From Tiny Electrical Impulses Grows a $2.6B Giant MOOG

In 1951 William (Bill) Moog developed the electro-hydraulic servovalve that translates tiny electrical impulses into precise and powerful movement. Moog, an inventor, entrepreneur and visionary, likely knew then that valve would open the flood gates that would transform a small workshop in East Aurora, New York into the corporate giant Moog Inc. is today. Bill Moog, along with his brother Arthur and Lou Geyer…

MTR 100: Hydroid

Part of Kongsberg Maritime’s AUV Group, Hydroid is a trusted manufacturer of advanced Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs). REMUS AUVs provide innovative and reliable full-picture systems for the marine research, defense, hydrographic and commercial offshore/energy markets. REMUS vehicles are advanced, diversified and field-proven; combat-proven in continuous operation with the U.S. Navy. Historically, the sheer magnitude of the ocean has made comprehensive exploration unfeasible.

RoboSub Competition: 20 Years of Fun and Learning

More than 300 high school and college engineering students tested their mechanical, electrical, computer and systems engineering skills, as well as their presentation skills and teamwork, while competing for cash prizes at the recent 20th International RoboSub Competition. The week-long competition, cosponsored by the Office of Naval Research (ONR) and the Association of Unmanned Vehicles International Foundation (AUVSIF)…

Statoil to Decide on Scottish Floating Wind Farm in September

Norway's oil and gas firm Statoil plans to take the final investment decision in September on building a floating wind farm off the coast of Scotland, set to be the first of its kind in the world, a spokesman for the company said on Tuesday. Statoil, which has run a single floating offshore turbine for several years in Norway, is now planning to build five floating turbines, each with 6 megawatt capacity, off Aberdeen in an area where the water depth is around 100 metres.

New Management in Muir Matheson

Miros AS, a Norwegian leading global producer of oceanographic remote sensing equipment and advanced Met Ocean systems, acquired Aberdeen based Muir Matheson Ltd. on November 1, 2012 to strengthen the company’s presence in the oil and gas Market. Muir Matheson has supplied meteorological and oceanographic monitoring systems to the oil and gas and aviation industries for more than 30 years. A change in leadership of Muir Matheson has now taken place to enhance the integration process with Miros.

Significant Progress on Perth Wave Energy Project

Wave energy developer Carnegie Wave Energy Limited has provided an update on the recent progress of the Perth Wave Energy Project. Carnegie has made significant progress on the assembly and testing stage of the Perth Wave Energy Project in advance of the project’s final commissioning and operation phase. Noteworthy recent progress includes the completion of the offshore preparations in advance of the deployment of the CETO unit…

ROV Navigation Specialists CDL Taken Over by Teledyne

California-basedTeledyne Limited, has acquired Aberdeen, Scotland's C.D. Limited (CDL) a leading supplier of subsea inertial navigation systems and motion sensors for a variety of marine applications. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. CDL designs and manufactures a variety of sensors including gyrocompasses, attitude and heading reference systems, and inertial navigation systems. In particular…

Ocean Cleanup Prototype Set for a Test Run

The first ocean cleanup system ever tested at sea will soon be deployed for trials 23 kilometers (12 NM) off the Dutch coast. The goal of the test is to see how the floating barrier design is able to cope in extreme weather at sea during a 12-month period. The Ocean Cleanup, a Dutch foundation developing advanced technologies to rid the oceans of plastic, unveiled its North Sea prototype today in the presence of The Netherlands government…

Wachs Subsea Answers the Call for Chevron

When looking for an emergency preparedness system for the Gulf of Mexico and elsewhere, Chevron enlisted the aid of Wachs Subsea to create an automated pipeline repair system using Wachs Combination Prep Tool (CPT) as the key operational component. The design parameters included a machine that was lightweight so it could be transported by air, operational at depths to 3,000 meters (10,000 feet), and…

TE Subcom on the 'Open Cables' Model

TE SubCom’s “Open Cables” is a new business model that allows customers to select preferred Submarine Line Terminating Equipment (SLTE) line card supplier to create an interoperable and complementary dry and wet plant. SubCom will continue to offer and invest in its advanced SLTE product line, in addition to the new Open Cables alternative, to provide customers with ultimate flexibility. The Open Cables…

NOAA: End of Traditional Paper Nautical Charts

NOAA’s Office of Coast Survey, which creates and maintains the nation’s suite of over a thousand nautical charts of U.S. coastal waters, announced major changes ahead for mariners and others who use nautical charts. Starting April 13, the federal government will no longer print traditional lithographic (paper) nautical charts, but will continue to provide other forms of nautical charts, including print on demand charts and versions for electronic charting systems.

Balefire for SeaView ROV

Greensea Systems installed its ROV control system, Balefire, on a Saab Seaeye Falcon DR owned by SeaView Systems, Inc. SeaView supported NOAA earlier this summer in the multibeam survey of several shipwrecks in Thunderbay National Marine Sanctuary, Lake Huron, Michigan. To complete the survey, it was required that the vehicle be able to correlate navigation data and multibeam data accurately, hold…

Cortez Subsea Appoints New Operations Director

Subsea services and technology products company Cortez Subsea has appointed a new operations director, as the company looks to expand its scope internationally. Tony McKay has joined the company at a time of rapid growth as demand for their services is expected to increase following U.K. patent approval of their Modular Pipelay System (MPS). With more than 35 years of professional experience working onshore and offshore in the oil and gas industry…

HHI’s New Weather System Helps Plan Sea Trials

A new system has been developed by South Korean shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) to help better manage sea trial schedules for vessels built at its Ulsan yard. The new Sea Weather Forecasting System, developed by HHI in collaboration with Korea Institute of Ocean Science & Technology (KIOST), analyzes sea weather information such as wave height, wind speed and current patterns on an hourly basis in seven offshore areas including Ulsan…

Antarctic ROV to Help Researchers Prepare for Space Missions

The search for life on other planets starts on Earth, of course. In the summer of 2014 a team of scientists from the Georgia Institute of Technology headed to Antarctica to deploy Icefin - a 10-foot long, 12-inch diameter, 220 pound, first of its kind ROV - deep beneath the ice shelf. This mission, funded by NASA and supported by the National Science Foundation, was intended to prepare for potential future missions on Jupiter’s moon, Europa.

Marine Electronics – Sonar 3D Imaging Resolution Improved

Northstar Electronics, Inc. which previously signed a Letter of Intent to acquire Echotec Sonar, is announcing improvements in Echotec's sonar image quality. Echotec Sonar, through new techniques in sonar engineering, has recently made breakthroughs which have improved sonar image resolution levels by a measurable amount. The company has found a way to bring quality to a level where it is significantly better than the diffraction limit would normally allow.

Partnership Seeks New Tidal Sensor Technologies

Canadian and British researchers will join forces to collaborate on two projects in developing new sensing technologies for tidal energy applications. The two projects, with a combined value of $1.43 million, were selected for funding through a joint research competition managed and funded by the Offshore Energy Research Association, a Nova Scotia Based not-for-profit research group, and Innovate UK, a government funded business and innovation accelerator out of the UK.

Smarter Ocean Robotics

It is evident by now that we are in a robotics revolution. In almost every industry, from healthcare to hospitality, robots are emerging that can successfully complete a task without the human element. Artificial intelligence (AI) is also advancing at phenomenal rates beyond what some imagined possible this decade. The marine sectors have embraced robotics in data collection and exploration, but the…

New Wave Generators for Indonesian Hydrodynamic Lab

Bosch Rexroth said it has been awarded a contract to install two electrical wave generator systems for Indonesian Hydrodynamic Laboratory (IHL), an advanced research laboratory of BPPT (The Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology). The new systems will replace the original hydraulic system supplied by Rexroth 25 years ago. IHL has sophisticated facilities, including experimental tanks, for testing many types of ocean vessels.

Boston Engineering Opens UUV Office at UMass

Boston Engineering Corporation has opened an office at the ATMC of the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, 151 Martine Street, Fall River, MA, where it will incubate projects emphasizing maritime activities, such as its ground-breaking technology with unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs). The site is adjacent to South Watuppa Pond and very close to the ocean, making it ideal for conducting UUV tests.