Seafaring is often deemed a ‘risky occupation’ when it comes to both physical and mental health, involving highly demanding work alongside long working hours, often poor social support, and extended periods at sea.
In the Sailors Society’s recent 2022 Cadet Report, they found 57% of Generation Z, those born between 1996-2010, cadets from around the world had submitted scores suggesting anxiety, and that most believed loneliness would be the main cause of any mental health issues they faced. 79.5% also said their choice of shipping company would depend on how it treats seafarers.
Seafarer well-being
The need for improved seafarer well-being has led to the UK government’s allocation of £2.4 million for projects supporting seafarers’ mental health, maritime skills, diversity, and careers.
This investment has been made following the Maritime 2050 report, which highlights that the high incidence of mental health conditions is primarily due to the pressures, nature, and isolation of working at sea and suggests changing technology be utilised to improve sea connectivity.
Is LEO services the solution?
Satellites have been imperative for both operational and welfare services, in addition to positioning and navigation
Satellites have enabled communications at sea for over 50 years. They have been imperative for both operational and welfare services, in addition to positioning and navigation.
Generally, communications for major maritime platforms have been provided by Geosynchronous Orbit (GEO) satellites, delivering a “broadband” style service from a few Kbps to multiple Mbps. However, Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites are not a new proposition. Early LEO satellites, such as the Soviet Sputnik 1 launched in 1957, provided low single-digit Kbps, while more recent Iridium NEXT satellites provide hundreds of Kbps of resilient service.
New services
Thanks to significant investments in ‘broadband’ high throughput LEO satellites, new services offering ‘fibre-like’ high-speed low-latency connectivity of about 100 Mbps have become available.
These services enable high throughput at a reasonable cost and, if configured as part of a hybrid solution, allow for operational and welfare services to be separated. This protects welfare services for seafarers, offering more access to services like messaging and video communications, streaming platforms, and gaming.
The importance of on-board connectivity
The surge in demand for LEO connectivity reflects growing expectations from seafarers, and better awareness from employers, around social well-being. With long periods of separation from families and friends and work that often involves high-risk situations, seafaring can lead to a combination of anxiety, stress, and isolation.
A lack of access to mental health support services can contribute to depression and increases seafarers’ risk of unhealthy coping strategies resulting in serious personnel issues and retention difficulties.
Addressing communication issue
The survey highlighted that 63% would consider moving to another shipping company that offered better connectivity
The seafarers’ trade union, Nautilus International, further demonstrated the importance of connectivity in 2017 when it published a survey showing that 80% of its members considered communications the second most important integral collective bargaining issue.
It also highlighted that almost two-thirds (63%) would consider moving to another shipping company that offered better connectivity.
Need for LEO services
These demands have since been exacerbated. The COVID-19 pandemic saw many seafarers facing longer periods of isolation due to imposed restrictions and extended contracts, made worse for those unable to call or message their loved ones.
Generation Z crews have also grown up accustomed to having instant access to connectivity and can be reluctant to accept a job that takes this away. Together, these forces have pushed the need for LEO services to the forefront of maritime considerations, as a viable solution that meets welfare and operational needs.
The benefits of LEO services
LEO services offer high throughput connectivity combined with low latency, allowing crew members to access Wi-Fi and download speeds similar to those provided by home broadband. This, in turn, provides numerous benefits for physical and mental well-being:
- Real-time communication: Personnel can stay in touch with their loved ones and support networks while at sea, helping to reduce feelings of isolation and loneliness.
- Mental health support: Improved access to support services allows crew members to connect with mental health professionals and receive support for conditions like depression, anxiety, and PTS.
- Enhanced safety: Better connectivity allows for real-time tracking and the monitoring of location, weather data, and emergency response services, which can help prevent accidents and ensure quick response times in the event of an emergency. Remote monitoring of seafarers' health and well-being through wearable technology can also be used to monitor vital signs and detect early indications of health issues.
- Training: LEO services provide potential for crews to engage in virtual training, which is especially useful in cases where members are at sea for extended periods. On-demand access to training resources allows crew members to develop their skills and knowledge at sea, encouraging career advancement. Virtual training also helps establish best practices that promote onboard safety.
Overcome risks with a hybrid strategy
The combination of LEO and VSAT services allows large quantities of data to be exchanged at broadband speeds
Relying solely on LEO satellites is a risky strategy, putting operational priorities in conflict with crew welfare, as using data for one negatively impacts the data available to the other. To avoid this, LEO services can be paired with a guaranteed VSAT solution offering a committed information rate (CIR), to ensure mission-critical operations are not compromised and to protect the high-throughput connectivity most suited to provide well-being support services.
The combination of LEO and VSAT services allows large quantities of data to be exchanged at broadband speeds, and enables real-time communications and remote monitoring for operational matters, all without affecting crew services.
The key to choosing the right hybrid solution
A vessel and the needs of its crew members must be considered before choosing a service. For instance, maritime operators need to consider whether they require a solution with built-in access to ports, as some network operators don’t manage regulatory access. Using such a solution in ports without pre-approval can lead to significant consequences.
They also need to think about the operational conditions, ensuring their equipment has been built to withstand the environments it will be used in. Additionally, a CIR is crucial for most professional-grade operations, ensuring connectivity for operational and welfare purposes is never compromised.
Resilience, support, and assurance
Emerging LEO constellations provide new options for maritime operators that enable operational efficiencies
When delivered with the right resilience, support, and assurance and fused with a network service that guarantees connectivity emerging LEO constellations provide new options for maritime operators that enable operational efficiencies, increased safety, and security, greatly improved on-board morale, and support longer-term retention.
This means they can invest in both their crew and long-term planning.
Safety and career advancement
Officers and crew will be able to see that they are working for an employer that cares about their welfare. Contact with home will only be restricted when operational tasks dictate, rather than because the vessel doesn’t have the bandwidth.
Seafarers will also have the ability to catch up on entertainment, access social media, video and voice calling, and remote training that promotes safety and career advancement.
