The City of Duisburg in Germany has agreed a contract with Wärtsilä to provide a new simulator technology package for training in inland waterway navigation.
The simulator will consist of seven full mission bridges in two locations within Duisburg; six at the Schiffer-Berufskolleg Rhein vocational college, and one at the DST Development Centre for Ship Technology and Transport Systems.
“This new SANDRA – Simulator for Advanced Navigation Duisburg Research and Application – comes at the right time and will fulfil the requirements for giving future seafarers the skills they need,” said Thomas Krützberg, Head of Family, Education and Culture, Work and Social Affairs, City of Duisburg.
All seven bridge simulators will comply with the latest CESNI (Comité Européen pour l’Élaboration de Standards dans le Domaine de Navigation Intérieure) requirements relating to standards in the field of inland waterway navigation. Installation and handover of the equipment will take place later this year, Wärtsilä says.
“The more realistic the training, the more capable will be the crew, which is why state-of-the-art simulation is so important,” added Hendrik Posenauer, Senior Sales Manager, Wärtsilä Voyage.
“Inland waterway navigation presents a number of challenging situations, and with this simulator training these challenges can be realistically studied and prepared for.”