Industry Sector

Global Communications - Submarine Cabling.

The Problem

The requirement for accessible and exchangable information in an electronic format to optimise the marine routes of the Company's international cable network.

The Solution - Case Study from MCI

MCI's utilization of Intelliscan's ARCS for GIS for submarine cabling projects.

"The ARCS software is an essential tool for MCI's submarine projects. It allows the team to exchange information in electronic form when making decisions to optimise the marine routes of our international cable network. This exchange can involve engineers working in other countries, or directly with representatives of MCI on the ships when the cable is being installed." Said Steve Jones, MCI Submarine Cable Engineering Europe.

MCI is a leading global communications provider with a wholly-owned worldwide network. MCI makes extensive use of submarine cables as integral elements of this global footprint and is involved in the planning, implementation and maintenance of these cable systems.

MCI utilises the expertise of Intelliscan to provide accurate maritime data that is necessary for the installation and continued maintenance of MCI's submarine cables around the globe. MCI has used Intelliscan's ARCS (Admiralty Raster Chart Service) for GIS (Geographical Information Systems) extensively to assist during the planning stages of new submarine cable systems, to produce safe provisional routes for the cable, where this process often involves the use of hundreds of ARCS charts.

These charts allow the MCI design team to avoid potential marine hazards such as anchor zones, oil exploration areas, etc. allowing safe cable installations and routing. Since these hazards are subject to change with time, the teams at MCI have found it particularly important to use the ARCS for GIS package which offers weekly data updates. This allows changes to be made right up to the time of the installation the cable, allowing the route to be adjusted to avoid features that may impact the security and integrity of the cables. In addition data on other cable routes and more detailed bathymetry are used to ensure a cable route is produced that is both safe and diverse from existing cables.

MCI carefully monitors all installed submarine cable systems for fault conditions. Intelliscan's ARCS for GIS has enabled MCI to monitor and analyse current maritime data allowing MCI to design any repair procedures by taking account of surrounding maritime conditions. This enables MCI to perform highly efficient repair operations when necessary, ensuring that MCI's customers continue to receive uninterrupted service.