Introduction

摘要

It's been a year since IHS Fairplay last published a guide covering electronic chart display and information systems (ECDIS). In the interim we've seen the first deadline for mandatory ECDIS pass, yet the effect has not been widespread because the only vessels affected were passenger ships of 500gt and upwards and tankers of 3,000gt and upwards constructed on or after 1 July 2012. The first deadline affecting existing vessels is not until 2014 and chart and systems suppliers have given out differing signals on customer demand. Some say they have seen less demand than expected, while others have been surprised at the scale of early adoption. Either way, it seems that the industry's education effort of the past five years has paid off: companies appear more aware of what ECDIS is and when those deadlines fall.