Our One Wish – Making Anchoring Safe
Anchoring dates back millennia. Over thousands of years, sailors from all walks of life have been crisscrossing the oceans waters in search of their own holy grail. And although sailing has evolved monumentally over this period of time, the art of anchoring – and the dangers surrounding it – has remained by and large unaffected. Swiss Ocean Tech is out to change this situation since we believe anchoring should be safe – for sailor, ship and sea.
Exactly one year ago today, Swiss Ocean Tech Ltd. became a publicly owned corporation. A huge step for still a budding company but it allowed us to finalize our first round of financing and expand our research and development activities. One year later we have grown our team of experts, moved towards a finished prototype and secured a second-place win in Switzerland’s leading start-up <<venture>> competition. We are well on our way to bringing out AnchorGuardian by 2022, our patented technology designed to provide an early alarm when anchor dragging is imminent. It will change the way we see and approach the anchoring process.
Making “Safe Anchoring” a Thing
There are many dangers associated with anchoring and these dangers are directed not only at the humans involved but the vessel they are steering and the livelihood under the waters surface.
- Collisions
Collisions disrupt holidays, planned voyages and shipping schedules. They damage boats, sometimes irreparably, and can lead to physical harm. In a nutshell, collisions cause havoc for captains, crew and the immediate surroundings. - Groundings
A dragging anchor can lead to groundings. The consequential losses of grounding can be significant: damage and loss to the vessel, other vessels, property and the environment. Not least of which, groundings have also led to loss of human life. - Oil Spills
Anchor dragging has been reported as the root cause of many oil spills and marine ecosystems suffer the brunt of these accidents long-term. They hamper the water-repelling abilities of bird’s feathers, they destroy the insulating ability of fur-bearing animals and they harm fish, shellfish and sea turtles. - Damaged Cables/Pipelines
Accidents with underwater fiber net cables due to anchor dragging can have repercussions to neighboring countries or even felt around the world when internet connections are broken. Operators estimate anchor dragging to be the main reason for damage to sub-sea oil and gas pipelines.
The need for AnchorGuardian is immense. But so is our drive to make “safe anchoring” an accepted term within the marine world.
Happy Birthday Swiss Ocean Tech!
