Manila, August 28th 2012 - In an imperative effort to continuously produce highly competent ship officers and at the same time to be fully compliant with international legislation, Wallem Shipmanagement Ltd. Hong Kong installed the next generation VSTEP NAUTIS full mission Bridge Simulator at the Wallem Maritime Training Centre Philippines (WMTCP).

The move of Wallem Shipmanagement coincided with the entry into force of the 2010 Manila Amendments of the Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW Convention)
Jan van der Wee, general manager of the WMTCP revealed that with the completion of the Full Mission Bridge Simulator installation and commissioning on Friday July 20, 2012 they aim to be one of the most advanced training centres in the Philippines.

"We want to train our officers on actual sea work not only to navigate but to confront them with any possible scenario that could be encountered thereby improving the efficiency and effectiveness of our Filipino officers in team work on the navigation bridge"
He added "We selected the NAUTIS Full Mission Bridge Simulator for our training centre because it is fully certified by DNV, allows for future expansion by adding overlays and offers high quality updated training at an affordable price. The graphics in the simulator look very natural and real, which in combination with the realistic bridge mock-up allows for very realistic and true-to-life maritime simulation".
Wallem Shipmanagement made a substantial investment in this new training equipment with aim to continuously improve the quality of training provided to their employed Filipino officers and their officers of the future - the cadets.

PC Maritime (software developer and license provider) and VSTEP (hardware and system developer) as well as DelNet international (representative of PC Maritime and VSTEP in the Philippines) are very pleased that Wallem Shipmanagement selected their latest model of NAUTIS for its new training centre, thereby introducing the ground breaking NAUTIS maritime simulator for the region. The bridge console hardware for Wallem's NAUTIS simulator was built in the Philippines.

Looking ahead to a new generation of maritime simulators
Klaas Oreel, CEO of DELNET said that with the use of the latest model NAUTIS Full Mission Simulator Wallem Shipmanagement will be able to train nautical personnel to improve their skills in bridge team work, ship-handling, manoeuvring and any operations that take place on actual vessels. "With the acquisition of the next generation DNV Certified NAUTIS Full Mission Simulator it is expected that officers and cadets can be trained to the highest level of proficiency" said Klaas Oreel.
"Wallem has set up a very innovative new training centre in which the equipment is installed now" added Cristijn du Marcies Sarvaas, CEO of VSTEP. Sarvaas explained that the strength of the installed NAUTIS Bridge simulator is that it is a "Next Generation" bridge simulator. This means very expanded memory, added features, faster processing, better graphics, much higher user friendliness for both trainee and instructor and at the same time much more cost effective compared to other maritime simulators currently available in the marked. In addition is future expansion by the feasibility of adding overlays there.

Highest level of certification
Wallem Shipmanagement is PC Maritime / VSTEP's launching customer in the Philippines. Wallem has been investing a lot in training their seafarers and is committed to continuously improve on the quality of the training provided; hence Wallem felt that their partnership with the NAUTIS simulator providers is the perfect match.
NAUTIS provides a cost-effective solution and is an excellent match for the needs of maritime education and training by maritime schools and shipowners. "Not only in terms of advanced technology but also in terms of pricing as the Next Generation simulators of PC Maritime / Nautis are very affordable" furthered Sarvaas.
"The good reputation of Filipino seafarers was recognized and by choosing the next generation NAUTIS simulator Filipino seafarers can be trained as is required as of this day and also in the future; thereby ensuring that the Philippines remains a leading supplier of seafarers to Wallem Shipmanagement" said Jan van der Wee.
Sarvaas prides himself by saying: "The PC Maritime / NAUTIS software complies with international standards and has the highest level of certification under STCW and it has been made sure that it is aligned with all the requirements" he also illustrated the efforts of both the Philippine Government and responsible shipowners in improving the level of competency of the Filipino seafarers.
During the initiation rites conducted on July 20, 2012 several guests attended that included senior officers of the Philippine Coast Guard, Senior staff of Leading Maritime Schools and Training Institutes amongst other interested parties.