New Technology to Debut at Europort

Europort 2001 — the 30th edition of the exhibition — scheduled for November 13 to 17 at the Amsterdam RAI, is traditionally an event where companies from around the globe debut innovative new marine equipment and technology.

While the exhibition is often considered a regional affair, the event indeed fulfills its international billing with a roster of more than 550 companies from around the globe, and halls filled with ship owners and operators with an equal international distribution. In 1999 exhibition management stated that the event drew more than 30,000 visitors from 88 countries.

This year's event will offer a few extras, including a special focus on inland shipping. There are plans for numerous companies to exhibit their wares to this sector scattered throughout the exhibition floor, and the inland shipping sector will also occupy a prominent position in the specially equipped simulator pavilion.

The 2001 edition of the event, (which is held every two years) will fulfill its reputation, as the following companies will offer new innovations in Amsterdam. Transas Marine will introduce its latest developments in the fields of electronic chart systems, maritime simulation and vessel traffic services.

Navi-Sailor 3000 will be on display to demonstrate the new-generation technology developed for Transas navigation solutions. This system incorporates all the functionality of the previously type-approved Transas ECDIS with an additional array of innovative, state-of-the-art features. Significant new capabilities offered by Navi-Sailor 3000 include integrated weather forecasting, multiple chart display and user-selectable screen layout; advanced Route Planning, Radar Overlay and Playback facilities; North-Up/Course-Up/Head-Up chart display modes; Relative and True Motion display; and advanced (U)AIS transponder interface.

At the show, Transas will unveil the new modern hardware designed specifically for the Navi-Sailor navigation systems. The updated hardware solutions from Transas are available as full-size pedestal mount and desktop consoles. ABB Marine & Turbochargers will, among other equipment, highlight the ABB CRP (Counter Rotating Propeller) azipod propulsion. This is a steerable azipod unit mounted immediately behind the standar propeller. Located on the same axis, but without any physical connection, the pulling propeller of the pod will contra-rotate in relation to the shaft-driven main propeller. Bas Engineering AS (represented by Design Systems & Technologies) will exhibit its ShipWeight engineering software, which is used for estimation and tracking weight and center of gravity for all types of vessels. HydroComp Inc. (also represented by Design Systems & Technologies) will show visitors the latest updates to its suite of advanced design programs, including NavCad, PropExpert and PropCad. NavCad allows personal development of custom solutions within a variety of programming environments.

Radio Holland Marine will offer its RHRS-2005RCTFT river radar with LCD/TFT daylight-bright rasterscan, 18.1-in. multi-color, high-resolution display.

Also on display will be the company's Ship@Sight monitoring of ships via the internet, a system that provides fleet and ship data such as name, ID, position, course and speed. Thrane & Thrane's Inmarsat F1 terminal provides high-speed MPDS service, enabling users to be on-line around the clock while only being charged for the data transferred over the satellite connection.