Kongsberg to Deliver Ocean Observatories for Seabed Research

CAGE, Centre for Arctic Gas Hydrate, Environment and Climate has selected Kongsberg Maritime to develop and deliver two ocean observatories. The observatories will be deployed off the coast of Svalbard (Norwegian islands in the Arctic Ocean) during 2015, to monitor methane leaks from the seabed. The contract for this project was signed October 6, 2014. The observatories will be self-contained, advanced autonomous sensor systems with a range of different sensors integrated.

BIRNS Invests in Testing, Inspection Equipment

BIRNS, Inc. informs it has recently invested in new equipment for the development and testing protocols for its range of connectors and cable assemblies. The investment, which BIRNS said is to meet the needs of the ever-increasing levels of precision that are required in the applications of the company’s wide customer base, will see the NAVSEA PRO-020 certified global subsea design and manufacturing company add two new precision inspection machines to its engineering and testing programs.

Stevens Receives Port Grant to Bolster Coastal Resiliency

Stevens Institute of Technology has received a five-year, $6.6 million research grant from the Port Authority of New York/New Jersey (PANYNJ) to improve preparedness and resiliency at critical Port Authority infrastructure sites through an innovative observation and forecast system that provides information on the potential risk and magnitude of overland flooding prior to and during significant storm events.

Underwater Vehicles Conference Set for November

The latest subsea technologies and adaptations developed in response to increasingly challenging market conditions will be among the topics under the spotlight at Subsea UK’s 2017 Underwater Vehicles Conference set for November 21 in Aberdeen. Formerly known as the Subsea UK ROV Conference, the event will welcome experts from across the industry to discuss a range of subjects including the global cost challenges…

MacArtney Winch for Chinese Research Vessel

MacArtney delivered a MERMAC R40 RA winch to the Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan, China. The order was realized in close cooperation with SeaTech China in its role as exclusive MacArtney product and system representative on the Chinese market for underwater technology. The winch was procured with support from the 863 state high tech research and development plan and will be installed…

Canada Embarks on Arctic Survey Mission

Canada has launched its 2016 Arctic expedition to collect important scientific information to support the nation’s submission on the extended continental shelf in the Arctic Ocean. This year’s survey is a collaborative effort with Sweden, and Danish scientists will also participate in the research. The Canadian icebreaker CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent left Dartmouth on July 22, 2016, for Tromsø, Norway…

New Remotely Operated Hydrographic Survey Boat

Teledyne Oceanscience has introduced a new remotely operated hydrographic survey boat suited for inland waters such as streams, rivers and lakes. The new trimaran style Z-Boat 1250 is “sturdy enough for tough terrain but light enough to be one person portable,” according to Teledyne. The vehicle has a lightweight hull manufactured from acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) plastic, and is IP67 rated, which makes it well suited to survey in most water conditions.

MTR100: Teledyne Oil & Gas (PART II)

Mike Read is the President of Teledyne Oil & Gas, a division of Teledyne Technologies and a group he formed six years ago. MTR caught up with Read on the occasion of the MTR100 to discuss his corner of the Teledyne world and how it is faring in the subsea sector. I know your group well, but in your own words can you give us a description of the group that you lead? I created this team six years ago on the first of August. I was originally the president of ODI – Ocean Design, Inc.

Sunken WWI Battleship HMS Hampshire Surveyed

A secret mission to persuade Tsar Nicholas II of Russia to stay in the First World War failed when Britain’s Secretary of State for War Lord Kitchener and over 700 sailors died in the sinking of the warship HMS Hampshire after it hit a mine off the Orkney Isles. Now 100 years later, a Saab Seaeye Falcon underwater robotic system operated by Roving Eye Enterprises examined the wreck in a collaborative project that includes the University of the Highlands and Islands Archaeology Institute…

NSRI: Project Director Sought

The National Subsea Research Initiative (NSRI) says it is recruiting a director to drive market-led research and technology development in the subsea industry. The subsea focused technology research arm of Subsea UK is seeking to replace current project director, Dr. Gordon Drummond, who is returning to Subsea 7 following his three year secondment to NSRI. NSRI facilitates and coordinates research and development activities within the U.K.’s subsea sector.

Custom ROV Solution for Stinger Technology

Stinger Technology AS has taken delivery of a customized Seaeye Falcon ROV to be used for offshore subsea operations under a contract awarded by Dong Energy. The assignment includes environmental sampling and inspection inside the oil storage tank of the Siri platform. Siri is located in block 5604/20 in the north-western part of Denmark’s North Sea sector, about 220 kilometers off the Danish coast. Production on the Siri platform first started in 1999.

What's New in Floating Production Systems?

What’s New in October? 324 oil/gas floating production units are now in service, on order or available for reuse on another field. FPSOs account for 65% of the existing systems, 78% of systems on order. Production semis, barges, spars and TLPs comprise the balance. The oil/gas production floater inventory is the same as last month. There were no orders for additional production systems in September. Another 30 floating LNG processing systems are in service or on order.

Global Navy Power & Changing Paradigm of Submarine Programs

Technology and dynamic mission profiles have driven change in the defense industry, Hydro Group Plc Managing Director Doug Whyte, explores the changing paradigm of submarine programs, an evolving market he has experienced first-hand, with over 30 years at the helm of his own innovative subsea design and manufacturing group. My original business partner, Mike Redstone, previously worked for Vickers Slingsby which was involved quite extensively with the Ministry of Defense (M.O.D.).

PLSV Delivered to TechDof Brasil

DOF Subsea and Technip, through 50/50 owned affiliate TechDof Brasil AS, have taken final delivery of the pipe-lay support vessel (PLSV) Skandi Açu. The vessel commenced as per commitment on August 13, 2016 its eight-year charter contract with Petrobras. It is the first of four PLSVs fixed on long-term charters with Petrobras which were awarded to the joint venture between DOF Subsea and Technip in August 2013.

Sensors Track Gulf of Mexico's Nitrate Pulse

A new U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) report describes how advanced optical sensor technology is being used in the Mississippi River basin to accurately track the nitrate pulse to the Gulf of Mexico. Excessive springtime nitrate runoff from agricultural land and other sources in the Mississippi drainage flows into the Mississippi River and downstream to the Gulf of Mexico. This excess nitrate contributes to the Gulf of Mexico hypoxic zone…

MTR100: Kraken

Kraken Sonar Systems Inc. is a world leader in advanced sonar and sensor technology. Kraken’s AquaPix has set a new standard for high-speed, high-resolution underwater imaging. The system provides both high resolution seabed imagery and 3D bathymetry with a spatial resolution of 3 cm and swath widths of 600 meters. Kraken Sonar Inc. is a marine technology company engaged in the design, development…

Norway's Rising Subsea Stars

While Norway is down (courtesy of a two-year oil and gas slump) it certainly is not out. The Norwegian maritime and subsea pedigree extends centuries, and despite a momentary bump in the aquatic road, William Stoichevski uncovers some Rising Subsea Stars. The merging in May of installation and equipment giants Technip and FMC into TechnipFMC eclipsed some news, so you might have missed the brilliance of wellhead, tubular and downhole stars shining from the depths.

'PowerBuoy' Deployed off New Jersey Coast

Press Release - Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. (OPT) has deployed its APB350 A1 PowerBuoy approximately 14 miles northeast of Atlantic City, N.J. Real-time performance and weather data will be collected and transmitted to OPT's monitoring and analysis center at its corporate headquarters in Pennington, N.J. According to OPT, the APB350 A1 contains an improved Power Takeoff (PTO) system compared to the APB350 that was deployed in 2011 in connection with the U.S.

Scripps' San Diego Advantage

Margaret Leinen, Director, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego, shares her insights with MTR regarding the internationally regarded institution and it’s Southern California roots. Can you share with MTR the history of why you are located here in the San Diego area? The story of Scripps Institution of Oceanography started early in the 20th century when UC Berkeley biologist William Ritter visited San Diego and connected with the Scripps family…

Teledyne Impulse: Making Connections in San Diego

Teledyne Impulse designs and manufactures high-reliability electrical and optical interconnection systems and connectors for a broad range of harsh environment applications. According to General Manager, Ray Hom, the company’s products are proven performers in the most demanding applications, which include oceanographic exploration, defense, oil and gas production, nuclear systems, and spacecraft and launch vehicles.