McMurdo Ltd’s new SMARTFIND S5 AIS SART has received full type approval from Germany’s Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency authorising it for fitment to German flagged vessels in accordance with the country’s maritime regulations.
The S5 AIS SART (Automatic Identification System Search And Rescue Transmitter) is designed to assist in life raft location during search and rescue operations.
SMARTFIND S5 transmits a series of updating structured alert messages including its geographic position and serialised identity number.
Once activated, it transmits emergency alerts for a minimum of 96 hours. An in-built high precision GPS provides highly accurate position information to assist in quick recovery of survivors.
Buoyant, waterproof and rugged, the SMARTFIND S5 has a long life non-hazardous battery for easy transportation. This makes it an economical alternative to the traditional 9GHz SART, McMurdo said.
Whether wall mounted in the ships bridge or packed inside a survival craft the highly visible and buoyant carry case affords maximum protection while the SMARTFIND S5 is not in use.
Once activated, the S5 may be suspended inside the life raft or mounted in an elevated position, using the integrated extension pole.
On1 January 2010 AIS-SART was introduced into IMO GMDSS carriage requirements, as an alternative Search and Rescue Locating Device to existing 9GHz Radar SARTs.
A major benefit of the AIS SART is that target survivor information becomes viewable using standard ships AIS equipment - both the range and course to locate the survivors will be clearly presented on the ships AIS user display.
