TC keeps deep-sea exploration company connected

When you're operating a 6m-tall sea-floor drilling system - at depths greater than 2 kms below sea level - you need your communications link to be bulletproof!

Benthic Geotech is a pioneering Australian company which specialises in sampling the sea floor for its oil, engineering and scientific clients around the world. Using large, seagoing vessels, Benthic's teams operate a sea-floor drilling system called PROD (Portable Remotely Operated Drill). PROD collects soil and floorbed samples using a combination of drills and coring tools while delivering data to the surface via an umbilical cable containing fibre optic strands.

Benthic's teams are today equipped with Inmarsat's FB250 FleetBroadband service, the first maritime communications service to provide cost-effective broadband data and voice, simultaneously, through a compact antenna, on a global basis. This was supplied to them by TC Communications.

"For the first time since I can remember, I haven't heard any of our staff complaining about the communications terminal," quips Benthic CFO Kazim Reza. "Seriously, it was easy to install and has proven reliable and easy to use ever since. Even more impressive is the level of service we've experienced from TC Communications. For example, a few months ago the terminal was left on accidentally - costing us money for every minute it was polling the satellite network - and we got a call from TC to alert us to switch it off.

"Our business is not a nine-to-five operation and support calls can come in at any time of day or night" he adds. "TC Communications has demonstrated its worth by setting up training for our crew at their base of mobilisation so we wouldn't have to delay a project to get potentially life saving training on the system. It's this commitment to the relationship that sets otherwise good technology apart from a great solution.

"Our clients typically want as much information as they can get about a site before they send out the heavy equipment to start building oil platforms or laying undersea pipes or cables" says Reza. "This information is not always easy to come by and given the ocean floor has the consistency of toothpaste, the faster the information can be relayed back to clients, the sooner they can make informed decisions."

You can read the entire press release - with more info about Benthic's operations, plus comment from TC and Inmarsat - right here.

TC: An Aussie company to watch

The Rust Report is an Australasian ICT news source. In their latest edition, TC gets a mention as an "Aussie company to watch". Read it here.

Inmarsat acknowledges TC's aero satcom firefighting implementation

We blogged about it last week, but it's great to see Inmarsat acknowledging how important the Victorian firefighting planes' communication capability upgrade is.

The whole world saw the devastating impact of those fires last year, and the risk continues. During a fire, knowing what's happening minute-by-minute can make a huge difference. We're really proud to have been able to work with Thrane & Thrane and Inmarsat to implement a communication solution for the Victorian State Aircraft Unit.

TC Communications equips Victorian authorities with real-time satellite data

Fire-spotting aircraft managed by Victoria’s State Aircraft Unit (SAU) have been given the ability to share to real-time data on fire activity using satellite data feeds.

The new solution provides commanders at any of the 43 incident control centres throughout the state with access to real-time snapshots of fire activity, enabling more effective fire fighting strategies. The solution also provides simultaneous voice and data communications at broadband speeds direct from the plane into headquarters.

The new functionality follows the deployment of Australia’s first SwiftBroadband Lite terminals on the aircraft from Australian satellite communications specialist TC Communications, which gives the SAU access to Inmarsat’s I-4 satellite network.

Read more about this important aviation communication and environmental milestone on TC's page.

Mobile page for TC Communications

Are you a Blackberry or iPhone user? TC has just launched a new version of its website, customised for viewing on mobile devices. Check it out at www.tc.com.au/Mini/.

It's impossible to ignore the continuing trend toward mobile access and applications. It was only this week that Google announced they're developing apps for mobiles first, and desktops second.

Aero Medical Conference 2009 Whiteish Paper

Extract for Paper on “Getting the Aircraft Connected
” “Can You Take the NBN With You?”

The government has generated a lot of discussion around the planned $43 billion dollars to build Australia’s National Broadband Network or NBN. One of the suggested key benefits of this network will be the ability to deliver ground breaking new medical applications and services into the homes of most Australian’s.

So while some medical outposts may obtain substantially better communications through this network there will still be a need to transport patients to better-equipped medical facilities. The benefits of a superior connection in the outpost may be quickly forgotten if you can’t access that same expert information during transportation.

Three things have changed in the last couple of years that, as a result, mean you can now bring an aero medical aircraft into permanent contact with the expert systems on the ground, these are:
a) The launch of new larger satellites
b) The latest developments in electronic miniaturisation
c) The development of more efficient software systems

This means that the smallest aircraft can now carry highly compact, more cost efficient satellite communication systems that allow DSL like connections with the ground on a continuous basis.

If obtaining superior, expert medical information en route could improve patient care and enable the aircraft to operate more efficiently such communications could both reduce the cost of transport and improve patient outcomes.

In this presentation I explained how some very recent innovations in aircraft communications can enable the smallest aircraft to:

• Provide a continuous video feed to and / or from the aircraft
  
• Deliver a connection allowing the monitoring of various vital signs by experts on the ground
  
• Provide continual voice communications at the same time as both the applications above

The pricing model for such services has changed to an ‘always connected, pay when you use’ system making the cost of these communications more affordable.

The dramatic reduction in equipment size also ensures the aircraft is not penalised for carrying such equipment in terms of payload reduction or additional fuel consumption.

In summary this presentation covered both the technical and commercial improvements that will make provision of ‘always on’ data connectivity on aero medical aircraft a very valuable proposition.

TC announced as Inmarsat's only Gold accredited Service Provider in the AsiaPac region

At the Inmarsat Global Partner conference in Berlin last week, TC Communications was announced as Australia's (SE Asia's) only Gold Accredited Service Provider. The accreditation process was exhaustive and included competency requirements in Customer Service, Technical Support and Sales. Inmarsat has introduced this accreditation process so as to ultimately enhance end-user customer satisfaction and enable end-users to make a more informed choice in regards to Inmarsat service providers. TC is very proud to have been named as. The region's only Gold Service Provider and believe that the extra benefits and access to the Inmarsat network that this accreditation gives us will greatly benefit our clients.