C A S E S T U DY
Success Story | ABB Marine & Ports
The Challenge
The world’s premier shipping companies work
with the software solutions of ABB Marine &
Ports to get their vessels safely and efficiently to
their destinations. A loyal customer of Wibu-Sys-
tems for over a decade, ABB has been relying on
CodeMeter dongles to store the license keys for
their ABB Ability™ Marine Advisory System –
OCTOPUS. The current version of the system is
using Wibu-Systems’ robust metal-case CmStick
ME, a perfect choice for the rugged conditions at
sea. As satellite communications has made fast
Internet connections at sea a common reality
for maritime operators, the company is looking
to move from physical to software solutions to
streamline its logistics processes.
licenses but also of updates and new modules
via the cloud with around-the-clock availa-
bility. As an added bonus, the capabilities of
CodeMeter License Central gives the company
flexible control over access to the data in
the hydrodynamic databases and the use of
real-time signal data.
The Company
ABB is a pioneering technology leader that
works closely with utility, industry, transport
and infrastructure customers in roughly 100
countries. With more than four decades at
the forefront of digital technologies, ABB is a
leader in digitally connected and enabled indus-
trial equipment and systems with an installed
base of more than 70,000 control systems
connecting 70 million devices. With a heritage
spanning more than 130 years, ABB employs
around 136,000 people.
The Solution
The next release of the ABB Marine & Ports’
marine advisory system, the OCTOPUS suite, will
rely exclusively on the all-software CmActLicen-
ses, which can be distributed through the cloud.
While CmDongles offer unparalleled security,
the opportunity to migrate to a software-based
solution makes the system more convenient to
use in the hustle and bustle of naval operations.
The Result
The decision in favor of Wibu-Systems’ CmAct-
Licenses not only simplifies the allocation of
Hendrik Middag
Global Product Manager, Digital Services ABB Marine & Ports
“With our relatively small team of software builders, software-only license management is a
great way of keeping stock of our licenses in a maritime business that is moving more and more
to virtual solutions. With CodeMeter, we can prevent the inappropriate use of the system by
incorporating a fingerprint of the devices and computers used by our customers in the software
code of the OCTOPUS modules. Whenever a certain new module or an upgrade is launched, we
upload the licenses together with that fingerprint of the licensed computer aboard a particular
vessel to the cloud, which the user can then download. The security level stays high, but all in a
simple software process.”
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