Iridium Case Study: Stolt-Nielsen Meets SSAS Requirements and Reduces Costs Using Marlink and Iridium

CHALLENGE

Stolt-Nielsen S.A. is one of the world's leading providers of transportation services for bulk liquid chemicals, edible oils, acids and other specialty liquids.In 2004, they proactively sought a communications solution to comply with an International Maritime Organization (IMO) requirement for fitting its ships with Ship Security Alert Systems (SSAS).Stolt-Nielsen took advantage of the opportunity to comply with the SSAS carriage requirements while also reducing costs of ship-to-shore communications by installing Iridium service via Marlink.Thrane & Thrane Iridium terminals were provided under a service agreement with Iridium partner, Marlink.

SOLUTION

Stolt-Nielsen fitted 74 ships with the Thrane & Thrane IMF1000 Iridium terminals, which are fully compliant with the SSAS carriage requirement.In the next phase of the rollout, the company also plans to install Iridium satellite terminals at its headquarters buildings in Houston and Rotterdam, taking advantage of the very low rates for communication between two Iridium satellite phones.Unlike geostationary satellite systems, there are no additional charges for calls between two Iridium terminals, since the calls are not routed through ground connections or third-party landline carriers.Moreover, the transmission path for Iridium-to-Iridium calls is highly secure, making an ideal solution for confidential or sensitive communications between ships and shoreside offices.

The Iridium phones are being used for a variety of ship-to-shore voice and data communications.They are also using Iridium prepaid Crew Calling services to permit crew members to communicate with their friends and families while at sea.With Iridium's Family First Program, crew members using Marlink scratch cards receive a 35% discount on calls made on the 1st of every month, selected holidays and every Saturday and Sunday.

RESULT

Stolt-Nielsen has reported a very rapid return on investment resulting from the substantial monthly savings in satellite airtime costs.An additional benefit is that ships' calls are automatically separated from prepaid crew calls, making for easier monthly cost accounting.

Iridium Satellite LLC (www.iridium.com) is the only provider of truly global satellite voice and data solutions with complete coverage of the earth (including oceans, airways and Polar Regions).Iridium delivers essential communications services to and from remote areas where no other form of communication is available.Iridium makes this possible through its constellation of 66 low-earth orbiting (LEO), cross-linked satellites and 12 in-orbit spares.The Iridium service is ideally suited for industries such as maritime, aviation, government/military, emergency/humanitarian services, mining, forestry, oil and gas, heavy equipment, transportation and utilities.Iridium provides service to the U.S. Department of Defense, and sells equipment and services through 44 service providers.In addition, 36 value-added manufacturers, 28 value-added resellers and five value-added developers design, build and sell Iridium-based products and solutions.

Marlink is a global leader for satellite communications providing maritime and land-based customers with a variety of services - any time, any place.Marlink offers high quality solutions for optimal, fast, efficient and reliable satellite communications globally, including satellite airtime, software, equipment, traffic accounting and Point of Service Activation (PSA) services.In 2005, Marlink further expanded its portfolio of communications services with the incorporation of Neratek, a leading supplier of maritime and land mobile communications systems, into its global operations.Marlink has offices worldwide including Athens, Brussels, Dubai, Hamburg, Houston, London, Oslo, Rockville, Singapore and Tokyo.For more information go to www.marlink.com.