For over 30 years, World-Link Communications, a member of the Schulte Group, has been keeping merchant fleets connected at sea. As a specialised satellite communication solutions provider, the company is serving vessels from the whole maritime vertical with integrated hardware, software, and cybersecurity products.
Satellite communications play a fundamental role in the maritime industry, ensuring safety of cargo and passengers. Efficient connectivity from shore-to-ship and ship-to-shore enables ship owners and managers to access and benefit from real-time operational data and surveillance. Moreover, crew and passengers can stay connected to family and friends.
New safety and regulatory requirements as well as the rapidly growing data consumption have accelerated the digital transformation of the industry and increased the need for new reliable solutions providing connectivity at sea:
“Reliable communication has become an indispensable part of maritime transport, with digitalisation being the driver behind this transformation,” explains Dimitris Giouris, Sales and Marketing Director at World-Link Communications. “Our goal is to provide people and goods offshore with network integration that makes them as reliably connected as any given unit on land.”
World-Link Communications currently serves more than 1,800 commercial vessels worldwide, and tailors its services to the unique requirements of individual ship owners, operators, and crew members. As an independent system and network integrator with longstanding partnerships in the telecommunications industry, the company is able to offer customers full flexibility when it comes to choosing the right solutions in terms of connectivity and value-added services:
“We operate our own communications hubs and partner with the world’s leading satellite operators and hardware manufacturers, including Inmarsat, Intelsat, SES, Iridium, Intellian, Cobham and CISCO, developing smarter software, cost-efficient hardware, and network-based connectivity solutions to increase crew welfare, bandwidth optimisation, and cyber security,” says Dimitris.
The company has a broad portfolio of sophisticated in-house developed applications, custom-designed especially to a modern vessel’s needs, such as ShipSat, a gateway for vessel communication, link management, and operational optimisation that empowers customers’ digitalisation efforts as well as ensures compliance with regulations:
“For our customers, staying compliant with regulations means staying competitive in an increasingly challenging and commoditised marketplace and all our solutions are developed
accordingly,” explains Dimitris. “From 1 January 2021, for instance, cyber security will come under the remit of the International Safety Management Code and measures for addressing cyber risk must be incorporated into a vessel’s Safety Management System. Our cyber security solution ShipSecure ensures a vessel is protected from potential cyber threats and fully compliant with the latest guidelines giving ship owners and managers complete peace of mind.”
In 2019, World-Link Communications became part of the Schulte Group, under MariApps Marine Solutions to better serve customers and their ever-increasing demands. Together the two companies provide unmatched uniform solutions and systems needed for all airtime and software solutions, offering customers the synergies of world-class satellite communication services and digital solutions.
For further information about World-Link Communications, its products, and partners, visit: www.wlnet.com
