Retractable 3D Sonar System Used With Falcon ROV

Subsea Fenix has developed a retractable sonar system specially designed to set atop a Saab Seaeye Falcon ROV that was used to perform a detailed inspection of a reservoir dam in central Italy. Faced with the problem of mounting a BlueView 3D Sonar system high enough above the ROV to gather all-round images and avoid the vehicle’s chassis obstructing the scan, Subsea Fenix knew it would be impossible for the ROV to swim any distance top-loaded in this way.

Expro Celebrates 40 Years of Technology at OTC 2013

An international oilfield services company, Expro, is celebrating its 40th anniversary at this year’s Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) in Houston by showcasing its investment in new technology and innovation. As part of that commitment Expro is launching the proto-type HawkEye V downhole camera, new high pressure/high temperature (HP/HT) Drill Stem Testing (DST) BigCat  packer, and Expro Annulus operated Circulating and Test (ExACT) tool.

Underwater Center Names ROV Op'ns Manager

New role created to develop ROV training and trials portfolio. The Underwater Centre, has appointed Steve Cullen to the newly created role of ROV Operations Manager, where he will lead the development of the Centre’s ROV training and trials activities. He joins the Centre from Ashtead Technology and Subsea 7 where he took up similar training roles, with responsibility for ROV personnel’s technical and engineering training.

The Black Sea is a Goldmine of Ancient Genetic Data

When Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) marine paleoecologist Marco Coolen was mining through vast amounts of genetic data from the Black Sea sediment record, he was amazed about the variety of past plankton species that left behind their genetic makeup (i.e., the plankton paleome). The semi-isolated Black Sea is highly sensitive to climate driven environmental changes, and the underlying…

DNV Release 'Safeti Offshore' Software

DNV Software launches a software solution for offshore risk analysis of offshore structures in challenging environments. Harsher environments, life extension and more demanding regulatory and business requirements are some of the challenges the offshore industry faces. However, a complete software tool to evaluate the full range of potential hazards and associated risks has until now not been available.

TE Connectivity Keeping the Offshore Connected

TE Connectivity (TE) features its latest cable solutions for signal, optics & power applications at Houston's Offshore Technology Conference (OTC). The following products are on display at OTC until the expo concludes on 9, May 2013. TE's Rochester Offshore Oil Production Cables – Our extensive range of armored electro-optical cables is designed to deliver superior performance for subsea plow and trencher systems, and features sustainability to high loads.

Sonar Systems Help Search Teams, Scientists and Salvors

A variety of sonar systems are now being used by law enforcement and public safety dive teams, universities and salvage companies for recovery operations, subsea surveys and marine research. Sonars produce almost photographic images of the underwater environment regardless of water clarity. Side scan sonar can sweep several hundred feet of ocean, lake, or river bottom in one pass of the boat allowing large areas to be searched or surveyed quickly.

Golden Pass Announce Agreement to Export Gas to U.K.

Golden Pass Products LLC (GPP) affiliates Qatar Petroleum International (QPI) and ExxonMobil signed a framework agreement for the proposed liquefaction project at the Sabine Pass, Texas terminal. The agreement establishes a commercial framework to sell up to the full 15.6 million metric ton annual (MTA) output of the Golden Pass Products liquefaction project and provide shipping and sales opportunities to existing and new markets…

Njord Odin Completes Sea Trials

Njord Odin, the first of a series of advanced 26m windfarm support vessels (WSV) for Njord Offshore, has completed sea trials, designer BMT Nigel Gee announced. Developed from BMT’s range of WSVs, these are the largest BMT-designed vessels built to date. Built by Strategic Marine, Njord Odin is also the first to be fitted with a quadruple installation of the Volvo Penta IPS system, with the forward-facing, twin counter-rotating propellers and individually steerable pods under the hull.

Two New HD ROVs for Brandon Bordelon

Bibby Subsea, Bibby Offshore’s Houston-based division, has commissioned two HD work-class ROVs (Remote Operated Vehicles) designed by FMC Technologies Schilling Robotics. Capable of operating at depths of up to 3000m. These underwater vehicles will be working in the Gulf of Mexico on Bibby Subsea’s new U.S. Flagged Jones Act compliant vessel, the Brandon Bordelon. The HD ROVs are scheduled for delivery in the second Quarter of 2015.

MacArtney, EMS Formalize Partnership

MacArtney informs it has signed a representative agreement with its long standing business partner, EMS Sistemas de Monitorización Medio Ambiental in Barcelona, to promote and support MacArtney across all Spanish and Portuguese marine related markets. According to MacArtney, the moves comes as part of an ongoing push to provide global access with local support to its solutions in all key underwater technology markets.

Metrol Boosts Efficiency with Miko Magnets

Metrol Technology disclosed that it developed a subsea tool from the technology of Miko pipe magnets. The company said it is currently gaining cost and time benefits through having perfected the use of powerful permanent magnets when positioning instrumentation on seabed structures. Most Metrol products are the result of advanced research and innovative technology but it only took some alert lateral…

Trimble to Distribute Teledyne's PDS Software

A new agreement will see Trimble distribute a branded version of Teledyne's PDS software package for hydrographic survey, construction and dredging operations—Trimble Marine Construction Software. The software provides measurement and positioning to improve marine construction efficiency and safety. According to Trimble, its Trimble Marine Construction Software expands its portfolio and extends its…

Kraken Assists Search for 1845 Arctic Shipwreck

Kraken Sonar Systems Inc. announced its collaboration with numerous organizations, using advanced underwater technology, to locate the historic ships of the ill-fated 1845 Franklin Expedition. For more than 150 years, Canadian Arctic voyages that venture out to discover the fate of the expedition have improved awareness of one of the most merciless environments. The 2014 Victoria Strait Expedition is the most ambitious to date…

MacArtney Supplies ROTV for CSIRO

MacArtney has supplied a TRIAXUS remotely operated towed underwater vehicle (ROTV) to the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO), Australia's national science agency. The TRIAXUS underwater vehicle will be utilized on Australia’s Marine National Facility research vessel, the Investigator. This instrument will be used in a diverse range of oceanographic research activities.

The World’s Cold Ocean Lab

Those were the words of Newfoundland and Labrador Premier, Hon. Paul Davis, at a recent address announcing a $4.9 million investment by Fugro GeoSurveys – a leading geoscience company with a corporate history of more than 50 years – in collaboration with the Research & Development Corporation of Newfoundland and Labrador (RDC) to operate a new Arctic-class vessel, with research and development capabilities, in the province’s waters in 2017.

Teledyne Optech to Bring Bathymetry Solutions to OI

Teledyne Optech announced that it will be taking its most powerful and flexible surveying tools to London, England for Oceanology International 2016 on March 15-17. Members of Teledyne Optech’s science and engineering team will be at stand F100 to explain the full capabilities of these tools and show how they can help governments, businesses and researchers to monitor the coastal environment quickly and accurately.

TRDI’s Explorer DVL Selected for OceanServer Iver AUVs

Teledyne RD Instruments’ (TRDI) Explorer Doppler Velocity Log (DVL) has been specified by OceanServer to provide precision navigation onboard their IVER2 and IVER3 Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs). OceanServer has recently placed an order for 10 Teledyne RDI Explorer DVL products, bringing the total number of DVLs ordered for IVER systems to 22. The Explorer DVL provides a navigation solution for small underwater platforms such as IVER AUVs…

Unmanned Surface Vessels

In recent years, the proliferation of unmanned surface vessels deployed for hydrographic missions has mushroomed as the collaborative effects of propulsion, software and sensor technologies has cumulatively made these vessels, large and small, more capable for a multitude of missions. In this edition, and on the heels of the Ocean Business exhibition last month in Southampton, Marine Technology Reporter examines recent developments.

SoCal Tech Focus: Planck Aerosystems

Planck Aerosystems builds unmanned aerial systems (UAS) for maritime professionals. Based in San Diego, Planck was founded on the idea that putting an aircraft on every boat would represent a transformational change to maritime industry through improved data acquisition, situational awareness and safety. Planck has built the technology to make the dream of putting a drone on every boat a reality. Founder…