Crew Travel News

Shell has awarded a contract to a Singapore-based firm Penguin International Limited, to design, build and operate at least three fully electric ferries which, when operational, will be the first fully electric ferry service in Singapore and a first for Shell globally.Expected to set sail in the first half of 2023, the new 200-seater single-deck ferries will be used to transport passengers between mainland Singapore to Shell’s Energy and Chemicals Park on the island of Bukom,…

Crew transfer vessel specialist Northern Offshore Services (N-O-S) has expanded its fleet with two vessels SURE Diamond and SURE Dynamic from Sure Wind Marine Limited. The company's offshore support vessel fleet now stands at 41 vessels. The two vessels are being renamed to M/V Master and M/V Mariner and will be part of the M-Class series, now four vessels in the series.They will continue their current operations on offshore wind farms in Germany, Northern Offshore Services said Thursday.The M-Class series are 27 M high-speed offshore support vessels…

Japanese shipping giant NYK unveiled what it claims to be the world’s first onboard use of digital currency through the MarCoPay fintech platform, which is operated by NYK and the Philippine-owned Transnational Diversified Group (TDG).Using MarCoPay, onboard purchases of daily necessities have been successfully performed digitally and hassle-free on a number of vessels, including those operated by other companies, and even in an unstable onboard communication environment.NYK and TDG will continue to prepare for a full launch, which will include the transmission of funds overseas to family members, by improving the efficiency of digital settlements and international remittances…

The UK-based High Speed Transfers (HST) has taken delivery of its fourth fast crew supplier (FCS) 2710, eighteen months after receiving its first, the HST 'Hudson'.HST received HST Hudson, in June 2018, which was followed by HST Sofia in March 2019 and HST Harri in October of the same year.The latest addition is named HST Euan and in mid-January 2020 she was loaded on to a heavy lift vessel at Damen Shipyards Antalya in Turkey bound for Rotterdam.The HST Euan replicates the features and layout of her sister ships. These include capacity for 26 passengers in safety and comfort and the ability to operate in wave heights of more than two meters.

KVH Industries, a provider of mobile connectivity and inertial navigation systems, has introduced a new digital content service called KVH Link to help shipowners, operators and managers provide rest-time entertainment for seafarers and increase onboard productivity.KVH Link provides timely and popular news, sports, movies, TV, music, karaoke, podcasts, documentaries, trending social videos, in the most popular languages among seafarers.Building on KVH’s past experience providing content for crew well-being and its patented IP-MobileCastTM technology for content delivery, KVH Link provides timely and popular news, sports, movies, TV…

Ardea, a 20-meter catamaran crew transfer and support vessel, was delivered to Cape Preston in Western Australia earlier in 2019, Australian marine engineering design company Incat Crowther announced.Built by Echo Marine Group, the Incat Crowther 20 design has proven speed, robustness and seakeeping capabilities beyond its size, said a press release from the naval architect and engineering services firm.With twin Cummins QSK19s, each producing 597kW at 2,100rpm and twin Kamewa S45-3 waterjets it reaches a maximum speed of 25 knots. Its performance is owed to a hull form based on Incat Crowther’s proven crew transfer vessels operating…

U.S. offshore wind farm support company Atlantic Wind Transfers (AWT) has signed a multi-million-dollar, market-first order for two state-of the-art Chartwell 24 Crew Transfer Vessels (CTVs), developed by Chartwell Marine.The vessels, to be deployed in support of new wind farms off the East Coast, will be built by Blount Boats, with delivery scheduled for 2020."Meeting the demands of U.S. offshore wind developers and asset owners - many of whom have a background in the European sector - requires domestic supply chain firms to capitalise on existing technology, lessons learnt and best practice, while responding to the unique requirements of operating in American waters…

The Norwegian-Canadian designer and manufacturer of energy storage solutions for marine propulsion Corvus Energy announced that it has signed a contract with SEC Marine Ltd, UK to supply the energy storage system (ESS) for the world’s first hybrid surface effect ship (SES) for crew transfer.The development of the 22m hybrid SES for use as a crew transfer vessel is in response to an industry-wide push to develop and deploy innovative technologies that reduce CO2 emissions, while cost-effectively servicing windfarms located offshore.The vessel design has been developed in partnership with the operator CWind and ESNA, a ship design company based in Kristiansand…

Isle of Wight shipbuilder Wight Shipyard Co (WSC) has been contracted by CWind to build the world’s first hybrid surface effect crew transfer vessel, to  service the Borssele 1 and 2 offshore windfarms located 23 kilometers off the Dutch coast.CWind’s long-term charter contract agreement with Ørsted, which operates the Borssele 1 and 2 offshore windfarms, will start in mid-2020. The agreement will cover an initial three-year firm charter with options available for a further two years.WSC said it will manage the build project from its development stage right through to delivery. The vessel will be able to handle 2m significant wave height during technician transfer in heavy seas.

The seafarers working onboard cruise ships and ferries rank among the unhappiest in the industry, said a study.Seafarer happiness levels across tanker, bulk carriers and container ship sectors close to global average this quarter, it said.The latest Seafarers Happiness Index report, published by The Mission to Seafarers, showed that cruise and ferry crews had an average score of 5.3/10 on their general happiness level – 15 per cent less than the global average across all vessel types, which stands at 6.27 this quarter.Happiness levels for those working on tankers, bulk carriers and container ships were all close to the global average…

The internet access for seafarers for personal use on board ships more widespread and available than previously imagined and the positive benefits associated with this access outweigh the feared safety concerns around the technology, said a survey.The responses to the survey carried out by the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) and the European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA), with support from the Asian Shipowners’ Association (ASA), indicate that the provision of internet access to seafarers for personal use may have improved the mental health and well-being of seafarers (according to 60% of respondents) and the morale…

Despite notable breakthroughs in technology and an overdue increase in conversations regarding safety at sea, the very nature of the marine industry means that risk is inevitable.Piracy remains a prominent concern in certain regions, for example, around the Gulf of Aden. According to statistical data provided by ICC International Maritime Bureau (IMB) , 107 ships were hijacked or were subject to attempted attacks by pirates between January-June 2018. This figure has risen by 20 per cent in comparison to data collected in 2017 and only further highlights the need for adequate safety measures. Even if your organizations’ activities aren’t near to one of the affected regions…