ECDIS White Paper Focusing on Charting and Training
A 94-page White Paper on ECDIS Type Specific covering all aspects from the 38 manufacturers to charting and training options is available for download. The white paper tackles the problem of there being no 'Standard Mode', despite the great demand - and many would say great need - for it within the industry.
The white paper has been produced by a team of experiences ECDIS users and officers who over the years have written many books, publications and articles on ECDIS featuring most of the 38 manufacturers including the IMO adopted ECDIS manual. It has been produced in response to the overwhelming requests from an international client base of over 250 shipping companies that want to understand more about the complex issues relating to the ever developing ECDIS navigation options required on an estimated 50,000+ international trading ships.
Perceived Varied Standards
The ECDIS manufacturers range in price from EUR7,000 to EUR45,000, and seafarer reports on reliability appears to range from 4 hours to a lifetime of no trouble. They all vary in charting options, and some have moved completely away from the traditional Raster format (such as ARCS) as an option during periods of RCDS mode at sea albeit there is not 100% global coverage of all ENC scales 1-5. Some require significant training and others can be `picked up` within hours.
The core issue of the complexity centres around the perceived varying standards of both the different ECDIS systems, and the associated training standards for the safe and effective transition from paper to ECDIS. Although some of the 171 member states and IMO have given guidance on ECDIS Type Specific procedures and training, there has been no definitive documentation addressing these issues and concerns. This white paper has been created to help readers understand the issue, solve their problem, and help them make decisions in arguable the most complicated and significant evolution at sea since the transition from sail to steam.
