From the bridge wing of the Celebrity Edge while maneuvering into port, Staff Captain Matthaios Karandreas is looking down through a glass window at the pier, lining up gangway and mooring arrangements as is tradition.

On the rest of the bridge the cruise industry is looking to the future with 11 new systems, and five completely new to cruise, he said.

While dynamic positioning systems are nothing new to keep ships in place, the Edge takes that to the next level, partly to protect guests moving to tenders through the Magic Carpet loading platform.

 “We don’t want more than 0.7 meters of wave height on the Magic Carpet. We told the system that and the ship itself is steering and moving around to ensure that,” Karandreas said. “If you see the pods, they are rotating by themselves to make sure the vessel is staying steady in position, we want it in a 20 meter zone. We have also given it a range of movement limitations, and we are operating in eco-mode.”

The Magic Carpet has introduced a number of new systems for the bridge team as they are ultimately responsible for the 95-ton platform’s operation.

“She has seven positions,” said Karandreas. “We do not use it as an elevator. We have weight sensors. Any additional weight or doors open, and it won’t move.”

For tendering operations, the platform has three set locations, including one considering the lifecycle of the ship taking into account hull hogging or the addition of weight over time.

New infinity staterooms on the Celebrity Edge have delivered a new guest experience with bigger rooms.

Long gone are traditional balconies, replaced with roll-down windows that essentially can turn an entire stateroom into a balcony of sorts.

“The outer bay windows have helped us, and the vessel is not getting hit by wind by as much. With a lot of balconies, the wind circulates and enters the balconies and creates major movement. We have minimized this issue with these windows,” Karandreas added.

The bridge is also keeping an eye on the staterooms, with the ability to roll up and lock all windows in the event of rain to keep water out of the accommodations. Each window has four safety sensors. In addition is a new robotic window washing system.

Earlier this year, Celebrity rolled out people tracking in its safety center onboard the Edge. Starting with firefighting teams, an officer can see who is where in real time.

Excerpt from Cruise Industry News Quarterly Magazine: Spring 2019