{mprestriction ids="1,2"}MOL conducted the test using one of its operated vessels, and was able to receive and monitor information collected by the VDR on shore, including data from a variety of onboard systems, engine performance data, and vessel positioning data using the ECDIS.
The Japanese shipping company says that any past data stored on the VDR can also be accessed and transferred to shore as required using the vessel satellite communications system.
MOL expects to use this new facility to enhance safety by providing decision support from shore, and to improve incident response by being able to reproduce a vessel’s movements prior to an incident in a land-based ECDIS, alongside its voice transmissions and radar images.
The company has now set its sights on expanding use of this new system to every MOL-operated vessel, and refining the concept even further. In the longer term, MOL says it sees the project as a major step forward in its goal to introduce remote vessel operation technologies.{/mprestriction}