BMT provides breakthrough in port safety for Singapore

BMT Asia Pacific, a subsidiary of British Maritime Technology (BMT), DHI Water & Environment (S) Pte Ltd (DHI) and the Maritime & Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) signed an agreement to develop the world?s first system to enable ships to access hydrodynamic forecasts describing the prevailing currents in a port.

The pioneering new system that incorporates solutions from IBM and Oracle, is designed to make it easier for masters and pilots to navigate through coastal waters and into ports with complex current systems in greater safety. Terminal operators will also be able to schedule ship deliveries at a broader range of times as they will have precise, up-to-the-minute knowledge of the tidal currents and levels within their locality.

This innovative development breaks new ground in applying enterprise class systems and spatially enabled Relational Database Management Systems (RDBMS) to providing e-solutions for the maritime sector. Information will be accessed through a web portal and used to produce highly intuitive hydrodynamic maps on a wireless tablet PC used on a ship?s bridge or a desktop computer at a port control centre. It is anticipated that the system could also interface with ship manoeuvring and dynamic positioning systems

in the future.

As one of the busiest shipping hubs in the world, Singapore will benefit from this advanced technology, which will further improve its ability to manage the risk associated with the marine traffic in its waters. Currently, the Port of Singapore is the busiest port in the world in terms of shipping tonnage. It deals with the largest volume of bunkers in the world and the second largest volume of container cargo. It is also one of the top three

oil-trading hubs.

A beta version of the current forecasting system will be completed in September this year and be launched in 2005. A number of leading shipping companies and terminal operators are currently in discussion with BMT, DHI and the MPA about taking part in the trials.