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Fidelio Cruise Completes Seabourn Fleet Installation

Published Dec 7, 2011 12:53 PM by The Maritime Executive

The installation of state-of-the-art cruise software from Fidelio Cruise on board the Seabourn Spirit completes the IT systems upgrade across Seabourn's six-ship fleet. The project began in March, with Fidelio Cruise's core Shipboard Property Management System (SPMS), ResOnline and Fleet Management System software installed on board the Seabourn Odyssey, a 32,000 gross ton luxury cruise vessel. Since then, the same systems have been installed on board the recently launched Seabourn Quest and four other vessels in the cruise line's fleet – the Seabourn Legend, Seabourn Pride, Seabourn Sojourn and Seabourn Spirit.

The six Seabourn vessels now carry a full range of the Hamburg-based firm's software, as well as the integrated MICROS® point-of-sale system. All ships now use SPMS for guest, crew and visitor management as well as on-board financial operations. The software also provides a basis for a range of modules ensuring efficient management of shore excursions, hotel maintenance, spa operation, safety and security and guest feedback monitoring.

Meanwhile in a move aimed at further improving operating efficiency and fine-tuning marketing initiatives, Seabourn has installed Fidelio Cruise's Fleet Management System (FMS) and ResOnline System on board the ships and shoreside. These systems facilitate the automatic transmission of data between ships and head office, thereby providing real-time updates and enabling Seabourn to monitor and compare the operating performance of individual vessels within its fleet.

FMS enables the continuous logging of all transactions, revenue flows, guest demands, on-board purchases, activities and movements. The head office therefore is provided a fleet-side management accounting system and an instant snapshot of overall fleet performance on a pre-determined frequency, typically once a day.

The system installation, carried out by Fidelio Cruise software specialists, is part of an integration process with Seabourn’s Seattle-based sister company, Holland America Line. Holland America Line’s fleet is already equipped with a wide range of Fidelio cruise software, and Seabourn is considering other ways to leverage the current system template across its fleet.

Speaking on behalf of Seabourn, Brent Davidson, Vice President - Information Technology for Holland America Line commented: “We have taken a rather aggressive approach, switching to Fidelio systems from one day to the next, which proved to be very successful. We completed the fleet installation in about six months. We couldn't have done it without the help of Seabourn’s crews. Everyone was very receptive and adopted Fidelio readily, which made it a lot easier for all involved. They found a lot of processes much easier and less time-consuming than their previous system,” he added.

Jason Grant, Director of Fleet IT at Holland America Line, remarked: “We are very pleased with the smooth transition to Fidelio Cruise's systems. Seabourn will gain long-term advantages with increased synergy between applications and improved information flow shore-side, via ResOnline, back on board ships via SPMS, and back shore-side again, with FMS.”

We are very proud of the smooth installation process and the results of this important project,” commented Tony Heuer, Fidelio Cruise President. “We are looking forward to a successful partnership in our common aim for effective operation and happy guests on board Seabourn's vessels.