The United Kingdom Hydrographic Office

Overview

The Admiralty Vector Chart Service (AVCS) brings together Electronic Navigational Charts (ENCs) from national Hydrographic offices around the world and new ENC coverage produced by UKHO in co-operation with Foreign Governments to provide comprehensive, official, worldwide coverage.

Compliant

The Admiralty Vector Chart Service only contains ENC data that meets Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Carriage Requirements for use within Electronic Chart Display and Information Systems (ECDIS).

Quality

UKHO has instituted a programme of assessment by its professional cartographers where the content of the ENC is compared to the equivalent Admiralty paper chart. Any navigationally significant discrepancies identified are then investigated and resolved with the producing nation. No other electronic chart service offers this level of reassurance.

ENCs

Electronic Navigational Charts (ENCs) are digital vector charts. Mariners use Electronic Chart Display and Information Systems (ECDIS) to work with these digital aids and International Maritime Organization (IMO) SOLAS regulations allow for the use of ECDIS to meet carriage requirements for charts if ENCs are loaded and a suitable backup is provided.

AVCS provides the most comprehensive, consistent and quality ENC coverage thanks to the ongoing co-operation and professional expertise of our partner hydrographic offices worldwide

ENCs are produced to the International Hydrographic Organization’s (IHO’s) standards (S57 Version 3.1 and ENC Product Specification). They are referred to World Geodetic System 1984 Datum (WGS84) and are regularly updated with official update information distributed digitally.

The ECDIS display distinguishes between ENCs and unofficial data through the continuous display of a warning stating that the mariner should navigate by means of an up-to-date official paper chart. Also, the boundary between ENC and unofficial data is displayed with a hatched line. The mariner can further distinguish the status of a particular ENC by interrogating the display to obtain information such as the producing agency code, edition and update numbers.

Hydrographic offices do not take any responsibility for the accuracy or reliability of privately produced, unofficial charts.

Folios

AVCS is sold in a series of folios, which are geographic collections of ENCs at specific scales or usage bands. They are designed to make ordering, maintenance and licensing as easy and flexible as possible.

AVCS folios provide cost-effective coverage tailored to the world’s shipping routes and therefore help you avoid purchasing unnecessary data. There are three types of AVCS Folio – Transit, Regional and Ports.

Transit Folios

These are designed to provide all the coverage needed for a vessel to pass safely through a region when not engaging in local trade, saving you the expense of purchasing detailed coverage for regions that you are just passing through, whilst including more coverage to negotiate the choke points such as the Suez Canal and Malacca Straits.

AVCS Transit Folio Overview | Example Transit Folio

Regional Folios

These cover a much smaller geographical area than Transit Folios and include all Coastal and some Approach ENCs, where coastal coverage is not available. Regional Folios are designed for local and coastal trade, where more detailed coverage of complex coastal waters is required. They do not include Port Approaches or Entry.

AVCS Regional Folio Overview | Example Regional Folio

Port folios

These typically comprise Approach, Harbour and Berthing cells grouped together into a single sales unit. Under typical operational conditions, vessels approaching a port directly from an ocean passage will require only Transit and Port Folios if not engaging in coastal operation.

Where a number of major ports are grouped in a complex waterway (e.g. Japan’s ‘Bungo Suido and Western Inland Sea’), a ‘Superport’ folio may be available to provide the additional large scale detail necessary for safe navigation. In other cases, a Superport folio may cover a number of closely grouped ports (e.g. ‘River Thames & Medway’).

Example Port Folios

Updating

AVCS includes remote updating software free of charge. The software can be used to obtain immediate updates to your ENC data, either directly over the Internet or by email, anywhere in the world, at anytime. The service also allows the mariner to actively manage their data holdings with the download of voyage-specific updates, minimising transmission costs for vessels at sea.

An information log is automatically maintained for the Officer of the Watch to ensure continuity during crew changes. All updates are hosted on a secure server and are encrypted and digitally signed to ensure that they are authentic and uncorrupted when you receive them.

Updates to ENC data within AVCS are also supplied weekly on CD as standard, ensuring that every AVCS customer has a complete and up to date set of data on board, with the option to easily access additional data if required.

The Admiralty Digital Catalogue is included free of charge within AVCS.

Pricing

A full pricing schedule can be found here, while a CSV price list can be found here.

Fixed Annual Cost

With AVCS you can be sure of maintaining access to all the latest information without the need to repeatedly amend your budgets. Any new ENC data that becomes available will be included in the appropriate AVCS Folio at no additional cost for the period of your Licence.

Complete Flexibility

Every AVCS customer is provided with a complete set of Base discs containing every ENC available within the Service. These discs are ‘locked’ but allow your vessel to carry complete coverage whilst only paying for the folios initially required. Chart holdings can be upgraded quickly and easily at any point during the licence period, unlocking additional disks to extend your coverage.

Support

The Admiralty Vector Chart Service is backed by UKHO Helpdesk support during normal office hours, and an emergency permit generation helpline outside those hours, providing complete confidence and peace of mind.

Support

Support calls should be directed to your AVCS Distributor in the first instance. Where your AVCS Distributor is unable to provide support or assistance please contact the UKHO Helpdesk during UK normal office hours by emailing Helpdesk@UKHO.gov.uk or phoning +44 (0) 1823 723366.

Where a vessel is diverted for commercial reasons an order can be raised through your AVCS Distributor. Your AVCS Distributor will receive the permits within 10 minutes of placing the order on the Admiralty Product Ordering System (APOS) and these can then be forwarded on to you by arrangement with your Distributor.

AVCS User Guide

To download the AVCS user guide please click here.

Emergency Chart Permits

In certain circumstances it may be necessary for a vessel to get access to an AVCS chart at very short notice, for instance if she has to divert her route due to a medical or safety emergency. In these emergency circumstances, individual AVCS Chart Permits can be obtained from the UKHO 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. These Chart Permits can be transmitted direct to the vessel by email wherever possible, by fax, or simply by reading the characters out over the telephone or radio. Each Chart Permit consists of 64 characters.

To obtain an AVCS emergency chart permit please contact the UKHO Helpdesk during UK normal office hours. Outside of office hours please contact the UKHO Watch Keeper by emailing navwarnings@btconnect.com, phoning +44 (0) 1823 353448 or faxing +44 (0) 1823 322352. Please quote name and contact details, the vessel name, the User Permit Number of your ECDIS system and the cell number(s) required.

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