Happy New Year.

Well I hope you have all had been stuffed full of turkey and had an exceptional New Year party. Now it’s time to get stuck in for 2010! As we are all slowly getting back up to pace I thought I would start gently this year with some upcoming highlights for Evosat in 2010.

Evosat has numerous in house and customer projects on the go from last year. I have already spoken about Evosat’s MWC (Morale and Welfare Comms) project in detail. This should be up and running, commercially, by the end of February- well done to the technical team for all the efforts last year and over the Christmas period to get the valuable service afloat. It will not only make the lives of Evosat customers better, but will also be another step forward in the world of Satellite Communications.

I have also mentioned the GSPS service from Inmarsat, which is the new handheld satellite phone service being launched this year. As a launch DP, Evosat is very involved in getting these exciting new satellite phones into the market. The process has certainly gathered momentum, and I look forward to giving further updates this year.

I also want to give a quick update regarding Lee MacNamara who is rowing across the Atlantic Solo. He has begun his journey- however, he is experiencing difficulties with his water maker. Luckily he had his FleetBroadband terminal to keep in touch and keep his support teams updated. They have had to tow him back to land for some repairs- but no doubt he will head off soon. Good Luck Lee!

All in all, it looks like another promising year for Evosat . With numerous new projects, products and services available, the sky really is the limit for Evosat in 2010. Satellite Communications has become a constantly improving market, and Evosat aims to stay ahead of the pack all the way.

Evosat on the high seas(and rivers)

Well firstly a quick update about the Evosat Orange River Expedition. What a great success- not only did we have a great 3 day and night trip down the Orange, but we also got to introduce satellite communications to some of the uninitiated. Despite having worked on stretches of river that have no easy outside access or communications- our river guides had not seen any sort of satellite communications before. We had the Inmarsat IsatPhone and BGAN along with us, so that we could keep in touch with the office in case of river or Evosat emergencies. The guides, for the first time, were able to call home to their families and let them know that they were ok and when they expected to be home. We are now expecting some orders from the rafting company- as word has got round about how easy and affordable it can be to have communications on the river- for emergencies, and for that surprise call home.

Staying with the theme of water adventures- I would like to expand on the Evosat Maritime offering. FleetBroadband and along with that, MWC (Morale and Welfare Communications Systems). FleetBroadband has all the features of a BGAN (simultaneous voice, data, sms, and fax). The significant difference being the  ability to work on a ship, fighting through stormy seas, in the middle of the Pacific (or any ocean for that matter). The FleetBroadband satellite terminal has a small, space saving, maritime antenna, attached with the needed cabling to a modem on the bridge (or where suitable). The modem allows multiple data connections (with speeds up to 432kbps) , including SIP phones for ship wide communications, as well as a voice channel for outside communications (the best voice channel you can get using satellite communications).

For those interested in solo adventurers, Evosat and Inmarsat are sponsoring an Ex-Marine (Lee MacNamara) who is rowing across the Atlantic single-handed. His journey will be made that much more bearable by the installation of an FB-150 (the smallest FleetBroadband terminal) on his boat. With his FB-150, Lee will be able to call home, check email, write a blog, and importantly, do video and phone interviews whilst rowing. As Lee is raising funds for the British Limbless Ex-Servicemen’s Association, awareness and publicity are a much needed tool for this worthy cause.

The MWC system from Evosat is just about ready for commercial use, so I want expand on this a little further. I got  the Evosat Technical Manager, Stephen Light, to give me his thoughts on the system he has helped create. “Evosat Morale and Welfare Communications system (MWC) is a convenient prepay crew-calling solution that gives all crew and passengers voice and internet access, with zero risk or investment for the  bill-payer. A simple to use solution that works across all Inmarsat Fleetbroadband platforms. With MWC, staying in touch just got simpler and cheaper!”. An important note about MWC is that it basically comes in a small plug and play box, and has a very simple  interface, meaning anyone can learn how to use it without needing technical expertise. From what I have seen so far, the MWC will place Evosat squarely on the center  stage of Maritime Satellite Communications.

This is a good time to introduce one of the Evosat team, Stephen Light. Stephen has been with Evosat for over 2 years now, in a Technical as well as Commercial capacity. He is a great asset to the team as he formerly worked for Inmarsat, which gives him an excellent insight into the Satellite Network that is the Evosat backbone. If ever you need a satellite solution that’s a little out of the ordinary- Stephen Light is the man to call.

That’s it for this month- my next post will be in the New Year. So from myself and all the Evosat team, Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year!

Who am I and who is Evosat?

Evosat is a Tier 1 Satellite Communications Provider based in South Africa and with fixed infrastructure in the Netherlands. I run the Johannesburg office for Evosat, primarily in a sales related role, but with an element of technical expertise thrown in. Evosat itself specialises in Land Mobile and Maritime satellite communications and, although we are a major supplier of hardware, we focus more on providing the airtime for these services.

Evosat is a Distribution Partner of Inmarsat (the world’s leading commercial satellite operator), which gives us a unique advantage not only globally, but also in Africa, where the Evosat offices are based (Cape Town and Johannesburg). Our primary product is BGAN (Broadband Global Area Network), which provides simultaneous voice, data, sms, and fax in a portable satellite terminal, almost anywhere on the planet. We also provide the FleetBroadband service, which is a Maritime version of the BGAN, providing global connectivity for ships at sea. In the handheld range we have the IsatPhone. All these products can be seen on our website at www.evosat.com.

Over the course of the next few months, I hope to introduce you to some of the Evosat team, and talk about some of our newer and more exciting projects. One project I am working on now is the roll out of the new IsatPhone Pro service from Inmarsat. Evosat has just been appointed as one of only 6 global Launch Partners and is therefore well placed to be a market leader- as we are with the original IsatPhone. The IsatPhone Pro will be the new standard in global handheld satellite communications. As I work with Inmarsat ahead of the GSPS service launch, I will keep you updated on as much detail as possible.

The Evosat technical team in Cape Town is constantly working on new projects for our customers around the globe to provide a better, more efficient and cost effective service – I will also be including input from them in future. One particular project they have been working on for quite a while now is close to fruition – The Evosat Morale and Welfare Communications System (MWC). This is primarily designed for the Maritime market (although also available via BGAN). MWC is essentially a prepay platform that allows individual users access to broadband and voice services without affecting the contract service and the owner’s pocket! (ideal for ship crew conditions).

In my next post, you can look forward to a yearend report of Evosat’s activities, including the Evosat expedition down the Orange River, coming up soon. I will also introduce you to some of the team, as well as some of our customers.