Leading Lights VLL-43 Increasing Marine Safety at Poti Port, Georgia
The Poti Sea Port is the largest port in Georgia, located in the eastern Black Sea coast at the mouth of the Rioni River. It serves as a vital link between Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia. The route is complex to the mariners due to a sharp turn from the searoute and a very narrow channel to the port. The strong background illumination increases visual challenge to the port traffic and it was difficult to discover the leading light.
Solution for Increasing Safety – Running Lights to Catch the Eye
The leading line was already marked with fixed LO 200M lights on top of dayboards but the solution needed additional marking due to background illumination. To increase the visibility and increase the safety, Sabik Marine offered to implement running lights to the front of the dayboards. The running lights would effectively catch the eye of the observer.
The most suitable solution for this kind of application is linear lead light VLL- 43. It is a powerful unidirectional lead light with a low power consumption, suitable optical divergence and a good value for the price. They are also easy to install on vertical surfaces. In 2020, Georgian State Hydrographic Service purchased the range lanterns through an electronic tender. Equipment was supplied to Hydrorgaphic Service through our distributor Neptuni. Four VLL-43 lanterns were installed on dayboards of each leading line: to the first tower of the first knee (red light) of the entrance canal and to the first tower of the second knee (green light).
The running light is about same height as the respective dayboard. The light is running quite freely from background lighted bottom of the dayboard to the top area illuminated by the range light. The VLL-43 lanterns are fed by a basic solar pack, due to small duty cycle and low power consumption.
“Pilots, other users and stakeholders are satisfied and to sum up the quality of navigation through Poti port canal is much higher now. I wish continuous success to your company,” states Aleksandre Zarkua, Head of Division of Technical Service and Monitoring of Navigational Marks in Georgian State Hydrographic Service. LEPL Georgian State Hydrographic Service operates under the Ministry of Economy and sustainable development of Georgia and conducts procurement in accordance with the Georgian laws.
More information:
Evgeny Nabatov
Regional Sales Manager
evgeny.nabatov (at) spx.com
