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Electronic Chart Distributor Datema, based in Delfzijl and Rotterdam in the Netherlands, has been appointed as a Value Added reseller (VAR). Datema is already a leading distributor of ENCs, and has recently developed an innovative ENC-licensing service called ENCTrack whereby the vessels’ ENC licence is automatically determined by a tracking system. Datema also operates a 24/7 automated licensing system called ENC-Online.
In response to the appointment, Datema Director Willem Amels stated:
“We are very pleased to make this step. It is proof of our technical competence and our commitment to making innovative solutions for the distribution of ENCs. The appointment as VAR means that we will have a closer relation to the producing hydrographic offices, which will help to introduce new innovative solutions like ENCTrack. IC-ENC plays a central role in ensuring that ENC data quality standards and distribution policies are made consistent across hydrographic organisations, which in turn is essential to the delivery of consistent, high quality, integrated services.”
One of the first services, which will be offered from early 2010, will be a slightly modified version of the ENCTrack service whereby the IC-ENC and PRIMAR ENCs will be offered for a fixed price. This means that for the first time the expense of electronic charts can be accurately budgeted, and the user is able to use all available charts without having to economise. This new service will mean a major boost in safety, as all visible charts can be updated without exception and all charts within a certain area are immediately accessible without additional costs.
Following the launch of the ENCTrack fixed price option, Datema plans to re-launch the original concept of ENCTrack whereby a user only pays for the charts that they really use. However this re-launch is dependent on achieving closer alignment in the distribution policies of the two RENCs in the course of 2010, and which IC-ENC is currently working on in conjunction with PRIMAR, and in consultation with its members and other appointed VARs.
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