FURUNO NavSkills CAT Distant Learning System Approved by ClassNK in Japan

At the beginning of 2014, the FURUNO NavSkills CAT (Computer Aided Training) distant learning system has been approved by ClassNK as fulfilling the requirements for ECDIS type specific familiarisation training specified by the ISM code subsections of 6.3 and 6.5. ClassNK has evaluated the workstation and training software application, which are provided as part of the Computer Aided Training concept, as well as the training system support provided by FURUNO and verified that the training system meets the standards for contents and method for equipment familiarisation training.

In addition, ClassNK has approved, as the first company in the world, JMS (Japan Maritime Science) - a subsidiary of the Japanese shipping company Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK LINE) - as a training facility that provides ECDIS type specific familiarisation training fulfilling the training requirements by using the NavSkills CAT system. By combining the two certifications on both the training system and training facility from ClassNK, the training provision based on FURUNO NavSkills CAT by the training provider is perceived as being in full compliance with the requirements for ECDIS familiarisation.

The FURUNO NavSkills CAT differentiates from Computer Based Training by including the Instructor On Demand (IOD) feature allowing the trainee to get access to an instructor via VoIP at any time during the training session and by including the use of physical replicas of the real ECDIS control panels used in FURUNO's ECDIS models FEA-2807/FEA-2107 and FMD-3200/FMD-3300.

"ClassNK started Maritime Education & Training Registration service for ECDIS training prior to the phase-in ECDIS mandatory carriage, which commenced in 2012, and we certified the class-room training conducted by FURUNO in 2011,", states Koichi Fujiwara, Executive Vice President of ClassNK, "the certification of Maritime Simulator Systems Registration we issued for NavSkills CAT this time is our affirmation that the distant learning scheme by means of Computer Aided Training can deliver high quality training programme and support, comparable to the class room training".

"Having the NavSkills CAT systems for the latest models of FURUNO ECDIS installed in the training facility," says Hiroshi Sekine, President of JMS, "it is such a great honour to have the training service certified by ClassNK, and we are determined to continue serving the maritime industry by meeting the training needs from our customers as the biggest ECDIS training facility in Japan".

"It is a great moment for FURUNO that our distant learning system receives such an important accreditation by the distinguished classification society ClassNK. There has been much confusion in the market in terms of the provision of ECDIS type specific familiarisation training amongst the ship owners and navigators. We hope that, through this recognition, our end users will have a clear understanding that the ECDIS familiarisation training conducted through the NavSkills CAT provides the trainees with the necessary competences to operate the FURUNO ECDIS models in a safe and efficient way", says Muneyuki Koike, Managing Director of FURUNO. "FURUNO has studied the various distant learning platforms available in the market and we found that the principles of the CAT platform were the best possible way to deliver the strong training environment for the seafarers similar to the class room training, although the trainee could not be in the same location as the instructor".

FURUNO NavSkills CAT system overview