FishSAFE Launched and Available Now

FLTC Services Limited is pleased to announce that the new FishSAFE unit is now available for sale.

Substantial funding has been secured from the Scottish Ministers and the European Fisheries Fund which has subsidised the cost of a unit to £529 plus VAT.  This price is limited to the first run of units, so act quickly to secure a unit.

If you are interested in purchasing a unit, please contact FLTC Services Limited via +44(0)1224 646944.

The new Unit boasts a number of significant improvements on the previous FishSAFE unit, which FLTC Services Limited plan to discontinue support for (including data updates) in 2010.

Further information relating to FishSAFE can be found here

Successful Live Demonstration of FishSAFE

On 9 October 2009, the new FishSAFE Unit was put through its tests during a live demonstration at a lunchtime seminar held in the Aberdeen offices of Oil and Gas UK. The event was attended by representatives from the oil and gas and fishing industry, Scottish Government and Aberdeenshire Council.

The FishSAFE Unit is a GPS-based hazard warning device which provides fishermen with audible and visual warnings for surface and subsea hazards in UK waters.

Significant improvements have been made from the previous model which was over a decade old. Improvements include a larger, full colour screen which has far greater capabilities for the display of additional information about hazards.

Steve Taylor of Geomatics Limited demonstrated the FishSAFE unit to attendees at the event by putting the unit through various realistic scenarios to show how the unit reacts to the detection of oil and gas related surface and subsea structures. When a hazard is detected, an audible alarm is triggered and a message is displayed on screen to warn the skipper in enough time to avoid the hazard.

The project, coordinated by FLTC Services Limited and advised by Geomatics Limited, has been supported by Oil & Gas UK, the Scottish Fishermen's Federation, and the National Federation of Fishermen's Organisations. Grants have also been provided by the Scottish Government and the European Fisheries Fund for testing the Unit.

300 FishSAFE Units, manufactured by Jeppesen Italia S.r.l., a Boeing company, will be ready for supply before the end of the year. Further information about sales of the unit will be posted on this website.

Left to Right - Alex West, Director of FLTC,  John Skipper, Director of FLTC and BP, Niall Scott, Executive Chairman of FLTC Services, Michael Sutherland of SFF and James Brown, SFF Vice President, with the new FishSAFE Unit.

New FishSAFE in Development

FLTC Services (FLTCS) will host a live demonstration of a working prototype of the highly anticipated new FishSAFE device on 9 October 2009. Representatives from both the fishing and oil and gas industries in addition to other key stakeholders will attend this presentation to hear of progress made in the developmnent of FishSAFE.

FLTC Services, with the assistance of a grant from the Scottish Ministers and the European Fisheries Fund (EFF) to meet the first phase costs of developing a replacement for FishSAFE, have recently successfully completed laboratory and sea trials with prototype units and the event on 9 October will be the first opportunity for stakeholders to view the unit in operation.

FLTCS aims to make 300 of the new state-of-the-art devices available to the UK fishing fleet in Q4 2009 with the help of second phase funding from the European Fisheries Fund (EFF).

FishSAFE is a unique GPS-based safety device which provides fishermen with audible and visual warnings of seabed obstructions on which fishing nets may become caught.  The original FishSAFE device, developed in 1998, can no longer be maintained since its internal components are becoming obsolete.

The project is supported by Oil & Gas UK, the Scottish Fishermen's Federation (SFF), the National Federation of Fishermen's Organisations (NFFO).

Forum for oil and gas and fishing industries builds on collaboration to improve mariners' safety

The FLTC welcomed thirty-five senior representatives from the oil and gas and fishing industries as well as the Scottish and UK Governments to a special meeting in Aberdeen on Monday 15 June to learn about the steps taken so far by the Fisheries Legacy Trust Company (FLTC) to improve mariners' safety in UK waters.

Niall Scott, executive chairman of FLTC, said: "Since its launch in 2007, the FLTC has made significant progress in several projects to inform fishermen of seabed structures and equipment related to oil and gas activities on the UK continental shelf (UKCS), and as a result, improve their safety.

"It is imperative that representatives from the oil and gas and fishing industries are well-informed of these developments. Monday's lunchtime forum provided them with the ideal opportunity to learn about the new initiatives and offers a platform for further discussion and collaboration."

Attendees to the meeting learned from Neil Murray of Sea Fish Industry Authority (SFIA) about the new international web portal,www.fishsafe.eu, which provides fishermen and other mariners from the UK and other countries with enhanced information about the location of oil and gas companies' operations in UK waters. The site provides this information  in English, French, German, Dutch and Norwegian, assisting in improving the safety of mariners whose first language is not English.

In addition, the way in which the Secretary of States Representative for Maritime Salvage and Intervention (SOSREP) helps to remove or reduce the risk to persons, property and the UK environment arising from marine accidents was explained. Colin Mulvana Deputy to the SOSREP highlighted how the current SOSREP, Hugh Shaw, is co-operating with the maritime, offshore and salvage communities as well as Government departments, agencies and organizations in this pursuit.

Attendees also benefited from updates from Euan Meldrum (Oil & Gas UK), Martin Wadsworth (Common Data Access, CDA) and Niall Scott (FLTC) on wells, trawl sweeps and FLTC projects, such as the development of FishSAFE 2, the unique GPS-based safety device which provides fishermen with audible and visual warnings of seabed obstructions on which fishing nets may become caught.

Pictured from left: Colin Mulvana (Deputy SOSREP), Jim Mckie (Marine Lab), Niall Scott (FLTC), Bruce Stewart (Marine Scotland), Wendy Kennedy (DECC), Neil Murray (Seafish Industry Authority)

FLTC Services has taken over responsibility, through the Sea Fish Industry Authority (SFIA), for promoting the capture, processing and dissemination of detailed information on the location and status of pipelines, suspended wellheads, rig moves, temporary seabed obstructions and seismic surveying activities on the UKCS.

The project is known as Kingfisher Information Systems United Kingdom Continental Shelf or KIS-UKCS.FLTC Services will now work with SFIA to provide fishermen with detailed information about oil and gas structures and equipment in UK waters. The project is supported by the EFF and funding has been secured for the next three years.

FLTC Services has secured a grant from the Scottish Ministers and the European Fisheries Fund (EFF) to meet the first phase costs of developing a replacement for 'FishSAFE', a unique GPS-based safety device which provides fishermen with audible and visual warnings of seabed obstructions on which fishing nets may become caught. This grant has enabled FLTC Services to place a contract for the production and supply of new devices with Jeppesen Italia S.r.l., a Boeing company.

The project is also supported by Oil & Gas UK, the Scottish Fishermen's Federation (SFF), the National Federation of Fishermen's Organisations (NFFO) and the North Sea Commission.The original FishSAFE device, developed in 1998, can no longer be maintained since its internal components are becoming obsolete. FLTC Services is procuring its replacement and the EFF grant will allow it to trial and test the device. Once the trial is successfully completed, FLTCS intend to supply 300 units to the UK fishing fleet.

The unit will have state-of-the-art technology with clearer graphics, making it easier to use. The device casing will also be more robust, giving improved performance. We aim to make the new device available from October 2009 with the help of second phase funding from the EFF.

Skipper Victor Laurenson signing an Expression of Interest Form for the new FishSAFE unit at the Glasgow Fishing Exhibition on 15 May 2009 (Picture: David Linkie).

With financial help from Shell UK, FLTC Services has built an international web portal providing fishermen from the UK and other countries with enhanced information about the location of oil and gas companies' operations in UK waters. The site, www.fishsafe.eu, will make this information available in French, German, Dutch, Norwegian and English.

The new website is now up and running and is being used by oil and gas operators to inform fishermen about their infrastructure and operations. The information is available in five languages which will improve the safety of fishermen whose first language is not English, an added benefit.