Cruise and Ferry Review - Summer/Spring 2020

5 1 AP Companies has launched a 24-hour express service for pre-employment (PEME) and re- employment (REME) medical examinations for seafarers working in Europe. The company selects trusted medical facilities, specialised in PEME and REME for seafarers. These facilities provide exclusive package prices and quicker service, enabling crew members to obtain the results and the documents in 24 hours rather than the usual five business days. AP Companies launches express medical examination service Irish Ferries signs agreement with Hogia Ferry Systems Irish Ferries is to implement Hogia Ferry Systems’ BOOKIT reservation system for managing its passenger and freight operations. The operator currently uses separate systems for the two sides of its business, but these will now be replaced with a single solution. Four Irish Ferries ro-pax vessels and one high-speed ferry currently operate on two routes across the Irish Sea, as well as a direct route between Ireland and France. The new reservation system will be available for passenger bookings by the end of the year, followed by the commercial business in 2021. Cruise Lines International Association has shared the findings of three independent reports showing that exhaust gas cleaning systems (EGCS) used on passenger ships have minimal impact on water and sediment quality when operated in open-loop mode. The CE Delft, DNV GL and Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ship Scrubber reports all found that EGCS were a safe means of compliance with the International Maritime Organization 2020 sulphur cap requirements. Studies show exhaust gas cleaning systems to be safe Princess Cruises has expanded its partnership with SES Networks and will be the first global cruise line with early access to the satellite operator’s O3b mPower network, allowing it to augment the connected experience onboard the Princess MedallionClass ships. The satellite-based system will allow the line to overcome bandwidth constraints and provide guests and crew with data rates of up to 10 Gigabytes per second and the capacity to transfer terabyte-size files. This will give operators a stable online connection that is comparable to those available onshore, enabling services such as 4K video streaming. Princess Cruises expands partnership with SES Networks Photo: Princes Cruises Photo: Irish Ferries Photo: Wärtsilä MARKETWATCH