2. Customer stories

BW Offshore enhances ship-to-shore communications

Issues and challenges

BW Offshore is a leading global provider of floating production units and services to the oil and gas industry and employs around 2,000 people around the world.

It is one of the most innovative companies in the industry and, from the CEO down, views IT as a business enabler. Significant growth accentuated the fact that the company’s legacy network could not fully support its fast-moving business and very dynamic market. Multiple providers with differing contracts and SLAs, coupled with poor application performance and ship-to-shore communications, were undermining effective vessel management and crew morale.

"By choosing the satellite-based solution from Orange Business, we avoid many of the challenges we sometimes faced with a multiple-provider strategy, like high latency on VSAT links and poor application performance on vessels at sea. We wanted a single provider with end-to-end responsibility that could deliver service with predictable speed, quality and security."

Fritz Ekloff, Senior Vice President Corporate IT and Systems, BW Offshore

The objective

Simplify and enhance ship-to-shore communications.

Solutions
  • Orange Maritime VSAT – fully managed end-to-end satellite-based communications solution
  • Integration of 14 vessels and two land-based sites with the Orange MPLS network
  • Single domain for always-connected servers and computers in real-time
  • SIP trunking to enable global unified communications on Microsoft Lync for all employees, partners and suppliers
  • Fully managed WAN, IP telephony and VSAT optimized solution
  • Program and partner management – Microsoft, Riverbed
Benefits

Orange delivered a global, integrated, robust and secure VSAT, MPLS and unified communications solution that enables high-quality ship-to-shore communications – no matter where a vessel is located.

  • Enhanced ship-to-shore collaboration
  • More efficient vessel and crew management
  • Faster, more accurate reporting
  • Enhanced crew support when offshore for long periods
  • Robust, secure service with strong SLAs
  • Higher crew retention
  • International calls at local rates
  • Easy access to communications and entertainment services
  • Reduced recruitment and training
Results
  • Reduced costs
  • 60% lower data traffic
  • Better end-user experience
  • Simplified management via a single global provider

 

BW Offshore is a leading global provider of floating production units and services to the oil and gas industry

  • 2,000 employees around the world