Vessel Traffic Services

Having this awareness, the operator can quickly detect potentially dangerous situations and take the necessary actions. It is therefore essential that the VTSO is aware of all ships in the area covered. This awareness is obtained from AIS information, radar detection and camera systems.

The provisions in SOLAS Chapter V Regulation 12 state that VTS systems contribute to safety at sea, safety and efficiency of navigation and protection of the marine environment from the possible negative effects of maritime traffic.

By adding additional information to the VTS system such as ship details or cargo details, coming from a Port Management Information System, weather information and hydrological information, VTSOs have access to a wide variety of data that helps them to assess each situation.

Conversely, data captured by the VTS system can be fed into other connected systems such as Port Management Information Systems to automatically mark the actual time of arrival (ATA) at waypoints.

A VTSO will therefore want to have a VTS system that provides superior tracking under all conditions.

Constant change

Just as in many other sectors, the shipping industry is going through considerable changes that have an impact on the work of a VTSO. For example, IALA has updated its standards, guidelines and recommendations in order to keep up to date with recent technological developments and future requirements.

Another change that will impact the work of a VTSO is the requirement to register and report the emissions of ships. More specifically, VTSOs will need to pay more attention to the speed of a ship as this is directly related to the emission of CO2 and polluting substances.

A new generation of operators

Although the maritime industry is a very captivating industry to work in, the life of a seafarer is often not envied. Being away from home for many weeks or sometimes months at a time, cut off from friends and family makes a job at sea rather unattractive.

This means that fewer people now start working in this industry and hence there are fewer candidates available to start the certification process to become a VTSO. For this reason, in some countries, VTSO candidates only need to have followed a basic maritime training using a simulator (i.e., they may have no real-life nautical experience).

In order to accommodate this evolution and keep the same degree of maritime safety, VTS systems need to offer more decision support and provide an easy-to-use user interface.

Cyber security essential for continuity

The introduction of digital tools allows ports to better interact with a variety of stakeholders and customers and hence be able to work much more efficiently. The downside, however, is that the more ports become dependent on these tools, the higher the operational risk they will be targeted by cybercriminals.

In maritime ecosystems, where tools become more and more connected, a security breach in one tool may cause a cascade effect in the whole maritime ecosystem. Cyber security is therefore imperative for each tool, especially mission-critical tools such as VTS. Our products adhere to the highest IT standards and have IT security built-in by design. Tidalis is ISO27001 certified.