Improved data use with second generation VDR

The requirements for all existing ships to carry a VDR will be endorsed by the next IMO meeting in May 2004. Existing ships will be allowed to have a floating capsule (albeit with EPIRB and Hydrostatic release) and will be exempted from some requirements concerning items to be recorded. The idea behind the ammendments is to help ship owners cope with the cost of a full VDR.

The Totem VDR generation II from Totem Plus is designed to meet the simplified VDR requirements by being flexible enough to give ship owners discount for such exemptions (no radar picture saves on frame grabber, for example). However, at this stage the company does not believe that the floating capsule is advisable or cheaper, and so encourages ship owners and manufacturers to stay with the floating capsule until it is also accepted by IMO for new buildings. Totem says that there is no justification for two different standards (old ships and new ships), especially as there will be no significant price reduction.

With regard to the price of the capsule, the cost of the additional EPIRB and Hydrostatic release is a significant increase, which is not offset by any saving from reduced strength and insulation. Therefore Totem feels that the price reduction of VDR and simplified VDR will eventually come from the quantities involved and the experience gained in retrofitting, not from a simplified capsule. Based on its retrofit experience, Totem says its VDR will continue to be cost-effective for existing ships and will continue to offer the same standard of capsule for both new builds and retrofits.

The company?s main goal with the second generation VDR is to improve the ability of masters and owners to use the data. With Totem VDR it is now possible to record the navigational data (not including radar or audio) on the hard disk for 30 days or more, and to replay it at will. It is also possible to see the data in real time from a remote computer, for example from the master?s cabin, and to send it ashore by email as files of a specific data of a short incident.

In development (and to be implemented soon) is a VDR remote management tool that will allow authorized users (such as the main office or the legal department) to query the VDR for data files through the internet without interferring with the VDR operation. Such a tool is said to be extremely important for ship owners with regard to enviromental disasters such as tanker groundings.