Communications

DGA Taps iXblue for AUV Positioning & Monitoring

The French General Directorate of Armament for Technical Naval Applications (DGA Technique Navales – DGA/TN, formerly GESMA), an entity specialized in experimentation in the area of mine warfare, has selected iXblue's Gaps acoustic positioning system for its autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) positioning and monitoring applications."The choice of Gaps by the DGA/TN, which is the reference in France in the area of mine warfare, is a clear mark of the confidence placed in our underwater positioning technology," said Hubert Pelletier, Head of the Acoustics Division of iXblue. "Thi

OPT Inks Deal with US Operator

to achieve significant health, safety and environmental milestones and implement additional policies and procedures.“This contract signifies a major investment of time and resources by our customer and OPT, which further demonstrates the demand for our solutions and our credibility as experts in marine power and communications,” Kirby said

Current Profiling & China’s Maritime Infrastructure Drive

China’s recent wave of infrastructure renewal has included a large portfolio of developments, such as ports and other developments, that have a subsea component. Accurate, efficient and cost-effective current profiling is vital in the successful implementation of major maritime projects.Nortek has been able to play a role in this side of China’s economic revolution, through its collaboration with a subsidiary of China Communications Construction Company (CCCC), a Fortune 500 listed firm that has been at the forefront of the infrastructure drive.CCCC & NortekCCCC’s hydrological

World First: Video Broadcast Live from Underwater

spectrum.”The broadcast is part of the Nekton Deep Ocean Research Institute’s First Descent expedition, which is exploring some of the world’s least explored areas of the ocean around the Seychelles, as part of a project to increase understanding and aid protection of the marine life they contain.By using a Sonardyne BlueComm free space optical modem on the submersible, and a BlueComm receiver deployed from the hull of the Ocean Zephyr research vessel, real-time video from one of the mission’s two submersibles was able to be streamed through the water and then broadcast

Real-time ECDIS Updates via FleetBroadband

A contract signed in London at the end of last month by Inmarsat and SRH Marine SAIT formalizes arrangements for real-time Electronic Chart Display and Information System (ECDIS) updating to be accomplished ‘ship-to-shore’ using an application over FleetBroadband for the first time.The SRH Delta platform, which includes chart updates, publications and notices of mariners, will be available for L-band transmission to any FleetBroadband user equipped with the new, dedicated bandwidth Application Access Point Name (APN) developed by Inmarsat.“The SRH platform is the first application by

OceanAlpha Launches 5G Unmanned Vehicle

A 5G unmanned surface vehicle recently made its debut in Barcelona, Spain. The new boat was unveiled at the Mobile World Congress 2019, where fifth generation of mobile communication technology (5G) was the "hottest topic", said Chinese company OceanAlpha, who developed the new vehicle OceanAlpha 5G alongside developed by Ericsson and China Mobile.According to its developer, the unmanned "environmental smart vessel" is designed to help address the problem of water pollution by quickly and efficiently collecting water quality monitoring data, identifying the cause of the

Leak Detection Sonar Deployed in the US Gulf

A sonar monitoring system will help a major US oil company to reinforce its deepwater offshore asset integrity assurance in the US Gulf of Mexico.The system, a wide-area Sentry Integrity Monitoring Sonar (IMS) developed and delivered by subsea engineering specialist Sonardyne International, has been deployed on the seafloor at more than 2,000 meters water depth. The ROV-deployable Sentry IMS,  which features a titanium housing and can be installed short-term or permanently, is able to detect, classify and localize subsea releases of hydrocarbons from either the seafloor or oil and gas field

R/V Bob and Betty Beyster: New CAT For Scripps

The Research Vessel Bob and Betty Beyster is a purpose-built coastal research vessel designed for efficient operations offshore Southern California and throughout the Channel Islands.  Based at the Scripps Nimitz Marine Facility and operated as a shared-use facility, Bob and Betty Beyster provides scientists, students and engineers a capable, safe and economical platform for research and teaching.R/V Bob and Betty Beyster is a 42-foot scientific workboat with a range of 500 nautical miles, a cruising speed better than 25 knots, and a capacity for six scientists and a boat operator. The vessel has

Zenitel: Expanding in Maritime, Offshore

We recently met up with Kenneth Dastol, CEO & President, Zenitel Group, who provided some exclusive insight and analysis on the dynamic world of mobile communication trends in the maritime sector.Please give an overview of Zenitel Group today.The Zenitel Group is the leader of intelligent communication systems. We are located in 18 countries around the world with more than 300 employees after the acquisition of Phontech. Approximately half of the staff is working out of Norway, the rest is spread out with about 30 employees in U.S., 25 in Singapore, 25 in France 25 in Croatia and the remaining

Enhanced Seismic Monitoring at Johan Sverdrup

through the water column from the seabed to the sea surface as well as the pressure (depth) at the seabed. This data is then used to calculate a continuous time history of average water velocity and tidal variation throughout the whole water column.While PIES instruments are already very widely used in marine seismic survey operations, this will be only the second time where PIES units are hardwired into topside power and communication infrastructure, which means Equinor will have instant and continuous access to its data. Conventionally, PIES data is collected acoustically by a passing surface vessel

Oi: Tracking 50 Years of Ocean Innovation

As Oceanology International celebrates its 50th Anniversary, Marine Technology Reporter explores half a century of subsea technology development and discovery. Oceanology International Americas runs February 25-27, 2019 in San Diego.When Oceanology launched in 1969 in the seaside resort of Brighton the world was a very different place. For a start, Brighton was home to the mods and rockers, who would square off against each other on the town’s elegant seafront. The British currency included shillings and ha’ pennies and man had yet to step foot on the moon.More crucially, to the

Subsea: The Future of Unmanned Vehicles

these systems.  Second, we need to get more value from our human operators.”Kinnaman has a unique perspective as Greensea Systems Inc., which he founded in 2006, is a leader in navigation and vehicle control technology and is the creator of OPENSEA, an open architecture software framework for marine robotics across various vehicle sectors.  “We develop software and hardware that revolutionizes the working relationship between people and machines both on and under the surface of the ocean,” said Kinnaman, who, like many in the sector “started working with vehicles as an

The “Disruption” in AUV Trends

calculations) can measure all the colors of our (electromagnetic) spectrum, so it sees what you can’t see with your eyes. It can see the kind of metal a plate of metal is or it can look at a coral and see color that you can’t see with your eyes.”Martin Ludvigsen, an NTNU professor of marine technology and manager of the AMOS applied underwater laboratory, or AUV Lab, confirms that years of theoretical work creating “data-driven mission plans” for AUVs are now paying off. In September, an AMOS research cruise reached 82.5 degrees North latitude — just short of the North

Unmanned Vehicles: 25 Years of Milestones

. Science users search for shipwrecks and hydrothermal vents. But the most vibrant commercial sector for AUVs is in offshore energy. Both oil and gas and renewables such as offshore wind employ AUVs for many different types of mission from site characterization & inspection to pipeline inspection. Marine hydrography and 3D pseudo-seismic as well as archaeological studies are also common commercial applications. Today the survey AUV is not just accepted, but expected, in many maritime applications.With survey AUVs becoming commonplace the emerging frontier for AUVs includes novel concepts enabled

Partners Designing Autonomous Seismic Nodes

Underwater sensor technology company Sonardyne International said it is partnering with Shell Brasil and Brazilian research institute Senai-Cimatec to develop autonomous technology to make the monitoring of Brazil’s deepwater pre-salt oil fields more efficient.The new 4D seismic monitoring system, based on so-called On Demand Ocean Bottom Nodes, is being developed under a National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP) promoted program.According to Sonardyne, the goal is to increase the autonomy of ocean bottom nodes and enable them to be deployed and remain on the seafloor for up

EOM Offshores Becomes SBIR Award Recipient

On February 5, 2019, EOM Offshore, LLC became a SBIR Phase I award recipient under SBIR Topic N-183-141 entitled “Technology Development of Fiber Optic Moorings for Surface Communication Buoys.”This is an exciting opportunity for EOM Offshore which plans to use its patented mooring technology to design a new lightweight, fiber optic Stretch EM Cable that will be used to tether communication gateway buoys.  To date, there is not a mooring cable on the market that can strain as the communication gateway buoy moves on the surface in wave action without the fiber optics becoming damaged

CWind Digitizes with CrewSmart

CWind, part of the Global Marine Group (GMG), a provider of topside, splash zone and subsea engineering services to the offshore renewables and utilities market, it has implemented CrewSmart’s management support service across its fleet of 21 crew transfer vessels (CTVs) and team of offshore wind technicians. The cloud-based CrewSmart system provides CWind with control over personnel and fleet administration, optimizing the overall efficiency of the operations team.In a rapidly expanding offshore wind market, as new projects come online globally, vessel demand has spiked, CrewSmart said, with

OPT and Saab Seaeye Partner

Ocean energy solutions provider Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. electric underwater robotic systems manufacturer Saab Seaeye Ltd, have entered a nonexclusive agreement to jointly develop and market solutions for autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) and remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) charging and communications systems.“We see a strong potential in this cooperation, where Saab Seaeye’s market-leading underwater solutions become even more capable by the addition of OPT charging solutions for resident vehicle systems,” said Matt Bates, Head of Marketing & Sales at Saab

Rebuilding Confidence in Reactivated DP Assets

and efficiently as it did before lay-up.  Image Courtesy Bureau Veritas.In anticipation of these demands, MAC and Bureau Veritas have been active in the development of guidance and recommended practices to verify that reactivation has been addressed properly. MAC has been directly involved with The Marine Technology Society in developing The DP Asset Reactivation Guidance and has supported Bureau Veritas in the development of Guidance Note NI 649 DT R00 E, Guidance for the Lay-Up and Reactivation of DP Vessels.Both guidance documents are designed to support the efficient return of DP assets to service

Ørsted Collaborates with US Fishing Coalition on Offshore Wind

Global developer of offshore wind farms Ørsted U.S. Offshore Wind has entered into a partnership agreement with Responsible Offshore Development Alliance (RODA) to improve communications between the seafood industry and offshore wind energy developers.“This first-of-its-kind partnership will create an unprecedented opportunity for commercial fishermen to provide direct input to the wind energy industry on matters of significant interest to their businesses,” according to the statement issued in Boston by the RODA, originally organized by scallop fishermen and others to protect their

EdgeTech Delivers ERB for Deewater Acoustic Release Mooring Recovery

EdgeTech, a provider of high resolution sonar imaging systems, acoustic release systems and underwater technology, said it recently delivered an innovative solution for deepwater acoustic release mooring recovery.The Emergency Recovery Beacon (ERB) is a self-contained, programable acoustic command transmitter and transponder in a 6,000 meter rated nickel aluminium bronze alloy housing that can be lowered from the side of a vessel below any surface noise, shipboard noise or thermoclines.The ERB is programmed through a serial port using a computer running a terminal program and can transmit EdgeTech LF

IUEM Chooses iXblue Equipment

Navigation, positioning and underwater imaging solutions provider iXblue said it has been chosen by the European Institute for Marine Studies (IUEM) to provide 8 Canopus long baseline (LBL) transponders for a geodetic mission off the coast of Sicily. Deployed on the seabed, 2,500 meters below the surface, the Canopus transponders will measure the crustal deformation along the North-South Alfeo faults with a millimeter-scale resolution over the course of four years.Hubert Pelletier, Head of iXblue Acoustic division, said, “Because the Canopus transponders precisely meet the exacting requirements

Sensor and AI System for Plymouth Sound

M Subs Ltd has announced it has installed a ‘game changing’ sensor system with connected artificial intelligence (AI) machine-learning technology around Plymouth Sound as part of the vision to turn the city into a center of excellence in maritime autonomy and unmanned vehicles.Plymouth-based M Subs  will operate a secure network of cameras, radars, and other sensors which will provide situational awareness and communications with the unmanned vehicles operating out of the city’s harbor.The system will also provide the command & control of unmanned vehicles using the nearby

Equinor and Vissim Partner

.When delivered, the Equinor system will give operators an almost complete overview of the ocean space, Vissim said. Vessel and helicopter movements integrated with weather forecast, oil spill surveillance and integrated radio communication will enable Equinor to provide surveillance services and maximize marine operational performance and logistics.(Image: Vissim

Eni Deploys OPT's PowerBuoy

Ocean Power Technologies' PowerBuoy has been deployed in the Adriatic Sea to advance Eni’s R&D MaREnergy project that aims to develop, deploy and demonstrate wave energy renewable technologies in oil and gas operations, the U.S.-based ocean energy solutions provider announced Wednesday.The OPT PowerBuoy will be used in the Adriatic Sea to advance Eni’s research and development of proprietary integrated subsea technology systems to allow future applications for remotely controlled field developments powered by wave energy, environmental monitoring and offshore asset inspection using

LRAUV: Arctic Oil-Spill-Mapping Robot Put to the Test

As commercial shipping and energy activities picks up in the Arctic region, the prospect of accidental oil spills in this pristine environment remain a concern. In response, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is taking the lead – through the U.S. Coast Guard – to develop a subsea robotic system to map and report on spills.“Because of ice coverage and the tyranny of distance, it is difficult to get resources and assets up in the Arctic in a quick manner,” said Kirsten Trego, Executive Director of the Coast Guard’s Interagency Coordinating Committee on Oil

NATO Uses IoT to Study the Oceans

of Oldenburg’s work monitoring plastic debris in the North Sea and Spain’s coastal authority, Salvamento Maritimo, using SPOT Trace to devise oil spill disaster recovery procedures. The National Institute of Oceanography and Experimental Geophysics and the “Istituto di Scienze Marine” of the Italian National Research Council use SPOT Trace to study surface currents in the Mediterranean and the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science has used large quantities of SPOT Trace satellite trackers also for oceanographic and oil spill research

Ocean Power Technologies Pact with NEC Energy Solutions

The provider of ocean energy solutions Ocean Power Technologies (OPT) signed a letter of intent to enter into a long-term supply agreement with NEC Energy Solutions, global leader in utility scale energy storage.Under the terms of the supply agreement, NEC ES will supply lithium ion batteries for OPT's subsea battery solutions.George H. Kirby, President and Chief Executive Officer of OPT, said: "NEC is a supplier of lithium ion batteries for our subsea battery solutions. Their long-standing leadership in the industry, as well as their dedication towards providing versatile, high-quality

Autonomous Subsea Pipeline Inspection

Swire Seabed said it completed autonomous inspection of offshore pipeline systems for Equinor in October 2018 utilizing Kongsberg Maritime’s Hugin autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV).The inspections were performed on three pipelines between Kollsnes and Troll A. In total, 180 kilometers of pipeline were inspected over two AUV dives.The inspections were undertaken with the subsea vehicle in autonomous mode, with a small surface vessel accompanying the AUV to provide positional updates to the vehicle and act as a communications relay between the AUV and the Control Center at Swire Seabed’s

Performing Coating Systems for Different Applications

Subsea Industries develops durable, non-toxic hard hull coating systems. Ecospeed was the first coating and was launched in 2002, but since then a line of other products has been added.EcoshieldEcoshield is an enhanced version of Ecospeed. Small but significant variations of the Ecospeed formula have been tested on rudders since 2002 with extraordinary results. After years of testing (initially under the name Ecospeed Strong) the product was launched in 2013.Ecoshield is designed to protect rudders and other underwater running gear against the cavitation phenomenon: against pitting, corrosion and

Sonardyne Unveils Fusion 2

Underwater positioning and navigation specialist Sonardyne International Ltd. has launched a new integrated acoustic and inertial positioning platform for marine survey contractors and offshore construction companies.Available from today, Sonardyne’s Fusion 2 Long BaseLine (LBL) and Inertial Navigation System (INS) software has been written from the ground up to offer a single solution aiming to make field development projects faster and easier. With Fusion 2, the separate software applications, vessel-fit hardware and often complex communication interfaces that have been typically required to

Sonardyne Leads AUV Collaboration Project

provider of underwater acoustic, inertial, optical and sonar technology said in a release that with partners L3 ASV and the National Oceanography Centre (NOC), Sonardyne will focus on longer-term navigational accuracy for AUVs in deep water, while reducing power requirements and increasing autonomy in marine operations.The P3AUV project will involve trials using Sonardyne’s leading underwater positioning technology on the NOC’s Autosub Long Range (ALR) and L3 ASV’s C-Worker 7 autonomous surface vehicle (ASV). The project, which will include trials in Loch Ness next month, is due to

Tidal Power for Seabed Oil and Gas Installations

the added benefit of introducing a renewable component to fossil-fuel projects, whose developers are keen to show they are making their operations as green as possible.Successful testA prototype Power Hub, using one turbine, completed a successful eight-month sea trial in December 2017 at the European Marine Energy Center (EMEC) in the Orkney Islands, northern Scotland. EC-OG is now refining the system to match the requirements of oil and gas field developers. These include having two or more turbines and differing battery sizes depending on site requirements.The device being lowered to the deck of the

SubCom: Manatua Cable Contract is in Force

New submarine cable system will provide connectivity between Samoa and Tahiti with branches to Niue, Cook Island and Bora BoraSubCom and the Manatua Consortium announced the contract is in force for the supply and installation of the Manatua submarine cable system. The Manatua Consortium is composed of: The Office des Postes et Télécommunications (OPT), the telecoms operator of French Polynesia; Avaroa Cables Limited (ACL), the cable operator of Cook Islands, Telecom Niue Limited (TNL), the telecoms operator of Niue; and Samoa Submarine Cable Company (SSCC), the cable operator of

New Ethernet Cable from TE

TE Connectivity (TE) introduced its Raychem Cat 5e cable that offers high-performance Ethernet connectivity at speeds up to 1-Gb/s in harsh military, marine and aerospace environments.The Cat 5e cable makes use of high temperature fluoropolymers that are designed to perform under extreme temperature fluctuations from -65°C to +200°C. Designed in accordance with ANSI/TIA-568-C.2, the cable is both lightweight and easy to terminate, the manufacturer said. TE’s waterblock variation uses super absorbent tapes and yarns that further help reduce weight, increase flexibility and lower installatio

OPT Rolls Out New Products

Ocean energy solutions developer Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. has expanded its suite of complimentary products that leverage the core technology of the PowerBuoy, which include subsea batteries and a hybrid (liquid-fueled) PowerBuoy.George H. Kirby, President and Chief Executive Officer of OPT, said, “Our team has been working diligently to identify opportunities to leverage our technologies to address the needs of current and potential customers in subsea environments. These new product offerings provide OPT with the means to better serve customers by expanding its product and service offerings

Tech Spotlight: JW Fisher’s CT-1 Cable Tracker

tracked is “dead,” then a signal will have to be induced into the cable. The signal injector is connected to the shore end of the target cable and, after the signal has been sent, the cable tracker probe is used to locate the electromagnetic signal along the length of the cable.Intercoastal Marine, LLC. was established in 2013 and has developed into a well-respected unlimited general contractor. Located in Castle Hayne, N.C., Intercoastal Marine began as a small commercial diving and service corporation supporting heavy construction, utility, and manufacturing industries throughout the Mid-Atlantic

L3 OceanServer Expands

L3 OceanServer, a developer and manufacturer of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), has recently added 4,700 square feet of space at its headquarters location in Fall River, Mass. This doubles the operational footprint of the business and will accommodate the company’s rapid growth while continuing to leverage its waterfront location for daily vehicle testing and operations. Additionally, a 46-foot research vessel, R/V Cassiar, has been dedicated to customer training and vehicle testing at L3 OceanServer’s San Diego location.“The decision to expand our physical assets was based on

Partners Lead New Swarm Technology Research

U.K. based marine technology company Autonomous Robotics Ltd (ARL) will collaborated with Aberdeen’s Robert Gordon University (RGU) to research simultaneous, distributed and scalable localization system for a swarm of autonomous underwater sensor flying nodes.The research will aim to further enhance the capability of the flying node system and further reduce the cost and time for ocean bottom seismic surveys.RGU is a leading Scottish university in Aberdeen, the oil capital of Europe, and its School of Engineering has an outstanding track record of working in collaboration with industry.The Swarm

20’ WAM-V Delivered to XPrize Finalist TeamTao

competition.The new WAM-V has a range of over 400 nautical miles, can carry up to 600 lbs of payload, has a top speed of 15+ knots, and has passed rigorous open-ocean testing to ensure it is a stable platform for sensor deployment.“This is an exciting addition to our product lineup,” said Marine Advanced Research President and CEO Mark Gundersen. “With multi-day endurance in blue water, it brings a host of new capabilities to the marketplace.”Nick Ridley, TeamTao’s surface system design lead, commented, “We searched the global market for a suitable ASV platform. The

US Navy Sailors Dive Into Aquarium Exhibits

schools, conducting ship tours, attending receptions and sporting events, participating in community service projects and experiencing Baltimore.MDFWASB is Baltimore’s celebration of the sea services and provides an opportunity for the citizens of Maryland and the city of Baltimore to meet Sailors, Marines and Coast Guardsmen, as well as see firsthand the latest capabilities of today’s maritime services.The AuthorVictoria Kinney is Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class, NAS Patuxent River Public Affair

'Smart Boulders' Measure Seafloor Avalanches

global networks of seafloor telecommunication cables.The so-called "smart boulders" revealed some surprising findings that will help inform where best to lay the seafloor cables that keep the internet running. Published this week in the journal Nature Communications, this research shows that submarine avalanches of rock and sand, which have been notoriously difficult to directly measure due to their powerful nature, can travel across the seafloor at almost 30 km/hour (similar to a human sprinter), and are powerful enough to move objects weighing almost one metric ton for several kilometers.Over

Hunting Hydrocarbons

acoustic monitoring (PAM) projects to aid environmental and anthropogenic monitoring during seismic surveys and, it hopes soon, also around offshore wind piling operations monitoring. For PAM operations, broad spectrum hydrophones are mounted to the gliders to record low and high frequency acoustics from marine life.Blue Ocean’s first PAM survey was in 2016, offshore Western Australia, during 3D seismic acquisition operations. The glider was deployed in the survey area and traversed four days, covering about 30km/day, depending on the current, before performing simultaneous operations with the seismic

Sonardyne Hires Paull as Business Development Manager

instrumentation and systems company Aquatec Group, will also focus on other developing ocean industry markets, such as subsea mining, for Sonardyne’s widening portfolio of products.The ocean space is home to an increasing number of offshore renewables facilities, including offshore wind farms and marine energy devices, and aquaculture operations, as companies look to diversify and countries seek to grow their energy and food production.“Increasingly our oceans are being looked at as engines of growth – be it in renewable energy, aquaculture, mineral resources and even biotechnology.

BMT and Sonardyne Partner on Subsea Monitoring

Engineering consultancy BMT and subsea technology company Sonardyne International Ltd. will together provide advanced integrated marine integrity monitoring solutions to the oil and gas industry under a new agreement announced today at the Rio Oil & Gas exhibition and conference in Brazil.The official Teaming Agreement will allow the two companies to collaboratively provide smarter and more efficient through-life solutions for monitoring and managing critical subsea assets, including drilling and production risers, moorings and wellheads.By jointly offering BMT’s monitoring and analysis

GTI to Supply Low Frequency Sources to Scripps

GeoSpectrum Technologies (GTI) announces it will supply the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (University of California San Diego) with two “C-BASS” low frequency sources.This new technology will allow researchers to conduct low frequency acoustic experiments more efficiently and less expensively than previously possible, GTI said. A successful field trial at Seneca Lake last December caught the attention of Scripps, resulting in the purchase.The fully coherent C-BASS are tuned to operate at 34 Hz and are capable of continuous operation. The energy efficient sources are physically

Ashtead Delivers Installation Monitoring Services to Subsea 7

Subsea equipment specialist Ashtead Technology said it has completed a subsea installation monitoring project for Subsea 7 in support of Equinor’s Utgard development, located in blocks 15/8 (NCS) and 16/18a (UKCS) of the central North Sea.The contract, which was awarded by i-Tech Services on behalf of Subsea 7, saw Ashtead’s Deflection Monitoring System (DMS) used to capture critical data required to safely deploy a subsea template in water depths of 110m from Subsea 7’s vessel the Seven Arctic.The DMS monitors structure deflection, heading, pitch, roll, depth and suction at differenti

Mapping the Future

Marine Technology Reporter catches up with Dr. Jyotika Virmani, Ph.D, Senior Director, Shell Ocean Discovery XPRIZE and members of the GEBCO-NF Alumni Team as the conclusion to the $7 Million Shell Ocean Discovery XPRIZE fast approaches.The Shell Ocean Discovery XPRIZE is a global competition challenging teams to advance deep-sea technologies for autonomous, fast and high-resolution ocean exploration. The prize will stimulate even greater exploration and mapping of the ocean floor, helping to uncover our planet’s greatest wonders and resources for the benefit of humanity. The winner will be

L3 Technologies Acquires ASV Global

New York headquartered L3 Technologies said it has acquired unmanned surface vessel (USV) and autonomous vessel control systems company ASV Global, LLC, effective September 20.According to L3, the acquisition enhances its spectrum of unmanned maritime capabilities, including integrated antisubmarine warfare (ASW) solutions, future surface combatant unmanned off-board sensors, and integrated unmanned surface and undersea vessel (USV/UUV) operations. The new company will be known as L3 ASV.“Autonomous capabilities for surface ships and undersea vessels are top priorities for our naval and

Cerberus to Acquire Subsea Communications Business from TE Connectivity

Cerberus Capital Management announced that one of its affiliates has entered into an agreement with TE Connectivity under which Cerberus will acquire TE's Subsea Communications business (SubCom).Headquartered in Eatontown, New Jersey, SubCom is a leading global supplier of subsea communications systems with approximately $700 million in revenue, based on fiscal year 2018 expectations. The business designs, manufactures, deploys, and maintains the subsea fiber optic cable systems that are vital for global communications.To date, SubCom has completed more than 100 cable systems and deployed over 610

MainOne Cable System to Extend to Francophone Region

Undersea communications technology company TE SubCom  has secured a contract from connectivity and data center solutions provider MainOne to extend its active submarine cable system into West Africa’s francophone region with two additional branches connecting Senegal (Dakar) and Cote D’Ivoire (Abidjan). These new branches will connect to MainOne’s 7,000km cable system, which extends from Portugal to Nigeria, and will inject new technology that upgrades the system to a potential capacity of 10TBps by November 2019 when the subsea system becomes operational.With this development

Navy Divers to Have Automated Logging from Worn Dive Computers

at sea into a system known as the Dive/Jump Reporting System (DJRS). Manual entries can be time-consuming and allow human error.Enter the Office of Naval Research (ONR) Global TechSolutions program, a rapid-response science and technology program focused on solutions to problems submitted by Sailors and Marines.ONR TechSolutions and industry partners have created a new tool called the Scuba Binary Dive Application (SBDA) 100 to digitally plan, record and report dive-profile information to DJRS. The application will accelerate the process of logging and uploading dive information, and will help eliminate

Forum Tackles Decom Challenges

At its inaugural Collaboration and Innovation in Decommissioning event earlier this month, Decom North Sea brought together more than 110 delegates – from operator and supply chain companies – to focus upon finding solutions to current and future decommissioning challenges.Working with the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA), Decom North Sea constructed a highly interactive day comprising presentations, open forum sessions, networking and one-to-one sessions to maximize delegate engagement resulting in the generation of over 120 potential solutions.Setting the scene, the Oil & Gas Technology

Competitor Preps for XPRIZE Final with 24-hour Sea Trial

on the collaborative approach, Yulia Zarayskaya, training program alumnus and Project Lead, noted that “the skills acquired by the alumni through the data processing development, as well as working alongside team partners and suppliers, puts them at the forefront of rapidly developing autonomous marine operations and the modern processes of transforming data into useful information.”It is hoped that the team’s technology will find wider applications once the XPRIZE is completed, and discussions are ongoing with The Nippon Foundation-GEBCO Seabed 2030 Project to see how this might be

MultiBeam EchoSounder Enables First-of-its-kind Research

, there is a concern that rising ocean temperatures could lead seafloor methane hydrate deposits to dissociate, which would result in a greater volume of methane released in the ocean, and potentially reaching the atmosphere, and therefore causing a high risk for humanity.Scholars at the MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, Germany, and the University of Washington in Seattle are working on a project initiated in 2017 called M3, funded by the German Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) that monitors the natural release of methane at the Southern Hydrate Ridge (SHR)

WHOI Hires Harp in Advancement, Marketing Role

The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) has hired international brand marketing expert Samuel C. Harp as the Institution’s first Vice President for Advancement and Chief Marketing Officer. Harp has spent much of his career in academic, technology, and research institutions and will begin working at WHOI on October 1.Harp most recently served as the Chief Marketing and Communications Officer for the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, where he has worked for more than eight years. Before working at Harvard, Harp worked in marketing, communications, and business development roles at

DNV GL Recertifies Rutter’s Wave and Current Monitoring system

After extensive testing, the sigma S6 WaMoS II Wave and Surface Current Monitoring System was recertified by DNV GL in May of this year. The system was certified compliant with IEC 60945 Ed. 4 (2002-08) maritime navigation and IEC 62288 Ed. 2.0 (2014-07) radio-communication equipment and systems for Wave Monitoring Systems.The sigma S6 WaMoS II Wave and Surface Current Monitoring System provides real-time wave and surface current measurements using standard navigational radars as a sensor. The operator is able to effectively identify environmental conditions and safe operational windows with the help

iSURVEY Completes Industry First Project for Norske Shell

iSURVEY, a provider of survey and positioning services to the global oil and gas, offshore renewables and telecommunications markets, has completed a pioneering project for A/S Norske Shell.  The project, which took place last month as part of the operator’s Scarabeo 8 drilling campaign, utilized iSURVEY’s survey support remotely from its Oslo headquarter. This marks the first time remote positioning has been applied for a regular DP drill rig move operation on the Norwegian Continental Shelf.The survey equipment was initially mobilized on board, and then operated from the iSURVEY

5 Minutes with Mike Read, President, Teledyne Marine

Teledyne Marine Group has been a consolidator in the subsea space for more than a decade, today totaling 23 companies. Teledyne Marine’s MTR100 entry is focused on insights on the moves in the market from Mike Read.As we continue to navigate through a historic downturn in the offshore energy sector, can you give us your view of the market? Where you see opportunity in the coming 12 to 24 months?We are optimistic on the health of the marine market across all market sectors over the next 12 to 24 months. Our interconnect and instruments businesses are beginning to see the effects of stabilization

Fundraising Campaign Launched For 10-Year Dolphin Research Project

Dr. Richard Connor, Professor of Biology at the University of Massachusetts, has embarked on a journey to Shark Bay in the western part of Australia where he has studied a wild population of Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphins since 1982.Dr. Connor is the co-Director of the Dolphin Alliance Project (DAP), and President of the nonprofit Dolphin Alliance Project, Inc., which is aggressively seeking donations to continue funding DAP research.The Dolphin Alliance Project’s mission is to learn everything they can about these unique underwater creatures during the Dolphin Decade, an ambitious ten-year