OceanWise has collaborated with Marico Marine on an auspicious project to install a brand-new VTS (vessel traffic service) system at the Port of Dover. The new “state of the art” system (see above picture) which is now commissioned and fully operational, has been designed to improve operations, support decision making and enhance efficiencies at the Port.

The project included the supply of new VTS operator workstations, a Port Management Information System (PMIS), various radars, a VHF system, Radio Direction Finders (RDF), an Automatic Identification System, CCTV and – importantly for OceanWise – new metocean sensors and an environmental data sharing platform (Port-Log).

Marico Marine’s associate director, Bruce Mills, who led the project, commented, “The Port of Dover VTS upgrade project was a prestigious contract requiring a complete replacement of all the VTS equipment at the busiest Ferry Port in Europe. Many aspects of the project were technically demanding, and the client required modern and state-of-the-art integrated market-leading solutions.”

OceanWise, who specialize in marine environmental monitoring solutions, collaborated with Marico Marine to deliver a fully integrated system which met the unique data requirements at the Port of Dover. Various sensors were installed across the port in a range of key onshore and offshore locations. The sensors included a Valeport tide gauge, a Gill Instruments weather sensor, a Vaisala visibility sensor and a DWR-G wave sensor supplied by RS Aqua.

The complex data from the new sensors, and data from an existing Xylem current meter, were carefully integrated by experts at OceanWise, creating a modern, optimized system. The essential real-time data produced by the network of sensors is transmitted, digested and stored in Port-Log – the OceanWise data platform which manages and publishes environmental data.

Mills also commented, “The OceanWise system was chosen by Marico and the Port of Dover as it provided a powerful range of features/functions whilst at the same time being robust and reliable.”

For more information on Marico Marine’s global maritime expertise please visit their website.