivity. In February 2019, it added a dual-band OceanTRx 7 to the range. This is a 2.2-m antenna that can switch between C-band and Ka-band or can be supplied to switch between Ku- and Ka-bands of radio frequency. VSAT

TracPhone V7-HTS particulars Manufacturer: KVH Reflector diameter: 60 cm Antenna height: 79 cm Antenna depth: 66.6 cm Weight: 26 kg Operating platform: 3-axis BUC: 5 W Elevation angle: -24˚ to +119˚ Temperature range: -30˚C to +55˚C Humidity: to IEC 60945, 95% at 40˚C Elevation angle: -18˚ to +110˚ Tracking speed: >90˚/sec Temperature range: -20˚C to +55˚C Humidity: up to 100% @ 40˚C Antenna input power: 48 V direct current, 4.18 A

DSi9 Ka particulars Manufacturer: EPAK Reflector diameter: 90 cm Antenna height: 1.14 m Antenna depth: 1.11 m Weight: 58 kg Transmit frequency: 29.030.0 GHz Receive frequency: 19.7-20.2 GHz Operating platform: 2-axis BUC: 5 W Elevation angle: -10˚ to +90˚ Polarisation: circular Tracking speed: >30˚/sec Temperature range: -20˚C to +55˚C Humidity: to IEC 60945, 100% condensing Antenna input power: 24, 30 or 48 V DC / 250 VA

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Deployment of satcom-enabled 5G will expand coverage of high-bandwidth connectivity in remote regions such as those vessels at sea operate in

Platform technology amplifies benefits of LEO satellite growth A new generation of IT platforms will facilitate development of LEO-based VSAT and broadband over highthroughput satellites

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ore than 5,000 low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites are due to be launched in the coming years, bringing about increased bandwidth capacity and reduced operating costs.

But to enable these improvements, the right IT platform needs to be in place. Advances in IT platforms will enable ship operators to get the most out of their VSAT services.

The satellite communications industry has a forecast 8% compound annual growth rate over the next 10 years, with demand set to rise as bandwidth opens up and costs drop, opening up new use cases and enhancing existing ones.

Belgium-based satellite communications equipment manufacturer Newtec has been a pioneer in this, providing ultra-high throughput capabilities through consumer satellite terminals and bandwidth efficiency technology.

Recognising this, Singapore Technologies Engineering (ST Engineering) is in the process of acquiring Newtec in a deal

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valued at €250M (US$280M).

Through this acquisition, ST Engineering seeks to accelerate deployment of satcom-enabled 5G, which will expand coverage of high-bandwidth connectivity in remote regions used by shipping, bringing benefits such as communications, crew welfare and telemedicine.

The size of this deal clearly shows the value of this enhanced coverage and capacity expansion, which will increase maritime uptake of digital technologies reliant on connectivity, such as internet of things-enabled devices.

Newtec has been closely involved in demonstrating the capabilities of LEO satellites. In October 2018, Newtec’s modems were the first to be successfully tested over Telesat’s inaugural LEO satellite.

Newtec’s technology was used to demonstrate different service scenarios on the Phase 1 LEO satellite, with the latest trials showing test user traffic successfully passed over the satellite using Newtec modems. This illustrates the possibility of flawless operations without packet loss on LEO constellations, says Newtec’s chief technology officer Frederik Simoens. “LEO is a technology we watch closely, and we are pleased that our modems have been able to support Telesat on this important technology proof,” he says.

“The testing process began with small-scale tests and we have been working our way up throughout the process, with

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these latest tests showing the potential of LEOs in efficiently and reliably delivering end-user traffic.”

With more than two terabytes per second of highthroughput satellite (HTS) capacity projected over the next 10 years, there are opportunities for shipowners and operators to dramatically improve operational efficiency and improve crew welfare through enhanced communications.

In the cruise and passenger sector, better customer satisfaction can be gained by improved access to connectivity for personal devices, too.

Platform migration

One such development is higher available capacity per vessel and improved coverage for users of the highspeed Ku-band service after migration of the Aura VSAT network to a new platform.

Satcom Global’s Aura VSAT portfolio has been successfully migrated to the iDirect Velocity platform, which comprises operating software, a hub patform, a network management system and remote portfolio. Velocity was designed to enable satellite operators to deploy managed HTS architectures, comprising more beams, frequencies and higher throughput.

Enabling higher-bandwidth applications can improve operations, productivity and crew welfare for commercial shipping, and for cruise vessels allows fulfilment of passengers’ demands for connectivity using personal wireless devices. In the offshore sector it streamlines applications such as sending large data files like seismic images, operating ROVs and greater use of video.

Velocity’s modular hub architecture supports satellite bands including Ka, Ku, C and X bands. It can manage a blended portfolio of frequencies and beam sizes and can support high-aggregate mega symbols per second. A centralised infrastructure provides total hub redundancy.

The platform also offers satellite remotes for distinct enduser requirements, available in multiple form factors such as desktops, rack-mounts and router boards for integration into portable and other specialised communications systems.

Aura’s global coverage spans the major shipping lanes in use today, and the recent upgrade to Velocity enhances coverage across the Indian Ocean region, in European waters and in the Americas, with a focus on the US west coast, Alaska, Panama and the Caribbean.

How IT platforms enable efficient management of vessel communications

As owner of a fleet of tankers plying trade routes around the world, Transpetrol needs data and voice communications to be available at all times for operations and crew welfare purposes.

Transpetrol fleet manager Eirik Sanderlien says “With more digital applications becoming essential to the efficiency of our business, reliable connectivity at sea is more important now than it ever was.”

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Adventure cruise vessels offer unique challenges, being smaller vessels operating in often very remote destinations (credit: Marlink)

A key element of this is a centralised communications management platform capable of switching seamlessly between satellites, VSAT and L-band carriers.

Transpetrol looked to Marlink’s Xchange communications management platform to enable this.

The platform can be managed from on board the vessel or remotely from shore. It permits multiple user groups to be defined, with connectivity access and communication prioritisation set by the owner, as well as access rules and usage limits.

The system also allows remote maintenance, updating configuration and onboard settings such as firewalls and network settings, and pushing through firmware updates in the same way. This allows fleetwide policies to be applied without sending technicians on board.

Marlink’s system also allows IT systems to be automated, enabling them to communicate autonomously with shore, updating and sending status reports to headquarters.

Elsewhere, Overseas Adventure Travel (OAT) looked to Marlink to provide satellite voice and data connectivity services on five adventure cruise ships in its fleet.

Adventure cruise vessels offer unique challenges, being smaller vessels operating in often very remote destinations.

Being able to sustain a robust communications link to fulfil the vessels’ operational requirements, as well as meet the needs of crew and passengers, in previously inaccessible regions was a key concern for OAT. The vessels will have access to Marlink’s global C-band, Ku-band and L-band coverage, with operational capability in the Arctic and Antarctic. The five vessels will dynamically share bandwidth according to each vessel’s demand.

The first vessel to be connected was Corinthian, in January 2019. Sister vessels Clio, Athena, Arethusa and Artemis will follow later in the year. VSAT

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How to keep satcoms cyber secure

While developments in satcoms technology undoubtedly bring great benefits, the always-on connection can make vessels more vulnerable to cyber risks

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igitalisation of the maritime sector is continuing apace, and everyone from deck crew to the board of directors feels the benefits of increased connectivity in areas ranging from equipment maintenance, fuel consumption, navigation, crew welfare and more, with the subsequent positive effects these have on a company’s costs.

However, we do not need to look far for a painful reminder that as more attention is devoted to connectivity and the efficiencies and benefits it brings, these must be safeguarded by a proactive approach to cyber security.

This was illustrated in 2017, when AP Møller-Maersk fell victim to the NotPetya ransomware attack, with an estimated

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cost to the company of US$300M due to the attack's impact on co-ordinating the company’s operations at terminals and ports around the world. Over the course of 10 days in June and July 2017, Maersk’s IT staff reinstalled more than 4,000 servers, 45,000 PCs and 2,500 applications as part of the recovery effort. It is also worth noting that this was not believed to be a targeted attack – Maersk chairman Jim Hagemann Snabe said in the aftermath he believed the company was “collateral damage of probably a state attack.”

And in the years since, the cyber threat has only grown. Research from Finlandbased cyber security provider F-Secure released in March 2019 reported a significant

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increase in traffic during 2018, with a fourfold increase in the second half of the year compared with the first half.

What is a cyber threat?

Attacks can be targeted, with a particular goal in mind, or they may be untargeted, such as ransomware attacks, which encrypt a victim’s files and demand a cryptocurrency payment be made before they are released.

Once an attacker has breached a ship’s defences, its location, route and other sensitive information such as cargo details can be accessed.

Speaking at a digitalisation conference in Singapore in November 2018, KPMG’s director of cyber security practice Dr Paul Lothian noted that the kind of sensitive information attackers will target could include cargo manifests, operational information such as system configurations and voyage data, and HR information such as personal employee and payroll details.

And it is not only on the balance sheet that a cyber attack will be felt. While so far maritime cyber attacks have resulted in lost money and time, there is also potential for physical harm to equipment or even personnel.

Cruise vessels have an even greater need for security, carrying large numbers of passengers, many of whom will expect wireless connectivity on board.

Where is it coming from?

In 2019 threats can come from a range of actors. Increasingly, cyber threats come from sophisticated groups, sometimes with nation-state backing. In its November 2018 report on the current and anticipated future cyber threat, California-based analysts and cyber security company FireEye highlighted several areas to keep an eye on.

One such example is a group known as TEMP.Periscope, which focuses on areas such as defence, shipping, manufacturing and government institutions in the US, western Europe and along the South China Sea. FireEye’s analysis of this group notes activity believed to be consistent with its methods “likely reflects a concerted effort to target sectors that may yield information that could provide an economic advantage, research and development data, intellectual property, or an edge in commercial negotiations.

As well as potentially interfering with

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Snapshot CV

Peter Broadhurst

Peter Broadhurst has spent more than 25 years in technical sales, marketing and management in maritime. This includes various roles at antenna manufacturer Sea Tel and director of stabilised antennas at Cobham Satcom. He joined Inmarsat in 2014 as vice president of maritime, and took over his current position as senior vice president for safety and security services in 2016.

vessel operations, such attacks can seek to gain access to sensitive data relating to employees, company financials or operational technology.

As China’s Belt and Road initiative (BRI) develops a land and maritime trade network, FireEye anticipates a growth in cyber threat activity. This is likely to include emerging groups and nation-state actors.

“Given the range of geopolitical interests affected by this endeavour, it may be a catalyst for emerging nation-state cyber actors to use their capabilities.

Regional governments along these trade routes will likely be targets of espionage campaigns,” says FireEye in the report.

“Media announcements on BRI progress, newly signed agreements, and related development conferences will likely serve as operational drivers and provide lure material for future intrusions.”

What can be done?

One option for vessel owners and operators seeking to establish exactly how vulnerable they could be to attack is penetration testing.

Pen Test Partners is a company that specialises in such risk assessments and has highlighted the potential status of satellite terminals as a weak link in the cyber security chain.

Pen Test Partners noted that the satellite communications vulnerabilities they have highlighted can be resolved simply by setting a strong admin password, as recommended by manufacturers. PenTest partners also suggest moving to a private connection, so that your box is not visible on the public internet, is a wise move. Another recommendation is that firmware on terminals is kept updated to the most recent version.

Indeed, while it may be difficult to co-ordinate keeping systems patched and up-to-date across an entire fleet of vessels, this is a step toward more efficient cyber security that costs nothing. In the case of the NotPetya attack, the vulnerability the malware took advantage of was an unpatched Microsoft Windows operating system.

The human element is also key to cyber security. KPMG’s Dr Lothian noted in his presentation that a survey had found only 12% of crew had undergone any form of maritime cyber security training, which he noted was well below industry averages.

Inmarsat Maritime senior vice president of safety and security Peter Broadhurst says

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“Many attempts to gain unauthorised access to IT infrastructure require some sort of activation by an end-user to infect a system and cause further damage.

“These attacks are often heavily disguised so as to trick and manipulate end-users into unwittingly granting permission.

“However, there are nearly always telltale signs that, if spotted in time, would prevent escalation. Crew education is therefore an indispensable component in realising a well-rounded security strategy.”

Policies can be surprisingly straightforward in this area. Zodiac Maritime has previously told Maritime Digitalisation & Communications it forbids crew members bringing USB memory sticks or devices onto the bridges of vessels it manages, including to update the ECDIS system. Instead, updates are carried out using CDs or over a secure internet link using VSAT, or if these are not available, by using a trusted local supplier.

Crews may bring their own devices such as laptops, smartphones and thumb drives on board vessels, and connect them to the ship’s network. This brings challenges to cyber security as it can result in a more porous network perimeter, with each device connected to the network a potential entry point for security risks such as malware.

Endpoint security focuses on these network nodes, comprising a central system installed on the network and client software on each endpoint device that uses systems such as encryption and application control to bolster security. Inmarsat’s Fleet Secure

Endpoint is an example with features such as a two-way firewall, botnet and ransomware protection, network monitoring, and health status and threat alerting.

Network separation is also an important consideration and can help to prevent attacks spreading to business- or operationscritical systems.

VSAT provider KVH promotes a sixlevel approach to cyber security at different strategic levels, including seafarer training, satellite network security, terrestrial network security, hardware and network configuration security, protected internet egress, and a dedicated cyber security incident response team. This means onboard local area networks can be configured for segmentation into operations, crew networks and third-party charter networks.

KVH vice president of satellite products and services Rick Driscoll says “To enhance the security of transmissions between ship and shore, we have designed our system so that traffic does not touch the internet before going through edge security devices at MegaPOP [point of presence access point – an interface between communicating entities].”

It is clear there are a number of areas where cyber security can be improved. As Dr Lothian has pointed out, cyber security is not a oneand-done solution – it is a constant, ongoing process. New threats are constantly evolving, and defences are being breached. The only way to counter this is to have an adaptive cyber security policy that everyone in the organisation is aware of and follows. VSAT

Cyber attacks are often heavily disguised so as to trick and manipulate end-users into unwittingly granting permission”

How are VSAT systems vulnerable?

Using penetration testing, a risk assessment method that simulates an attack on an asset or company, vulnerabilities in VSAT terminals have been exposed.

In a demonstration of attack vectors, Pen Test Partners used Shodan.io, a search engine for publicly accessible supervisory control and data acquisition systems and IoT-enabled devices. They were easily able to bring up details of satellite communications terminals on vessels connected to the public internet. In some cases, the login screens for these terminals even showed the vessel’s name or provided links to lists of users online at that moment, visible without even needing to enter login details.

With this sort of information, it is possible to track down details of individual crew members, leaving them ripe for phishing

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attacks, essentially confidence tricks where attackers disguise themselves as a trustworthy entity to obtain sensitive information such as login details or other ways of gaining access to systems.

But even if the login screens do not show this information, they can still prove a vulnerability. Many users do not change the default credentials used to log in, with ‘admin/1234’ being a common username/password combination.

Attackers could even go so far as to track down a specific vessel by using data giving a heading and map co-ordinates accessed via the satellite communications terminal, and then comparing this with easily accessible automatic identification system data to identify a vessel. Even in a busy port or shipping channel it can be possible to single out a particular vessel using this means.

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36 | VSAT SERVICES

Crew wifi portal added to VSAT service Inmarsat is expanding its services on Fleet Xpress by adding more security, data transmission and crew internet access

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nmarsat Maritime president Ronald Spithout says Ka-band VSAT delivers high-speed broadband connectivity backed by dedicated solutions for onboard digitalisation, crew welfare and cyber security.

There has been strong take-up of Inmarsat’s hybrid Ka/L-band Fleet Xpress service, with more than 2,750 ships added in 2018 as ship operators, owners and managers recognise the benefits. Inmarsat has introduced new services that operate within its growing Fleet Xpress ecosystem to improve operational efficiency and crew connectivity.

The latest example of its overarching enablement strategy is the managed crew wifi portal Crew Xpress, introduced in March 2019. “A significant part of our customer base has migrated to full high-speed Fleet Xpress services, but we also recognise crew wellbeing as a separate connectivity imperative,” says Mr Spithout.

“Certain owners and operators seek fully managed wifi connectivity that crew can use on a self-service basis,” he explains to Maritime Digitalisation & Communications. “Some do not yet have the business data needs that require, for example, the sensor-driven equipment maintenance or IoT-based route planning enabled by Ka-band.

It is for these situations that Crew Xpress was introduced. “It allows ship operators to offer a managed, highspeed crew internet solution while staying on an allowance plan that could

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

Fleet Xpress Ka-band connectivity is from Inmarsat I-5 satellites

migrate at any time to full-scale Fleet Xpress,” says Mr Spithout.

In Q1 2019, Inmarsat introduced another service, Fleet Data, to support application-based vessel management efficiencies. This is enabled by a vessel remote server that pre-processes ship sensor data and uploads it to a secure cloud-based platform. It comes with an onboard dashboard and an application program interface (API).

Vessel managers can access and analyse the data they need through the API to enhance vessel safety, efficiency or the fleet’s environmental footprint.

Or they can make this data available to third-party applications that monitor fuel efficiency or hull performance, says Mr Spithout.

“Fleet Data enables maritime IoT

through a combination of existing shipboard data infrastructure and dedicated high-speed bandwidth,” he explains.

Fleet Data overcomes the delay between data capture at sea and data availability on land. It is available over Fleet Xpress, and Inmarsat plans to roll this out across FleetBroadband services by the end of 2019.

Fleet Secure represents a third pillar of its enablement strategy for IoT-based solutions. It protects Fleet Xpress, FleetBroadband and Fleet One services against cyber attacks by identifying external threats or malware introduced accidentally to the vessel’s local area network.

The package includes Fleet Secure Endpoint to isolate infected systems

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VSAT SERVICES | 37

and prevent network disruption and the Fleet Secure Cyber Awareness training program to teach seafarers about the tactics cyber criminals use to infiltrate infrastructure.

“We continue to ensure that, as well as realising the benefits of digitalisation, the maritime sector also takes every precaution to stay ahead of the cyber criminals,” says Mr Spithout.

Applications serviced over VSAT of any band come in two categories – those that enhance operations and improve crew welfare. Here are the key applications highlighted by VSAT service providers including KVH Industries, Marlink, Speedcast, NSSLGlobal, IEC and satellite operators Intelsat, SES, Inmarsat and Telenor. Eventually VSAT could result in reduced onboard crew numbers. But VSAT providers expect skill sets will change on board with the need for IT managers on ships.

onboard IT networks, diagnose problems, and manage access and cyber security.

• E-navigation – electronic navigational charts and updates are downloaded and voyage data information is transmitted between ships and ports.

• Third-party – machinery manufacturers increasingly use VSAT for monitoring, diagnostics and decision support.

• Managing broadband – fleet managers monitor connectivity usage, control access and manage the broadband delivered to ships according to operator, crew and client requirements.

• Cyber security – fleet managers manage onboard firewalls, software updates and increase encryption.

• Charterer requirements – cargo condition data, especially containers, is transmitted to charterers and cargo owners; fuel information is delivered to those paying.

• Shore support – information is analysed ashore to support onboard decisions.

Operations applications

Crew welfare applications

Top VSAT applications

• Fuel monitoring – owners use VSAT to analyse fuel consumption and identify cost savings.

• Preventative maintenance – operators transmit performance and condition data from ship machinery for analysis and preventative maintenance.

• Ship performance monitoring – fleet managers use data streamed or batchtransmitted from vessels to monitor their efficiency during voyages.

• Weather routeing – navigators use weather and ocean information to route ships for lower fuel consumption, passenger comfort or to reduce stress on deck cargo.

• IoT – owners analyse data from ships to improve operational and safety performance.

• Electronic reporting – ships send e-documentation and provide regulations compliance reports to port state control, flag, class and charterers.

• Port optimisation – masters communicate with port authorities and operators to manage arrival times, berth requirements and order pilot services.

• IT monitoring – managers can monitor

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• Internet access – crew use VSAT for web browsing even under controlled conditions.

• Social media – access to social media channels is increasing but restrictions will remain in place to control access.

• VoIP – voice over IP enables crew to call home using internet protocols instead of using ship telephony.

• Video streaming – seafarers can use video over IP for streaming media and using video-calling applications, such as Skype, or a maritime-optimised version.

• Telemedicine – ability to speak with medical professionals in real time when there is a medical issue on board.

• Instant messaging – mariners communicate in real time using messaging applications as email becomes less relevant.

• E-finance – seafarers access bank accounts and other financial information.

• Media content – crew view news, sport, films and TV-based media from an optimised delivery system.

• E-training – specialised training programs are downloaded to ships for teaching and career development. VSAT

Future technologies to revolutionise maritime VSAT Progress in satellite and mobile communications technology has opened up new markets and services in maritime VSAT this decade. Here are trends that contributors to this Complete Guide to VSAT highlighted would be further developed in the next decade.

LEO constellations – new generations of low Earth orbit satellites will deliver low-latency VSAT to vessels worldwide, including in seas around the poles.

Flat panels – will be further developed and tested to become commercially available to vessels.

XTS – extremely high throughput satellites with hundreds of small spot beams will be commissioned to boost bandwidth for all maritime users, but especially cruise ships.

Satellite life extension – satellite operators will launch units that renew the fuel and life of existing satellites, maintaining maritime connectivity.

Software-defined – will enable satellite controllers to manipulate the form and position of spot beams to be dedicated to a ship or fleet.

New launchers – aerodynamic aircraft that can briefly enter space from the Earth’s orbit will launch LEO satellites in the future.

Super-fast modems – currently viewed as a choke-point in bandwidth, a new generation of modems will enable XTS connectivity.

Dedicated IoT – vessels will get separate channels over VSAT for IoT and onboard machinery performance and condition data streaming.

Artificial intelligence – AI will enable computers with machinelearning capabilities to predict VSAT issues and onboard machinery breakdowns before they occur.

Remotely controlled vessels – advances in VSAT will enable shore-based masters to control vessels in real time.

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38 | R&D

LEO and flat panels will change VSAT forever A new era of low Earth orbit and flatpanel antenna VSAT is delivering faster broadband with lower latency for maritime applications

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successful launch of six satellites into low Earth orbit (LEO) this year is the start of a new period for VSAT where flat-panel antennas provide quicker connectivity for the maritime sector.

OneWeb launched the first six broadband satellites of its LEO high-throughput constellation in February 2019, starting the next generation of VSAT connectivity to vessels.

Other satellite operators are building LEO constellations, and together with developments in flat-panel antennas, VSAT will change forever.

High-throughput LEO satellites could provide high bandwidth communications with less latency – the delay in signal due to the distance microwaves need to travel from Earth to the satellites and back – than geostationary satellites.

Shipping has previously used LEO satellites for L-band connectivity with Iridium’s first and now second-generation constellations. However, the new LEO constellation being built will provide VSAT in Ku and Ka spectrum bands of frequencies and low latency. Just like Iridium’s constellation, they will deliver broadband to Arctic and Antarctic seas.

These LEO satellites will provide global coverage as they operate on orbits around the globe to multiple markets, including land, maritime and aviation mobility, plus to remote terrestrial hubs, enterprise, military and government clients.

They will need a new generation of antennas and terminals to access this connectivity, and these could be flat panels instead of traditional parabolic dish antennas.

Marlink president of maritime Tore Morten Olsen predicts a future for flat-panel antennas and LEO constellations for maritime VSAT. “Antennas today are for multiple bands of frequency and are software upgradable so they could be used for some LEO systems,” he says. “But, flat-panel antennas could make more sense with the LEO satellites.”

His group is following developments by the main developers of flat-panel antennas and LEO constellations.

“There could be real value for maritime from LEO systems

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

and we have looked into them,” he says.

There would still need to be engineers on board vessels to install and maintain the flat-panel antennas. “In maritime, flat-panel installations would still need some type of pedestal,” says Mr Olsen. He adds that there needs to be more development of onboard systems to improve LEObased VSAT performance. “There needs to be evolution on the modem side that will allow higher bandwidth and more efficient use of this on vessels.”

Satellite operator SES is involved with three different manufacturers of flat-panel antennas, as it expects their development will increase users of its medium Earth orbit (MEO) constellation of O3b satellites and the future of O3b mPower.

SES maritime segment leader Greg Martin explains that flat-panel antennas could simplify connectivity across multiple mobility markets. “There is interest in flat-panel antennas and they are becoming more advanced,” he says.

“There are technical and commercial challenges, but we are involved as part of our mPower internal programme.”

He believes there is potential in developing VSAT covering multiple bands of frequencies and satellites in different types of orbit. “Multi-orbit technology makes sense to us as this is where the market is driving towards.”

OneWeb, which has the backing of geostationary satellite operator Intelsat, has made the first step in LEO development.

It witnessed the launch of its first six LEO satellites aboard a Soyuz vehicle from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana, on 27 February. These satellites separated

Kymeta and e3 Systems illustrate the difference between installing radomes and flat panels (source: Kymeta)

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R&D | 39

from the rocket in two batches and OneWeb acquired signals from all of them.

OneWeb chief executive Adrian Steckel says this is the start of the largest satellite launch campaign in history. There will be a transition from proof-of-concept development to a commercial project as OneWeb anticipates it will launch 650 satellites in two years.

Multi-orbit technology makes sense to us as this is where the market is driving towards” Around 30 satellites are scheduled to launch each month, with demonstrations and trials in 2020 and full global commercial coverage by 2021.

OneWeb’s satellites will communicate with Earth via Ka and Ku bands. Ka-band will be used for communicating between the ground teleports and satellites. Ku-band will be used for communicating between the satellites and user terminals, which will deliver internet connectivity to vessels.

“This successful launch is a historic milestone for OneWeb,” says Mr Steckel. “It marks the start of a new phase as we begin scaling our satellite constellation in preparation to start full commercial services.”

Rival group Telesat launched a test LEO satellite in 2018 and has demonstrated its capabilities with aircraft connectivity. It expects more testing and terminal validation in 2019 and in the next decade as it invests in the constellation ready to enter commercial operations in 2022.

Demonstrations and contracts

These demonstrations are expected to include flat-panel VSAT on vessels after Telesat announced a contract with maritime communications provider OmniAccess in February 2019. Both companies expect to deliver LEO connectivity to the superyacht market. OmniAccess has become the first broadband provider worldwide to contract for Telesat’s LEO services, which could be concentrated on areas of high demand, such as major shipping lanes and ports.

OmniAccess chief executive Bertrand Hartman says Telesat LEO will deliver land-based fibre connections to vessels.

“Onboard systems and services will no longer be restricted by the limits imposed by today’s geostationary and MEO-based technologies,” he says. “This will be a major game-changer for the maritime industry, profoundly impacting many social and technical aspects of vessel operations.”

LeoSat Enterprises is developing a rival LEO constellation and intends to build a constellation of 108 satellites. It

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has secured more than US$1.5Bn in pre-launch customer agreements to deliver broadband connectivity to land mobility and fixed hubs.

In response to LEO investment, entrepreneurs have developed different types of flat-panel antennas. Kymeta Corp and Phasor were early developers and have tested prototypes on land and vessels.

Kymeta tested its KyWay and mTenna terminals on yachts with distribution partners e3 Systems and Speedcast in 2017 and 2018. These were powered by IntelsatOne Flex for maritime services and bundled with Kymeta’s Kalo internet access. E3 Systems has installed flat panels on eight yachts in Europe and the US. Multiple panels can be installed to eliminate shadow from vessel structures.

There have also been sea trials on the US Government’s small vessels in inland waterways and up to 100 nautical miles offshore.

Phasor has partnered with OmniAccess to test flat-panel antennas on superyachts. The Phasor maritime quantum aperture terminal includes electronically steerable antennas.

It has demonstrated return-link speeds of more than 24 Mbps using a single 71-cm equivalent aperture over Intelsat’s EpicNG high-throughput satellites.

Future technology

• Isotropic has raised US$14M in funding from Boeing HorizonX Ventures to advance its flat terminal solution. It can also use Boeing’s test laboratories for trials. Isotropic chief executive John Finney says this investment will “fast-track the deployment of our terminal solutions”. Isotropic also has a partner in SES to test terminals over O3b satellites.

• Alcan Systems is also working with SES on developing liquid crystal phased-array antennas. It tested a Ku-band version this year and has made progress towards a 2D-electronically steerable flat antenna operating on Ka-band for future O3b mPower deployments.

• SES is also working with Viasat to develop an electronic phased array flat-panel antenna for O3b mPower. These can dynamically steer beams, without any moving parts, mitigate interference and support hybrid satellite systems. VSAT

Flat-panel antennas: a decade of market growth Sales growth: US$11Bn by 2028 Terminals growth: 1.4M by 2028 Non-geostationary constellations: OneWeb, O3b, LeoSat, Telesat Main markets: maritime, aviation, connected vehicles Revenue: 94% of all revenue from mobile applications Technology: phased array, electronically steered Main players: Kymeta, Phasor, Alcan Systems, Isotropic Systems, and ViaSat

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40 | LAST WORD

How AR can support satcoms terminal repairs

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Alf Stian Mauritz: “AR is a supporting hand to those on board”

We can watch and identify what needs to be done using AR remote guidance”

ugmented reality (AR) technology can help seafarers and engineers install and repair VSAT hardware on ships. AR applications can be accessed using mobile devices to engage in remote monitoring, diagnostics and onboard engineer guidance.

It enables shore-based experts to assist onboard personnel deploying antennas and VSAT hardware, such as below-deck equipment.

AR-based remote support should speed up installations and assist if repairs are needed, says IEC Telecom Norway managing director Alf Stian Mauritz.

He explains to Maritime Digitalisation & Communications that AR remote guidance can also assist VSAT live testing.

“We provide a solution for AR remote guidance as part of our standard supply, so that we can remotely support our customers and engineers,” Mr Mauritz says. IEC Telecom works with XM Reality to provide AR remote support on ships. “AR is a supporting hand to those on board. We supply installers and our resellers with AR guidance for installations, live testing and repairs.”

XM Reality’s remote guidance is a scalable subscription service hosted on Amazon Web Services. It can be accessed using a mobile device for user-to-user or user-to-service centre communications.

In problem-solving, remote guidance can help identify an issue. Support engineers can help those on board to diagnose problems or validate them from a shore base if images are sent from the ship. The person appointed to assist the ship-based engineer can then provide guidance using voice, hands, screen pointers, documents or whatever it takes to solve the issue.

Once a repair or installation is

The Complete Guide to VSAT | 2019

completed, AR remote guidance can inspect the equipment. “We can watch and identify what needs to be done using AR remote guidance,” says Mr Mauritz.

“If we cannot repair it, then we can prepare spares for when the ship reaches a harbour.”

Onshore engineers can record equipment installation and repairs using the mobile AR application. This video can be downloaded by engineers on to a ship's server. “It can be used for assisting future installations or repairs and for training through playback,” says Mr Mauritz. “It can be stored and watched to demonstrate how to do a repair ... next time.”

AR remote guidance can be used to assist engineers repairing other ship equipment and machinery. “It is not yet widely used, but more use is coming and AR is implemented as part of our support,” Mr Mauritz adds.

Remotely monitoring VSAT systems is important for identifying and diagnosing problems, as for other onboard systems.

“We can analyse everything we need through the connection, for predicting equipment failure and to be ready with spare equipment when required,” Mr Mauritz says.

“If it is a software issue, we can use remote diagnostics.” If it is a hardware problem, AR remote guidance is used to help seafarers to fix the problem themselves instead of using field engineers.

Mr Maurits thinks crew could use AR for other applications. “AR can be used to support onboard machinery repairs and for medical purposes,” he says.

IEC Telecom supplies VSAT in all bands and most services, including Ka-band, Ku-band and for L-band services on all types of vessels. VSAT

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Maritime Cyber Risk Management Forum 25 June 2019, London

How prepared is the maritime industry for future cyber-attacks?

Recognising and addressing the risk Cyber security will only get the organisational attention needed once attitudes align to acknowledge cyber threat as a business risk. Ship operators should be questioning how vulnerable their vessels are. The 4th Maritime Cyber Risk Management Forum provides answers and offers an unrivalled opportunity for key industry stakeholders to analyse the industry’s cyber security preparedness.

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Book your place online today at www.shipcybersecurity.com/book-now or for more information please contact Paul Dowling on +44 20 8370 7014 or at paul.dowling@rivieramm.com

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