Start with Vessel Notification

In this article, we explain important functions and useful features of the Vessel Notification service.

Visit overview

The service operates on the principle of:

• Click and Act: from your overview, click for more details and to perform necessary actions
• Manage by exception: deviations are highlighted in the service. You can clearly see where action is required

Within the overview, you can easily search using your own search term.

Visit overview

In the Visit overview, you have 24/7 real-time insight into all your vessel visits. Everything is neatly organised: at the top, the expected ships, followed by the arrived ships, then the departed ships, and finally the cancelled vessel visits.

Create a new vessel visit

• Click the New visit button.
• Fill in the required fields such as vessel, port of call, location, and ETA, then click Create visit.
• In the Visit overview, you will see the created vessel visit.

You can create a new vessel visit based on a previous visit. If you enter the call reference number of that previous vessel visit, all details will be automatically copied, except for the times.

Reporting an incoming or ongoing journey

Notifications must be made according to the applicable rules in the Shipping Notifications and Communication Regulations. The notification time is no later than 24 hours (bulk carriers 48 hours) before arrival at the Sea Buoy and thereafter any deviation of more than 30 minutes.

Intentions

When reporting an incoming or ongoing journey, you must make a choice:

• Waiting for orders (WFO) When there is no known time for the ship to enter and it remains outside until further notice. The rest of the notification can be completed as fully as possible
• Request for entry (RFE) The time when the ship can enter is (approximately) known, and the time aspects in the notification can be filled in.

ETA sea buoy

You must also fill in the ETA sea buoy. This is the reference time for the expected arrival of the ship at the sea buoy.

The sea buoy is the location off the coast that serves as a reference point for arrival at the port:

• For Rotterdam, this is the Maas Center buoy.

• For Amsterdam, this is the Kruispost.

Does a ship anchor before the sea buoy? Then the ETA sea buoy is a virtual time: the ship's timeline is then extrapolated to the sea buoy.

Is a ship coming from the Hinterland? Then you cannot choose WFO and there is no sea buoy.

Planning based on

• ETA PBP is the time when the ship is expected at the relevant Pilot Boarding Place with the intention to enter. The harbour master and nautical service providers base their planning on the time at the pilot station. The expected time of arrival at the berth (ETA berth) is then indicated by the harbour master via the PCS.
• ETA Berth is the expected time when the ship is at the berth and the first line is secured. The harbour master and nautical service providers base their planning on the arrival time at the berth. The harbour master and service providers plan so that the actual arrival at the berth is as close as possible to this time. To this end, they link the ETA PBP needed to meet the berth planning back through the system. The agent then coordinates the ETA PBP with the captain.

Pilot station

When reporting I/D journeys, there is a choice of several different pilot stations (Pilot Boarding Places)

The earliest time of port entry 

This indicates that the ship - if possible - may be brought forward and possibly piloted earlier than the ETA PBP, but not before this 'earliest time'.  

Ordering an incoming or transit journey

All journeys must be reported and ordered in full via the PCS. 

Order deadline 

This is the time enforced by the PCS between the moment of ordering and the moment of pilotage or entry without a pilot.

• 15 minutes before ETA Pilot Boarding Place For ships via Maascenter/Kruispost without nautical service providers, the order deadline is 15 minutes. This also applies to journeys from the hinterland.
• 30 minutes before ETA Pilot Boarding Place For ships with only rowers via Maascenter/Kruispost, the order deadline is 30 minutes. This also applies to journeys from the hinterland.
• 2 hours before ETA Pilot Boarding Place For journeys from the hinterland, an order deadline of 2 hours applies.
• 3 hours before ETA Pilot Boarding Place For ships with a pilot and/or tugs via E13 or Maas Center/Kruispost, the incoming or transit journey must be ordered 3 hours before ETA PBP.
• 12 hours before ETA Pilot Boarding Place For channel ships and LNG ships larger than 180 metres, an unchanged order deadline of 12 hours applies.

You can indicate in the PCS that the ship can be at the Pilot Boarding Place earlier to be piloted than the order deadline allows. In that case, the Pilotage Service will, as now, do its best to pilot as early as possible. 

Adjusted pilot service 

Just like with outgoing journeys, as soon as there is an adjusted pilot service and depending on the type of ship, you need to fill in extra details when ordering the incoming ship:

• Captain agrees with shore based pilotage
• Captain is imo-loa registered
• Suitable for helicopter Hoisting/Landing (for outgoing journeys this is only Yes/No)
• Remarks (optional)

Feedback in PCS 

After ordering the incoming or transit journey, the Harbour Master and the nautical service providers confirm their assessment and capacity – possibly with a changed number of tugs. Once all parties have confirmed, you will see the planning feedback in the PCS. If the ETA PBP changes at the request of the Harbour Master or the nautical service providers, this will also be visible in the PCS. The aim is to show this feedback, just like with U/V journeys, within 30 minutes with the familiar icons.

Exchange

An important principle is that you as an agent are responsible for timely ordering your incoming ship. This also applies if the entry depends on another ship.

The PCS supports you in this. When filling in an incoming journey, you can indicate that the entry of your ship depends on another ship.

Exchange with other vessel

• The destination berth of your ship is occupied.

• The entry depends on the ordered departure time of the other ship.

Entry after other vessel

Does your ship need to moor alongside another ship? Then the entry depends on the ordered entry of that other ship.

In both cases, you will receive – if you have set this in your preferences – a notification (by email and SMS) as soon as the other ship is ordered and when that order changes.

Based on that, you can place or adjust the order of your incoming ship.

Rules for manually ordering incoming ships with 'Exchange with' 

Auto-order 

You can set the PCS to automatically order your incoming journey – and adjust it where necessary – as soon as the other ship is ordered (or when that order changes).

You will then receive a notification that your ship's order has been automatically placed or adjusted.

Note: automatic ordering is only possible:

• for ships to the Europoort

• and for ships of 200 metres or longer to berths outside the Europoort.

Example for automatic shifting with ‘Exchange with’ 

For Amsterdam, all ships as block 1 (>= 150m and Europoort).

Authorise Next Agent

The video below shows you how to authorise the next agent. 

Transfer to Next Agent

The video below shows you how to transfer something to the next agent.