Carnival has launched a third fleet operations center (FOC) to consolidate vessel management for Carnival Cruise Line, based at its Miami headquarters.
The cruise major built the 35,000-square-foot facility to bring several behind-the-scenes activities, including technical operations, guest services and 24-7 vessel watch, into one space.
They were previously spread out among its parent company's two-building headquarters housing 450,000 square feet of space and 2,500 employees, said FOC director John Rowley.
"Now we're putting them all together in one place," he told TradeWinds.
The new venue, which occupies one building's sixth floor after one year, features a 74-foot-long wall of 57 LED screens and a massive "eyeball" tracking Carnival's 103 ships.
It also has "open-pod" work spaces aligned with Carnival's ship classes for monitoring the entire fleet and extra space for medical or other special operations, if needed.
"Desks have been left vacant to allow others to come in at a moment's notice," he said.
The facility will employ 100 workers at first but has room to accommodate another 50 should the company's fleet expand, he said.
Carnival completed a much smaller FOC within its Seattle office in late 2016 and moved a similar unit established by 2000-bought Costa Cruises to Hamburg from Genoa. The fleet was managed previously from separate locations through phone and email.
He said Carnival has no plans to build more FOCs, but "You never know what can happen in the future."
Carnival Cruise Line chief executive Christine Duffy said design of Carnival's latest FOC takes best practices from the cruise industry, military and government.
"Nothing is more important than the safety of our guests and crew, and this new facility enhances our already comprehensive approach to safety and operational excellence," she said.
