Laying the Foundation for Digital Transformation in Shipping
On January 19, Hyundai Glovis announced that it has begun introducing the low Earth orbit satellite communication service 'Starlink' to 45 of its owned vessels. Installation is underway, starting with car carriers (PCTC) and bulk carriers scheduled to call at domestic ports this year.
Starlink is a low Earth orbit satellite communication service operated by the American space development company SpaceX. While the geostationary satellites previously used by vessels are located approximately 36,000 kilometers above the Earth's surface, Starlink satellites form a communication network with small satellites orbiting at a low altitude of 550 kilometers.
As a result, Starlink offers the advantage of faster data transmission speeds compared to existing geostationary satellite communications. For example, during an ocean voyage, the time required to download a 1.4-gigabyte (GB) movie is significantly reduced from 15 minutes to just 2 minutes after the introduction of Starlink.
Hyundai Glovis has introduced the low Earth orbit communication satellite service "Starlink" to its self-owned vessels, including pure car and truck carriers (PCTC) and bulk carriers, aiming to enhance maritime communication environments. Hyundai Glovis
With the adoption of Starlink, Hyundai Glovis aims to strengthen its maritime safety response system, while also building a large-capacity data communication infrastructure and improving working conditions for crew members. The company will secure communication coverage and speed to enable immediate communication and response with onshore teams in the event of maritime emergencies such as vessel malfunctions, crew illnesses or injuries, or adverse weather conditions. Through this, Hyundai Glovis plans to further advance its response system for various emergencies that may occur during ocean voyages.
In addition, Hyundai Glovis is establishing a stable, high-speed communication infrastructure to proactively prepare for the digital transformation of shipping, which will require large-scale data transmission and reception in the future. Based on this, the company will lay the foundation for introducing next-generation smart shipping technologies, including autonomous vessel operation and artificial intelligence (AI)-based predictive maintenance.
Furthermore, by providing crew members working at sea with a communication environment comparable to that on land, Hyundai Glovis will improve their working conditions. Previously, communication was limited mainly to text-based exchanges, but with the introduction of Starlink, crew members will now be able to enjoy video streaming and make video calls with their families.
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