SOLAS
In 2002, the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) mandated the fitting of most vessels over 300GT with AIS Class A transceivers. The mandate came into force worldwide under the international convention for Safety Of Life At Sea (SOLAS).
The key objective for the mandate was the avoidance of collision. AIS is a technology, which is able to operate equally well on inland waterways, coasts, and or the open ocean. In addition, once installed on a vessel it does not require the payment of network subscriptions to be used unlike GSM and satellite based identification and tracking systems.
The type of product specified within the mandate is known as ‘AIS Class A’. This in fact refers to a global technology standard, which was created, specified and is maintained by the IEC. As a result, certified Class A transceivers from different manufacturers are interoperable.
The effect of the AIS Class A IMO SOLAS mandate was to instantly establish AIS as the de facto international standard for identifying and tracking vessels. It also created an immediate market of approximately 150,000 vessels and an annual demand going forward of 20,000 units for new vessels, replacements and national mandate extensions.