UK-based global satellite provider Inmasat has been contracted to equip Australia’s new fleet of Cape Class border protection vessels with high-speed mobile satellite broadband connectivity.
The $7 million, five year contact with the Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) will see Inmarsat, through its Global Xpress (GX) constellation. Provide broadband connectivity and support services, including satellite communication (satcom) terminals, to DIBP’s fleet of eight Cape Class vessels, as well as to additional support vessels.
Following the tender issued by DIBP, Inmarsat says its solution was chosen as it delivered a single terminal to each vessel that provided the flexibility to choose between commercial and military satellite systems, while still maintaining the prerequisite reliability and communications coverage.
Cape Class vessels are considerably larger than the platforms previously used by DIBP and carry some 22 crew, compared to eight on the previous vessels.
{loadposition peter}And, with a crew almost three times the size, DIBP required a satcom solution that was capable of both handling significantly larger data capacities for crew and operational communications, and that offered high reliability.
Inmarsat worked with Australia satellite specialists, EM Solutions, to develop a terminal that met DIBP’s unique needs.
Dave Luhrs, Commander, Air and Marine, Department of Immigration and Border Protection, said Inmarsat’s solution not only enhances border protection operations, but also equips staff and crew with “better access to back-office applications and potential welfare communications while they are on patrol in the future”.
“At the operational level, the ability to switch between satellite systems enables our crew to prioritise their communications and ensures they are ‘always on’, which is of paramount importance when protecting our borders,” he said.
Each vessel has been fitted with Inmarsat’s EM Solutions Cobra terminal, complemented by the satellite provider’s L-band FleetBroadband service. The larger support vessels have been fitted with commercial GX terminals.
Andy Start, President, Inmarsat Global Government said: “This contract ensures the Department of Immigration and Border Protection remains at the forefront of communications technology while allowing it to continue to leverage its existing Government-owned communications satellites. Our broadband services and terminals augment and enhance what is possible for Australia’s border protection crews in order to keep them connected at all times.”
Todd McDonell, VP, Inmarsat Global Government Solutions said Australian government departments have been among the “earliest adopters of technology and this deployment shows that local organisations continue to sit at the cutting edge of communications technology”.
“When you combine this with the recent news that Melbourne-based Beam Communications will invest up to US$2 million to develop a new data terminal for us, it’s clear that the often-discussed Innovation Agenda in Australia is taking off.”