Baleària and Rising Star AmendTec join forces to improve fleet visibility

Baleària previously used ship tracking and vessel intelligence software that visualized AIS data. However, there were some issues that affected safety management and the reliability of business processes.

This software uses AIS receivers along the coast and AIS satellites. When a ship is out of range of the coast and there is no satellite nearby, there is no information on the ship’s location or that of surrounding vessels.

The AmendTrack is an Internet of Things gateway that can independently send data via Iridium. It includes an accurate GNSS receiver to gather position data.

In addition, the AmendTrack can be connected to the existing onboard internet connection of a ship. By using the AmendTrack, the location, speed, and direction of the ship are determined. The AmendTrack is also connected to the AIS receiver, which collects the same data from surrounding ships. This data is sent to the coast via VSAT or LTE antenna and made visible to Baleària.

Baleària has taken safety and decision-making to new heights with their innovative ‘control tower’. This tower visualizes real-time data collected from the AmendTrack’s and other sensors of their vessels, including vessel positions, fuel consumption, emissions, and calculated ETA’s. With this data analysed and readily available, Baleària can make informed decisions and manage safety more effectively than ever before.

The AmendTrack has a positive impact on data frequency. Ship tracking and vessel intelligence software often transmit data with a low frequency, making it difficult to draw reliable conclusions. The AmendTrack increases the frequency of data transmission, providing Baleària with fleet updates every 10 seconds.If the signal from the VSAT or LTE fails, the AmendTrack switches to its satellite antenna and uses it as a backup. Thanks to these functionality, data obtained by Baleària gains a higher level of reliability.

Because Baleària always has visibility on the behaviour of its own fleet and the ships around it, this has a positive impact on safety. It is now possible to analyse data from the coast and pass it back to the ship to make certain safety-related decisions.

In addition, most importantly, the AmendTrack has enabled Baleària to significantly increase the data frequency for tracking their vessels’ location, resulting in improved accuracy in calculating ETA through their algorithm.

Baleària is the leading shipping group in Spain, with 25 years of history, with routes that link Mainland Spain with the Balearic Islands, Canary Islands, Ceuta and Melilla on a daily basis. Internationally, it operates in Morocco, Algeria, France, United States and the Bahamas.

The shipping company is a global benchmark in sustainability thanks to its pioneering commitment to eco-efficient mobility driven by cleaner and more eco-friendly energy sources, such as natural gas, allowing us to progress towards decarbonisation. Innovation is the key to the company’s identity and leadership. Baleària is developing projects that place digitisation and technology at the service of the customer: it has a fleet of smart ships that offer a fuller and more personalised experience, exploiting the capabilities of big data to become a data-driven company, among other initiatives.