In the first quarter of 2021, the successful delivery of K-Sim Offshore and DP simulators to the Korea Institute of Maritime and Fishery Technology (KIMFT) was closely followed by the handover of K-Sim Mooring simulators to the Busan Techno Park foundation, an organization dedicated to the development of mid- and long-term strategies and policies for local industries.
Directly off the back of these high-profile wins, KDI has recently been awarded contracts by two of Korea’s most distinguished educational establishments. In June and July respectively, Busan National Maritime High School and Incheon National Maritime High School both commissioned KDI to deliver K-Sim Navigation ship’s bridge simulators in Q4 2021.
The four new contracts consolidate a mutually rewarding relationship with South Korean training institutes. This relationship received an earlier boost in 2019, when a full suite of KDI simulator systems was delivered to the Korea Maritime and Ocean University (KMOU) and Mokpo National Maritime University (MMU) for installation on two identical training ships: T/S SEGERO and T/S HANNARA.
Each of the four customers are united in agreement that KDI Maritime Simulation was awarded the contracts because of the quality, scope, functionality and flexibility of its simulators, in addition to the high level of trust associated with the KONGSBERG brand. KIMFT, which is a new investor in KDI technology, will be using the K-Sim simulators to train researchers and industry personnel in a complete series of offshore and dynamic positioning operations. Incheon National Maritime High School, another new KDI customer, will be deploying its K-Sim Navigation ship’s bridge simulators to provide students with highly realistic training using vessels, objects and equipment that behave and interact as they would in real life.
Meanwhile, Busan Techno Park and Busan National Maritime High School will be expanding their existing range of K-Sim simulators to enhance interoperability. By utilizing add-on features on the advanced and dynamic new devices such as offshore mooring, the oil-spill function and SMART objects, they will have high-fidelity, cost-effective, future-proof simulators on their respective premises which are equipped to seamlessly accommodate new technologies as they emerge.
“These contracts are all very important for KDI, securing our market leading position for maritime training in Asia,” says Andreas Jagtøyen, Executive Vice President Digital Ocean, Kongsberg Digital. “South Korea is a key global player in the journey towards Maritime 4.0, with its highly successful ship-building and ship-owning companies. By securing these contracts, KDI has gained valuable partners to support the industry in this venture. This is a country also having a large offshore and fishing fleet, and we are confident that KDI simulator training will be of vital importance in supplying this industry with the best-qualified and most efficient crew and operators for many years to come.”