UKHO Adds Canadian Official Chart Content to AVCS

10 June 2009, 9:00pm

10 June 2009 - The United Kingdom Hydrographic Office (UKHO) is delighted to announce that it has signed a revision to its agreement with the Canadian Hydrographic Service (CHS) to include its official Electronic Navigation Charts (ENCs) within the Admiralty Vector Chart Service (AVCS) Flexible Licensing Service. This further extends the choice and value for money offered to the international mariner in AVCS. The revision also extends to SENC distribution.

A total of 737 Canadian ENCs in 47 folios (three transit, five regional and 39 port) will become available under Flexible Licensing for the first time on 11 June. Previously, these folios could only be purchased for a period of 12 months.

Under the new agreement, UKHO will offer discounts to shipping companies who only need the ENCs for a shorter period of time. The discounts are 20% for nine months use, 40% for six months and 64% for three months.

AVCS is the market-leading source for official ENC data. It has been regularly upgraded since launch to comprise over 9500 ENCs covering all the world's major trade lanes between 1823 of the world's biggest and busiest ports. AVCS gets you into 448 more ports at the appropriate larger scale bands and includes more than 600 charts than any other ENC service on the market.

AVCS Product Manager Jason Scholey welcomed the initiative for enhancing data provision and recognising the need for cost control in today's volatile shipping markets.

"This builds on our established relationship with the CHS, whose ENCs we have been distributing for several years. All Canadian ENCs are now available on AVCS Flexible Licensing, which allows users to accurately match the ENCs that they hold to their operational patterns. This approach lowers the overall cost of ownership by ensuring that ENCs are not paid for when they are no longer required," he said.

"We are proud of our long-standing relationship with CHS and this agreement is yet another example alongside many others that underlines our commitment to working with the international hydrographic community to continue to provide worldwide charting of the highest standard."

We can claim this confidently since UKHO now offers its Flexible Licensing package for the official ENCs of 42 nations; all but two of the countries whose ENCs are available through AVCS.

UKHO Channel Management and Marketing Manager Hayley Jopson added: "With the mandation of ECDIS extending from High Speed Vessels into the wider SOLAS user group as agreed by the International Maritime Organization's Maritime Safety Committee just two weeks ago, the UKHO is already delivering on its promise to provide a fully compliant and consistent global ENC service."

"All AVCS data is 100% official and compliant with the Convention on Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS). No other chart data provider offers the same degree of compliance and coverage in a single package. Flexible Licensing also means we can help shipowners tailor coverage to match their budget and order and use the ENCs with confidence," she added.

UK Hydrographic Office

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