Cybit to supply £1 million Vessel Management System for Cyprus Department of Fisheries and Marine Research

  • Will track 500 fishing boats to manage levels of sustainable fishing stocks

Cybit, the UK's leading online Telematics Service Provider (TSP), has announced that its maritime telematics division, BlueFinger, has won a £1 million contract to provide an Internet-based Vessel Management Solution (VMS) to the Department of Fisheries and Marine Research (FMR) in Cyprus. The Department of FMR will use the system to monitor around 500 small fishing boats within the Cypriot fishing industry and manage its fishing grounds for long term sustainability of stocks. BlueFinger's experts will also provide consultancy services to ensure the Department of FMR achieves optimised results from the implementation.

The Cyprus Department of Fisheries and Marine Research is implementing the solution because of concerns over the vulnerability of fishing stocks. Instant visibility of the position of fishing vessels will provide it with the information to manage the levels of fish stocks in its waters. Battery powered transponder technology will be used to provide accurate GPS positioning of each vessel throughout its fishing activities, and the Cypriot authorities can access this information at their desktop through a standard Internet browser.

Cybit CEO, Richard Horsman, commented: "As concerns increase about the vulnerability of many marine species, the use of VMS for all sectors of the fishing industry will become an essential ingredient of best practice Fisheries Policy. Cyprus is one of the first to introduce VMS to this sector of the fishing industry and BlueFinger and Cybit will be on hand to ensure it will reap the long term sustainability benefits envisioned by the Department of FMR.

Steve Jones, Director for Cybit's maritime operations, added: "This contract clearly demonstrates the strong benefits of combining BlueFinger's maritime VMS pedigree with the industry-leading Internet service experience and expertise of the Cybit group. The BlueFinger VMS now provides organisations, such as the Cypriot Department of Fisheries and Marine Research, with a leading-edge management system that will enable them to create sustainable fishing stocks in their waters for years to come."

BlueFinger will be working together with the Tototheo group from Cyprus in the delivery of the VMS project. Tototheo owner, Socrates Theodossiou, said: "The teaming of Tototheo and BlueFinger brings together two market-leading companies to provide this important system for the Cypriot Department of Fisheries. Our experience as a technology supplier to the Cypriot fishing industry, combined with BlueFinger's considerable VMS experience, provides a strong team that will deliver for Cyprus."

About Cybit:
Cybit is a global force in Telematics, operating within three core sectors: Internet-based vehicle Telematics solutions; Economic Exclusion Zone (EEZ) Management; and Private Mobile Radio (PMR) based asset tracking and precise positioning solutions.   

Cybit provides over 1,600 organisations of all sizes, across a wide range of industries, with a comprehensive suite of online solutions to improve the management and control of nearly 40,000 mobile and vehicle assets.

Cybit is a global leader in the field of EEZ fisheries management, tracking many thousands of fishing vessels on a daily basis. The company provides vessel monitoring and catch management solutions for many of the world’s major fishing nations. As well as the UK and Irish Governments, Cybit helps to manage valuable fishing stocks for emerging nations such as Ghana, Namibia and Mozambique.

Additional information is available at www.cybitholdings.com, www.cybit.co.uk, www.amatics.com, www.cybitpositioningsolutions.co.uk and www.bluefinger.com

Contact information:
Duncan Burford
IBA - PR for Cybit
Tel: 01780 721 433
Email: dburford@iba-europe.com

Graham Gordon
Marketing Manager, Cybit
Tel: 01480 389100
Email: ggordon@cybit.co.uk

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