Marine Radio

Marine radio covers a number of areas, such as long range communications , on HF Frequency bands, to short range deck communications, using UHF and VHF handhelds.

A number of factors need to be considered when choosing suitable radio equipment for a Marine environment.

For example, when choosing handheld equipment, you need to ensure that it has a high enough IP (Ingress protection) rating, to cope with environmental conditions that the equipment will be used in.

Too low an IP rating will mean that dust and moisture can enter the radio, and damage it, ultimately costing you money.

The ability to seal out moisture is particularly important in a sea going marine vessel, as the salty corrosive atmosphere of the sea, will quickly damage the internal circuit board, of a low IP rated radio.

We have experienced first hand what a corrosive environment can do to a customers radio equipment, and it’s not pretty.

A layer of oxidisation , which looks like a white coloured crust, covers the radios internal PCB (Printed Circuit Board). This causes faults.

Another important consideration when choosing radio equipment, is whether you will be using it in potentially explosive environments.

ATEX, Intrinsically safe equipment is available for use in potentially explosive environments, such as ships battery rooms.

We would recommend you consult with an experienced company, such as Yesway Ltd, to help you purchase the right equipment for your needs.

We have been called out to ships in the past, whose owners bought good equipment, but from a non specialist commercial marine equipment supplier.

The customer initially saved money, but the equipment had not been expertly programmed and set up for their specific needs. This resulted in having to call out the Yesway professionals, to set the equipment up correctly.

For help and advice, give us a call: (01522) 740818

Quick Advice for Antibes Superyacht Radio Owners

For deck activities on an Antibes Superyacht,  a radio with a high ‘Ingress Protection’ rating is what we would recommend,

Ingress Protection, or ‘IP Rating’ means how much the radio will resist dust particles and water, entering the radio.

The salty atmosphere on deck, will shorten the reliability and ultimate lifespan of the radio, if the IP rating is too low.

A radio like the Entel DX series is a great choice for deckhands. It is an IP68 rated digital radio, so will survive being dropped in shallow water for a while.

For ‘Stews’ a small discreet, and easy to use radio is what we would recommend, such as the Hytera PD355

About Yesway the Antibes Superyacht Radio Supplier

We are able to supply all the two-way radio needs of Superyacht owners based in Antibes, and the wider French Riviera.

Our director is a former lecturer at South Shields Marine School, whose first job aged 17 (he’s now 48), was building and testing yacht power supply systems.

He moved to the radio communications industry as a repair & installation engineer, aged 19.

Our company’s skillset therefore is unrivalled in the Marine radio communications industry, as we have both experience of training ETOs, and working on marine systems.

And also both vocational and degree level qualifications in terrestrial and satellite communications.

We even have the MCA AEC (approved engine course) qualification.

Which Superyacht Radio?

There are many ‘tier 1’ manufacturers in the two-way radio industry to chose from.

Therefore it is fantastic when you find a capable company to advise you.

Our Recommendations for Superyachts are Motorola, Entel and Hytera.

These three manufacturers of two-way radio equipment offer everything a Super yacht user could need.

For example, the Entel DN series handheld radio offers industry leading IP68 level protection against water and particle ingress.

Having a high IP rating is important for use in an outdoor marine environment, and would be ideal for use by Deckhands or support vessels.

On the other hand, a Stewardess and other ‘front of house’ crew, needs a very discrete device.

For this we recommend a couple of the digital Hytera models, that offer discrete communications, and look stylish.

We are also able to offer specific engineering solutions including alarm and system monitoring that sends messages and alerts to a handheld two way radio.

SOLAS Regulation 11-2/10 – Firefighters’ communication

Who is affected by this Solas regulation?

 Why was this regulation been introduced?

What does the regulation say?

Which type of ships does this regulation apply to?

The regulation does not specify type of the vessel. All ships with firefighting teams on board need to comply.

What is Intrinsically Safe Equipment?

• ATEX Approval IIA – The HT800 range of ATEX certified portables meet IIA T4 with 4 watts RF power; for those users not restricted to the IIC 1 watt regulatory classification.

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