Indra´s technology allows to improve control and safety over Southampton´s maritime traffic

Southampton port, one of the largest and busiest in the United Kingdom, handles all the vessels that enter and exit the port and navigate in the nearby waters with Indra's iMARE system, a solution that provides all the necessary information and tools to control movement in the port efficiently and to the highest safety standards.

The system developed by Indra equips the superport with a solution that is capable of handling its vast annual volume of operations. The port handles an annual volume of freight worth more than 40 billion pounds, making it the main port of exit for UK exports. It also is the leading port in terms of the volume of vehicle imports/exports and the second largest port in container handling. Southampton is a deep-water port, which means that the world's largest container vessels and cruise ships can berth there.

Indra's system improves the services provided to these large vessels and increases the port's competitiveness and its ability to remain the homeport of the leading shipping companies in the world. With the system, the port's operators are able to manage incoming and outgoing vessels faster, which means lower costs while ensuring safe maneuvering. Its implementation is a key component in the port's modernization which Associated British Ports (ABP), its owner and legal authority, has carried out.

The iMare system provides control center operators in the port of Southampton with a full view of what is happening in their waters, with an integrated maritime overview based on standardized digital nautical charts. On the system's screens, operators can see and identify every vessel and determine their exact location, freight and route as well as contact the bridge to transmit instructions for its entry and exit from the port.

The system merges all information provided by the automatic identification systems (AIS) fitted into vessels of a certain size, which identify the vessels and provide information about their cargo, among other details. The system also incorporates all information sent by the radar, the digital SOS call system (DSC system), and weather and tide stations. In this way, operators are able to view and access all necessary information simply and quickly and to make decisions and manage the port's traffic.

The system also makes it possible to automate repetitive tasks such as automatic route allocation or alarm creation; and it is integrated with an entry pricing and billing system and, as such, improves and facilitates management of port business.

The iMARE system is supported by four new radars implemented by Indra as well as cameras installed by the company for visual verification of the information. These sensors also handle the surveillance of both the port and the waters of the Solent, the busy strait that separates the mainland from the Isle of Wight. This information is also shared with the neighboring port and helps to improve its management and security. Additionally, it provides processed data to government bodies, such as the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), for use and integration.

The success of the implementation of the vessel traffic system (VTMS) in the port of Southampton strengthens Indra's relationship as ABP's technological partner. ABP is a private entity that manages 21 ports in the UK.

Ocean safety

Indra is a pioneer in deploying maritime surveillance systems. Its systems are used to control traffic along more than 5,000 km of coastline in countries such as Spain, Portugal, Latvia and Romania, and Hong Kong. Indra has also implemented its vessel traffic systems (VTMS) in Cádiz and Poland, where the Indra system controls traffic in the waters of the Baltic Sea and the 11 largest ports in the country (with more than 80 million tons of cargo per year) and the mouth of the Oder river. Indra is also installing its systems in the Valencia (Spain) and other ports in Brazil and Morocco.

Indra in the United Kingdom and Ireland

Indra holds a solid position in the technology and consultancy markets in the UK and Ireland. The company supplies its solutions for leading companies in the financial sector and telecommunications operators; its systems control and enable the centralized operation of 12 road tunnels in London and over 90 km of connecting roads; Indra has implemented the systems that manages air traffic in Scotland and is working on implementing its systems in all air traffic control centers in the UK, which will mean that all UK flights will be managed using Indra's technology; it was responsible for vote counts in the 2008 London Mayoralty and Assembly elections, the most important and complex in the United Kingdom; and it delivered the EC225 transport and rescue helicopter simulator implemented in Aberdeen at the Airbus Helicopters pilot training center. The company has also introduced its smart traffic and toll management systems on the main expressways in Ireland and at the Dublin port tunnel.

About Indra

Indra is one of the main global consulting and technology companies and the technology partner for core business operations of its clients businesses throughout the world. It offers a comprehensive range of proprietary solutions and cutting edge services with a high added value in technology, which adds to a unique culture that is reliable, flexible and adaptable to its client’s needs. Indra is a world leader in the development of comprehensive technological solutions in fields such as Defense & Security, Transport & Traffic, Energy & Industry, Telecommunications & Media, Financial Services and Public Administrations & Healthcare. Through its Minsait unit, it provides a response to the challenges of digital transformation. In 2016 it reported revenues of €2,709m, had a workforce of 34,000 professionals, a local presence in 46 countries, and sales operations in more than 140 countries.