Buoying and navigation 

We are responsible for the lighthouses and buoying, and there has been much development over the years. Today the lighthouses are automated, and the floating buoys have also kept up with technological advancement. Part of the buoying system is virtual, which means that the buoys are not actually physically present at sea, but are only displayed on the electronic systems of the seafarers. The physical and visual buoys are produced and maintained at our Operation Centre.

Buoying
The buoys are internationally standardised and many different kinds of buoying have been developed, to help ensure safe navigation. The buoy’s colour, shape and the way they flash help the navigators to navigate safely through the Danish waters.

We also give permission for new buoys, such as in the harbours, as well as establish and maintain the buoys.

AIS (Automatic Identification System)
Ships with AIS (Automatic Identification System) send regular information about their identity, course and speed to other ships and land stations in the close vicinity. This gives our land-based AIS stations an overview of which ships are in a particular area and the traffic patterns in the Danish waters. This can be used in many contexts. It can be used to see how shipping lanes can be improved, or to identify a ship in distress if there has been an accident.

EfficienSea – E-navigation
As Denmark is a great seafaring nation, it is important that we always keep up with the development of buoying and navigation, and preferably at an international level. For example, we are working with E-Navigation, which is part of the EfficenSea project, which is a worldwide project sponsored by the EU to improve the safety of navigation in the Baltic Sea. The E-Navigation project is aimed at improving the integration of the navigation services which are available to the seafarer. It makes it easier for the seafarers to get a quick overview of all the important information for navigation planning in precisely the area where the ship is sailing.