Since 2001, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has published a suite of 107 Inland Electronic Navigational Charts (IENC) covering over 7,500 miles of inland waterways. The original flat file-based chart production methodology required that 60% of the charts were maintained by a contractor while the remaining 40% were maintained internally, each in isolated workspaces using different software packages. Experiments in an internally hosted relational database management system (RDBMS) with Caris Hydrographic Production Database (HPD) proved promising but was ultimately too network bound and constrained by internal resources for full-time production, especially when co-production of charts alongside a contracted partner (IIC Technologies) was anticipated. With the objective of integrating all chart co-production into a single, shared system underpinned by a RDBMS, USACE has now successfully migrated source data preparation and production of all 107 charts into Caris HPD backed by an Oracle RDBMS within Amazon Web Services (AWS). Additionally, USACE publishes over 700 web services on a bi-weekly basis from the AWS Cloud using ESRI ArcGIS Server. This presentation will showcase the efficiencies gained by moving to cloud-based production, including a demonstration of the production software used within the Amazon AppStream environment, itself.

Background: Safety to navigation is a key component of all marine travel. Canada, currently utilizes several warning systems including The Navigational Warning (NAVWARN) system; which is an interactive website and radio provider that immediately broadcasts potential hazards to navigation and important marine information. The Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) also maintains their Système d’information du programme d’aides à la navigation (SIPA) database, which stores all CCG Aids to Navigation. The Canadian Hydrographic Service (CHS) utilizes both the NAVWARN website and the SIPA database, to ensure their products are updated for hazards and navigational aid changes. Objectives: To understand the relationship between the future transition to S124 and S201 standards and updates and how it will interact with the S101 standard. Methods: New Navigational Warnings could be added seamlessly in real-time. The Aids to Navigation changes through Notices to Mariners currently take one month to publish, instead the changes could be updated instantaneously directly by the Canadian Coast Guard. This model will be beneficial when S201 becomes a standard. This ties in with the CHS Continuous Maintenance process where the Aids layer is updated and then pushed to the Usages/Products. Results: We will have a system that is more accurate, efficient and user-friendly. Discussion: How close are we to implementing this system and when will it be operational? Conclusion: The future is exciting and much work is required. Rest assured the S100 platform and specifically S124 and S201 are transforming our current updating processes for the future. Figure 1, shows the interaction of S100 layers with their primary functions.

This presentation will discuss OMC’s interest and involvement in the S-129 project, detail some of the findings from the demonstrator project and provide an update to where the S-129 project is at, at the time of the conference in May 2024. Background - OMC Interest in S-129 A primary focus at OMC is the safe under-keel clearance (UKC) of vessels. After working with Australian safety authorities, OMC became involved in the S-100 Universal Hydrographic Data Model, and specifically, the S-129 project headed by our colleague Jason Rhee. OMC continues to be heavily involved and chairing the project team for the S-129 section of the S-100 standard. OMC took part in the S-100 demonstrator project in Norway in 2021. We were involved in the operational test S-129 UKC project in Tjeldsundet, Norway along with a number of participants that included TernTank, Kongsberg Digital, ECC. During Phase 1, projects of the S-00 project were tested including S-57, S-101, S-102, S-111, and S-129, with OMC producing the S-129 data by taking into account bathymetry data (S-102), surface current data (S-111), water level data (not yet in S-104 at the time) as well as squat and draft modelling. This data was sent via PRIMAR interface and presented to the user via Kongsberg using the S-111 remote update method, along with the other S- data layers. The S-100 demonstrator project provided information that resulted in the ship being postponed due to insufficient water for transit. The S-129 layer demonstrated situation awareness through the display of non-navigable areas raising awareness for the user. S-129 revisions were submitted in 2023 and the plan is now to work towards the operational version.

Obtaining accurate, up-to-date data for chart creation can be a challenging and expensive process, particularly in the Canadian Arctic where the survey season is short and weather conditions are severe. The task becomes even more complex when dealing with dynamic areas that require ongoing maintenance. As part of the Oceans Protection Plan (OPP), the Canadian Hydrographic Service (CHS) is investing in innovative technologies to enhance the charting of dynamic areas. CHS is currently developing a novel digital product tailored for dynamic areas. This digital product can be updated several times a year, as required. Because of its cost-effective ability to revisit large sites, remote sensing was chosen as the project primary technology. Due to its dynamic nature, and ever-changing coastlines, the Mackenzie River was selected as the first site to develop a prototype product. The developed remote sensing approach is a hybrid solution utilizing both radar and optical sensors. To ensure comprehensive charting of the river, imagery is captured at different times throughout the year. This is done with two main goals in mind: capture the high and low water levels and monitor changes in the river during the navigation season. Results have shown that the current CHS charts could greatly benefit from this approach (Figure 1). This new product, which can be efficiently updated as needed, will provide improved service to navigators. As part of this project, CHS is also collaborating with the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) to obtain new survey data on the river's main navigational channel. As maintaining physical aids to navigation in dynamic areas is also an important task for CCG, another advantage of the new digital product is its potential to support virtual aids to navigation. However, even with these advancements, navigating dynamic water systems will always be challenging. Future environmental changes could potentially intensify coastal erosion and sedimentation. This underscores the importance of developing products that are better suited to accommodate coastal transformations.