ADC (NASDAQ: ADCT; www.adc.com) today announced that On-Waves, a maritime mobile service provider based in Iceland, has selected its InterReach Office® picoBTS, InterReach Fusion® distributed antenna system (DAS), and UltraWAVE R4S SoftSwitch platform to enable cellular calls for passengers and crews on ships in the North Atlantic. On-Waves currently provides mobile services to more than 50 cruise ships and ferries, and is planning to deploy the ADC solution to potentially hundreds of other smaller crew vessels, including tankers, container ships and private yachts.

“Capacity, cost, and quality of service have always limited the use of VSAT telephones for shipboard communications, but the ADC system allows us to enable mobile telephone use over the VSAT network,” says Roch-Alexandre Nominé, CTO at On-Waves. “With IP-based systems that can be deployed very quickly and which cost-effectively extend mobile signals throughout our customers’ ships, ADC has opened up significant new markets for our communications services.”

ADC is the only provider with an end-to-end mobile cellular solution portfolio that extends from the BTS and DAS on each ship through to the mobile softswitch on shore. ADC’s InterReach Office GSM base station provides a ship’s mobile signal, which is carried throughout the ship via the InterReach Fusion® distributed antenna system (DAS). The shipboard system uplinks via the VSAT network to a land-based base station powered by the UltraWAVE R4S SoftSwitch operated by On-Waves. The on-board system produces clear and consistent mobile coverage in all areas of each vessel, allowing passengers and crew to make calls at any time.

“Ships pose unique wireless coverage challenges because of the low capacity of the ship-to-shore satellite link, steel construction that blocks wireless signals, and the need for fast and cost-effective deployment during port calls,” said, Jamie Brown, vice president, Network Solutions business unit at ADC. “ADC has the only complete portfolio of active DAS, IP base stations, and softswitch platforms that deliver outstanding coverage with minimal deployment cost and time. On-Waves is our newest maritime service provider customer, joining others such as MCP in Norway and Wireless Maritime Services in the United States.”