Critical Connectivity with Dual FleetBroadband Antenna

Cobham SATCOM has launched a SAILOR FleetBroadband Dual Antenna solution to prevent critical data and voice communications being interrupted by obstructions.

The SAILOR 500 FleetBroadband is designed for vessels and platforms with demanding requirements for connectivity. It meets the critical needs for voice and data communication of maritime and offshore professionals globally. It provides extensive functionality including full access to bandwidth IP applications, broadband internet/intranet, e-mail, secure VPN and nine simultaneous voice lines.

The critical connectivity solution consists of two SAILOR 500 FleetBroadband systems and a Dual Antenna Control Unit (DACU), which can automatically switch between antennas without loss of connectivity.

With the ability to position two antennas at different locations, vessels avoid any problems should a single antenna become obstructed by superstructure, masts, rigging or other equipment.

Specialist vessels
The solution is targeted at specialist vessels using critical IP applications over FleetBroadband, where loss of connectivity could significantly affect the outcome of a costly or hazardous operation. If the active antenna loses sight to the satellite, the back-up will come on line to ensure continuous connectivity. The two antennas work as a single system, with the same IP address, a single SIM card and one monthly bill.

Proven reliability
“SAILOR 500 FleetBroadband is the market-leading Inmarsat FleetBroadband solution, so we are keen to offer its proven reliability and user-friendliness in a dual solution configuration for vessels where continuous connectivity is vital to operational safety and efficiency,” said Casper Jensen, Vice-President of Cobham SATCOM’s maritime business.

“Whilst developing a technically advanced approach, we have also ensured our solution has only minimal extra hardware costs, in order to enable as many vessels to take advantage of it as possible.”

GMPCS Personal Communications is proud to be a stocking master distributor for SAILOR products. If you would like more information on the SAILOR product line please contact a representative at 1-888-664-6727 or email marinesales@gmpcs-us.com

Inmarsat Prepaid Vouchers Work Within the United States

Beginning September 1, 2012 Inmarsat will be offering global prepaid satellite service for both voice and data on Inmarsat terminals. This will apply to all new and existing Inmarsat prepaid SIM Cards for the IsatPhone Pro, BGAN, FleetBroadband and FleetPhone units. The Inmarsat prepaid service was originally only available outside of the US, but it will now be fully global.

Benefits for IsatPhone Pro users Prepaid services are popular with clients who work on short term or seasonal projects and prefer not to commit to a contract. Inmarsat offers a variety of prepaid vouchers for the IsatPhone Pro to fit any requirement Small and large vouchers are available, giving you airtime with an average cost of $1.10 per minute and $0.55 per SMS. A list of available vouchers for sale can be found here. One key benefit of Inmarsat prepaid is any unused minutes will roll over if the SIM is loaded with another voucher before the expiration date. If you allow your prepaid minutes to expire, the prepaid SIM will remain active, you can recharge it when you like and you keep the same sat phone number.

BGAN Prepaid benefits Inmarsat BGAN customers will also benefit from global prepaid voice and data services. Not only do the BGAN prepaid vouchers have the same airtime roll over benefit as the IsatPhone Pro, but the validity for use on the BGAN airtime is 730 days. This means that even the smallest prepaid BGAN voucher of 10.99 MB of standard IP or 100 voice minutes is valid for about 2 years. BGAN Prepaid service includes Standard IP, SMS and Voice service; streaming and ISDN services are available upon request on initial activation only. Fax service is not available e on BGAN prepaid. More information and Global prepaid options for BGAN are now available on this airtime page.

With the announcement of Inmarsat prepaid available for global use, airtime for the IsatPhone Pro and BGAN will be simple with no credit check, no annual contract or bills. For more information on the Inmarsat prepaid options visit GMPCS or contact a representative at 1-888-664-6727

Is Tracking Your Assets More Difficult Than It is Worth?

As a Divisional manager with large asset investments or as a CIO’s looking to help enable controls, asset tracking has been long on promises but high on complexity in terms of implementation and management. An article recently exposed how one government state within a decade lost more than 1,500 items valued at over $3M with only a small portion attributed to theft, yet they recognized the need to implement a solution but also lamented at the complexity of implementation. Perhaps you and your organization are experiencing a similar dilemma.

Typical problems associated with asset tracking are…
Whether tracking a fleet of ships utilizing FleetBroadband monitoring the speed of trucks using Iridium satellite phones and pinpointing the location of agents via their Blackberry or Apple device. Managing all of these assets can be a daunting task. Logging into each individual system separately can waste valuable time and money. Some tracking solutions can be too complex making the task even more time consuming.

What makes a good asset tracking solution?
A good tracking solution tackles the business problem that it was designed to address. You will also want to make sure that it can help in the most effective and efficient way possible. When talking with providers about tracking we found that we also wanted the most functional features such as: geo-fencing, alerts based on speed or time, distress alert and safety options as well as affordable basic tracking.

Here is a listing of some key items to look for:

1. The ability to manage all types of inventory. A complete tracking solution is what you need.  Write down the functions you require, weather tracking your product en route, being notified when a vehicle leaves an area or arrives and being able to contact a driver in a remote area. Then compare your list to the tracking solution making sure it covers all your needs.
 
2. Consider the cost (both initial and ongoing). Tracking solutions incur a monthly subscription fee. This initial fee is for activation and continued licensed use of the software. Most tracking solutions have a minimal initial fee with a one year subscription term. The ongoing fees may include advanced options for tracking or special features. Another fee to consider is the airtime usage for a third party device such as tracking with a satellite or GPS subscription. Make sure the tracking cost is lower or equivalent to sending an SMS with your service subscription.
 
3. Ease-of-use: Your solution needs to be easy to learn, easy to use and easy to get going. The best software and hardware will require little to no IT support. It is very important that the tracking solution be simple to manipulate and user friendly.

Our company, an independent solutions provider of communication tools recently undertook a review of a broad base of hardware and software providers of tracking solutions for industry.

Using the above as criteria we quickly began to eliminate many of the vendors. Upon finalization of the review it was clear only one vendor has truly been paying attention to the customer requirements and has developed a comprehensive package to address this persistent yet highly valuable problem.

GSatTrack.

GSatTrack is a web based integrated tracking system that works on a multilingual platform. It brings together all the positions of every manufactured product under one location allowing you to display and manage them in a single unified interface.

GSatTrack supports the largest amount of assets and now works on 70+ GPS enabled devices including iPhones, satellite phones, FleetBroadband and BGAN. With GSatTrack you are able to do more than just track one of these devices. You will be able to do a remote configuration and over the air firmware updates, receive alerts based on speed, overlay geo-fences and have direct access to critical safety information, anywhere, anytime. Also GSatTrack allows you to integrate a panic button for assistance in dangerous situations increasing personnel and fleet safety.

The GSatTrack service is based on a modular system making it extremely affordable. You start with the basic tracking service and add additional features as necessary. Therefore you only pay for what you need and nothing more.
 
Companies benefit from the easy to use software that GSatTrack offers. A GSatTrack application can be downloaded onto a Smartphone or tablet allowing for real time tracking information. This App is another feature that makes GSatTrack stand out above the rest. A CEO can tap on the App to view all company assets and their actions on one simple to use interface.
 
Defining Your Needs.
If asset tracking is on your list of corporate priorities consider contacting us so we can walk through your specific needs to determine if this is the right fit for you. If it is, we’d be happy to arrange a demo day and enable you with some devices. Contact a sales representative here to arrange your quote or demo. For more information on GSatTrack and other communication needs view our site at www.gmpcs-us.com

The Inmarsat IsatPhone Pro improves remote safety

With the latest IsatPhone Pro firmware from Inmarsat, your IsatPhone Pro satellite phone can become an emergency personal alert device. The personal alert feature allows users to send their GPS coordinates and short message to predetermined recipients. The IsatPhone Pro subscriber can save time and money with the personal alert option. This new feature is similar to the SOS button on the Iridium Extreme satellite phone.

The personal alert feature enables a user to send their GPS position, along with a short pre-configured message, as an email or text message, to a maximum of 10 recipients. Personal alerts can be sent quickly whilst maximizing reliability. This is achieved by restricting the alert to one 160 character message, and mailing to each recipient separately. Each message sent is charged separately.

The personal alert is made up of the following elements:

•  Last GPS fix, time of GPS acquisition and fix accuracy
•  Time that the personal alert was triggered on the phone
•  Email address of the recipient if the alert is sent as an email
•  A short message predefined by the user, written in Latin characters

It is fairly simple to set up and activate the personal alert on the IsatPhone Pro satellite phone. To do this, make sure that you have the latest version of the IsatPhone Pro firmware. To check your firmware, choose menu > settings > about. You should have Firmware version v5.0.0 or higher, if not contact GMPCS tech support at 954-973-3100

To set up and activate a personal alert, select Extras > Personal alert > Edit personal alert. Select Configure personal alert, and edit the recipients and the message.

Once your IsatPhone Pro is set up for personal alerts the quickest way to send a personal alert is to press * and # simultaneously for at least 2 seconds from the main screen. The antenna must be deployed and your IsatPhone Pro connected to the satellite to successfully send personal alert messages. Any questions regarding this new feature, please call GMPCS 954-973-3100.

SAILOR FleetBroadband Update Features Multi-voice Service

Thrane & Thrane is now offering Inmarsat’s new FleetBroadband Multi-voice service across the Sailor FleetBroadband terminal range. The new service, which Inmarsat launched in May 2012, is available on SAILOR FleetBroadband systems and is accessible on existing terminals with a software update, coming soon. Multi-voice enables FleetBroadband users to expand from the original single voice line to a maximum of nine simultaneous voice lines, on a single SAILOR FleetBroadband terminal. No additional hardware is required other than Thrane & Thrane or third party handsets.

Setting up your FleetBroadband for Multi-voice service does not require engineers or hardware changes to the below deck unit. Loading the new firmware update will give you the capability for the Multi-voice service. However your SIM card in the FleetBroadband will have to be provisioned by your service provider and there may be an activation fee.

With Multi-voice the SAILOR FleetBroadband 500 offers nine simultaneous voice lines through a single terminal. A SAILOR FleetBroadband 250 terminal can offer up to six concurrent calls, and a SAILOR FleetBroadband 150 up to four concurrent calls. You are able to use third party phone equipment for the extra lines, however we recommend the Thrane IP Handset for the additional phone outlets. The Thrane IP Handset for Multi-voice on Sailor FleetBroadband offers easy access to a dedicated menu via the integrated screen, where value-added supplementary voice services, such as phone book and call forwarding can be operated from the handset itself.

With multiple handsets integrated to a single terminal, facility for dedicated voice lines can be made anywhere on board. Thrane and Inmarsat have also ensured that the SAILOR 3771 alarm panel and 505 Service works with Multi-voice. Therefore distress alarms can be sent regardless of how many voice lines are being used.

The new Multi-voice service makes it easy to add extra voice lines for all SAILOR FleetBroadband users. If you are interested in activating this service on your terminal make sure to contact your service provider.



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