Transas VTMIS for Bahrain

The island of Bahrain is strategically located between Saudi Arabia and Iran and is thus optimally positioned to serve as a transshipment hub in the region. KBSP is being developed by Bahrain at Hidd across the harbour from existing Mina Salman Port. It is scheduled to start operating at end 2008 and will comprise 900,000 sq m of container terminal/general cargo area, 10,800 ground slots for terminal storage, and 1800 m of berthing length for container, conventional /Ro-Ro cargo and passenger vessels.
In 2005 APM Terminals was selected and after negotiations awarded a 25 year concession to operate the new Mina Khalifa Bin Salman Port. Vessel Traffic Management Information System (VTMIS) is a critical tool for the modern successful port. The stake holders APM Terminals and Svitzer were very clear in their requirements for the system capabilities and flexibilities which would allow VTMIS to be used as a tool to increase efficiency, safety of navigation and traffic management.
During the bidding process, Transas was able to offer a turnkey VTMS solution that was in full and complete compliance with the requirements of port operator and government regulator. The solution offered was designed to facilitate future expansion and fully upgradable to meet future port requirements.

A unique type of coastal radar with a 19-ft antenna was proposed for installation on top of a BAPCO tower which is located across the harbour to monitor and control approaching traffic. An additional 12 ft radar was also proposed for installation on top of the KBSP control tower for better tracking in the immediate area surrounding the port. The configuration also includes provision of CCTV cameras, meteorological sensors for wind speed, direction, visibility, tide and currents information. All data would be provided at the control tower via two operators and also remotely to the port regulators and other interested government bodies, once the system is complete. It has also been proposed that the meteorological information will be provided remotely at the Port Pilots Office remotely.
The proposed VTMS included a number of hardware and software elements that have been carefully designed, constructed and combined to provide a robust reliable system that exhibits cutting edge performance. Transas VTMS is built on the philosophy of using commercial off-the-shelf components. Where appropriate (e.g. for radar processing), state-of-the-art custom hardware and software designed specifically to meet the demands of a mission critical marine VTMS are used.
One of the major contributory factors that helped to secure this contract for Transas was the inclusion of its tried and tested Navi-Harbour software, and the powerful ORS3 radar processor system. Transas Navi-Harbour and the ORS3 system are currently being used by more than 100 authorities, ports and harbours around the world.
Transas VTMS is acknowledged as having the most effective multi-sensor integration and tracking (e.g. determining that an AIS and radar target are the same vessel), and the best multi-radar integration (creating a single coherent radar picture from multiple different radars) available in the industry today. When combined with the Transas TX97 marine vector charts, the result is a precise operator display that presents accurate and real-time situational awareness in the VTMS centre.

Transas is fast becoming the provider of choice for ports who seek high quality and cost-effective, VTMS. The success of recent VTMS installations in Aberdeen, United Kingdom, Fremantle Ports (Australia) and larger national scale systems including the recently completed Malta National VTMIS System, are testament to the company’s focus on delivering exactly what the customer wants.
An after-sales warranty and a three year post warranty maintenance service will be provided by Transas Middle East through the local agents Aeradio Technical Services. This arrangement will enable APM Terminals and Svitzer to plan their maintenance budgets with certainty, while ensuring they have a reliable system, which through regular upgrades; will continue to be state–of-the-art for many years to come.
The installation at KBSP will start in May 2008 and completion is expected within next 4 months.