Satellite communications equipment

Wealth has its commitments...yacht owners can be too busy to enjoy their luxurious vessels. Yacht satellite communications equipment allows executives to work on board.

CEOs and captains alike have been affected by the changes caused by technology. The captain's main concern is the use of satellite navigation equipment, the executive's is satellite communications equipment.

You need not be too busy to take your new 200-foot yacht around the world. Properly equipped, you need never be out of touch. The suppliers are there ready to help you achieve this.

The changes in technology and data-transfer speeds have allowed yachts to go on the Web, answer e-mails, watch TV - even have video conferences with offices around the world.

There are big waiting lists for luxury yachts - the market has grown from 120 per year in the early '90s to about 200 today.

Yachts over 100 feet long cost between $5 million and $18 million apiece. Today's yachts are bigger than ever - 150- to 200-foot vessels are not uncommon.

3 August 2006 was the date that Intelsat announced that Station 53, a supplier of integrated communications services to luxury yachts, had signed a multi-year agreement to provide voice over Internet protocol (VoIP), data and Internet service through Intelsat's GlobalConnex managed network.

Station 53 was the first maritime service provider dedicated exclusively to providing communications services to the luxury yacht market to sign with Intelsat.

Station 53 used Intelsat's Network Broadband Service to allow luxury yachts sailing in the Caribbean and in the Mediterranean high speed broadband Internet access at throughputs higher than DSL connections.

Both networks, one for Caribbean and one for Mediterranean connectivity, operate simultaneously as the luxury yachts migrate seasonally between regions every year.

The service is provided out of Intelsat's Mountainside Teleport facility on the East coast of the USA, using the IS-905 satellite located at 335.5º E. longitude. By serving both regions on a single satellite, Intelsat provides Station 53 with a cost effective, bundled solution which simplifies the seasonal transition from one ocean region to another.

Station 53 customers demanded permanent connectivity whether for work, recreational or safety reasons. Intelsat's robust network and reputation for reliability were key to the decision to select it as a single global provider. Prior to signing with Intelsat, their services were operating on multiple networks with multiple service providers, limiting their ability to fully manage their network. Intelsat provided a one-stop-shop solution for all customer communications needs.

The yachting community now had the luxury of surfing the Internet, calling home via VoIP or running their businesses from the comfort of their own boats.

Intelsat is the largest provider of fixed satellite services world-wide and is the leading provider of these services to each of the media, network services/telecom and government customer sectors, enabling people and businesses everywhere constant access to information and entertainment.

Since yachting remains a preserve of the super rich, manufacturers still tend to be niche players.

There's the German company Anschutz, a division of Raytheon, which makes autopilots and gyrocompass equipment; the British firm bandg, that sells instrument systems and software; and Northstar Technologies for global positioning systems.

Raytheon offers both satellite communications and radar, autopilot, gyro, plotting systems for navigational tasks.The smaller Japanese firm Furuno offers a similar range of products. 

One problem in trying to keep in touch has been keeping the boat's antennae still enough to lock on the satellite.The solution... gyrostabilized antennae.

Technology has also made yachting far safer. Analogue gauges have made way for one screen and computer alerts if there are problems with the engine or any other function.

Rescuers can find you. If your electrical power fails, you can use an Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB), a hand-held battery-powered transmitter that sends two distress signals - one to a satellite that passes it to a ground station and another that helps the search-and-rescue teams locate you with help from global positioning satellites.

Magellan Systems let you send and receive e-mails via satellite when you can't hook up your PC - or tells you when the next satellite is in range for transmissions.

Because yachting is a niche business, most marine electronics companies are quite small, but the range of products large...

... satellite equipment and satellite antennae

... data, fax, and voice terminals

... multi-line satellite phones

... video conferencing

... multisystem television satellite tv systems

... dual power supply

... cellular and GSM satellite phones (for Europe)

... yacht security cameras

... computer networks including with flat screens and servers