Carnival Corporation, the world’s largest leisure travel company, announced that its Arison Maritime Center in the Netherlands will honor the legacy of the Arison family who founded and grew the company into the world’s largest cruise line operation.
The company also announced that construction is now well under way for what will be a spectacular state-of-the-art campus located in Almere, just outside Amsterdam. A grand opening celebration at the center is scheduled for July 14, 2016.
The CSMART Academy will feature the most advanced bridge and engine room simulator technology and equipment available, with enough space to complete rigorous annual professional training for the company’s deck and engineering officers for its 10 global cruise line brands. When complete, it will be the most progressive maritime center of its kind in the world for training and continually improving industry-wide safety and excellence.
At nearly 110,000 square feet, the center is more than double the size of the company’s current facility, which has been in operation since 2009 in Almere. The new CSMART Academy at the Arison Maritime Center will feature four full-mission bridge simulators and four full-mission engine room simulators, designed to provide a wide array of programming and simulated exercises that can recreate an extensive range of maritime scenarios.
The new five-story center will also include 24 part-task engine simulators, eight debriefing rooms and eight part-task bridge simulators. The seven-acre campus will have double the training capacity of the existing location and is expected to train over 6,500 deck and engineering officers every year. It will also include an advanced medical center and an 11-story, 176-room hotel for Carnival Corporation trainees.
The Arison Maritime Center honors the legacy of the Arisons, the first family of cruising. Micky Arison has been chairman of the board of directors for Carnival Corporation since 1990. He began his career at Carnival Cruise Line in 1972 in sales and was named reservations manager in 1974, vice president of passenger traffic in 1976 and president in 1979. In 1990 he was appointed chairman of Carnival Corporation by the company’s board of directors. In 2013, the role of Carnival Corporation chairman and CEO was split, with Arison continuing as chairman and longtime board member Arnold Donald being named CEO. Considered one of the most respected leaders and experts in the cruise industry, Arison’s vision and leadership played the central role in building Carnival Corporation into the world’s largest cruise company and helping grow cruising from a niche holiday to one of the most popular vacation experiences available.
His late father, Ted Arison, founded the company in 1972 with one ship with the firm belief that cruising is one of the best ways to enjoy a vacation and a commitment to making cruising available to people from all walks of life. Referred to by The New York Times as “the godfather of the modern cruise industry,” he is credited with building cruise operations that give travelers the opportunity to enjoy a cruise vacation with prices that range from affordable to upscale.
Today, the company has 101 ships, over 120,000 employees and welcomes 11 million guests annually. About one of every two travelers who go on a cruise vacation do so a on Carnival Corporation ship.
“When complete, the Arison Maritime Center and CSMART Academy will be an extraordinary operation dedicated to providing our deck and technical officers – the heart and soul of ensuring our ships operate as safely as possible – with the most advanced and progressive training, professional development and research in the cruise and maritime industry,” said David Christie, senior vice president of maritime quality assurance for Carnival Corporation.
Additional information on the new Arison Maritime Center can be found athttp://csmartalmere.com/NewCsmart.aspx, including details on the CSMART simulators and training facilities.
SOURCE Carnival Corporation
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