Page 42: of Maritime Logistics Professional Magazine (Q3 2011)

42 Maritime Professional 3Q 2011MARITIME COMMSIt is no secret that the frequency of piracy-related incidents has been increasing at a steady rate since 2005. At the 2011 meeting of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), Efthimios E. Mitropoulos, Secretary-General of the IMO,stated that piracy is costing the world economy between $7 and $12 billion per year. And, because ocean transport remains the primary, most cost effective, and fastest means of delivering goods and food around the globe, the effort to eradicate the scourge of modern piracy remains a high prior- ity of IMO, INTERTANKO and virtually every other world- wide maritime organization. If modern-day pirates bear little resemblance to theromance of Johnny Depp?s movie depiction of the swash- buckling pirates of yore, then the effort to reduce the risks posed by these criminals has to be attacked with a similar mindset. As a perfect example, and with the threat of piracy to maritime vessels on the rise, Marlink has introduced new ?Safe Room? Anti-piracy packages to complement its existing satellite communications portfolio. On a different tack, KVH says the TracPhone V7 and the mini-VSAT Broadband Global SATCOM Network represents a coordinated strategy that will allow multinational operators a common view of shared information that is essential for maritime domainawareness and paramount to mission success. Both concepts have merit. MARLINK?S SAFE ROOM PACKAGE As vessel operators face growing pressure to integrate anti- piracy solutions aboard ship, they can now help to ensure the safety of both ship and crew with Marlink?s new cost-effec- tive ?Safe Room? packages. Discrete and secure stand-alone anti-piracy solutions from Inmarsat and Iridium ? using stan- dard (handheld) voice service ? are easy to install, with hand- Fight Piracy Modern Technology to Discrete and Secure Anti-Piracy Solutions from Marlink and KVH highlight new thinking and still newer communications technologies. Table 1: Safe Room Standard Features INMARSAT IridiumIsatPhone Pro HandsetIridium 9555 HandsetRST995Optional RST055 UPS Battery pack RST996 50m Alert Wire RST995 Alert Button RST055 UPS Battery pack (optional)RST996 50m Alert Wire Beam Inmarsat Marine Dock & Active AntennaMP #3 (34-49):MP Layouts 8/17/2011 4:27 PM Page 42