Offshore Marine Managment has announced that it is developing a
bespoke, remotely-operated underwater survey and inspection
platform.
Offshore Marine Management has announced that it is developing a
bespoke, remotely-operated underwater survey and inspection
platform. Following identification of a requirement for an
integrated vehicle to perform survey and inspection of assorted
assets from depths of up to 100m, through the intertidal zone to
drying heights, OMM have conceived a unique approach to a problem
which would usually require the deployment of multiple conventional
ROV and diving spreads.
OMM has approached this problem from the perspective of a
customer who wishes to minimise not only project costs but also
risks. This, coupled with the ethos of producing a solution that is
tailored to the task rather than employing an existing
underutilised asset, has led OMM to develop an integrated vehicle
which is capable of working both dry and submerged.
The vehicle is a four wheel drive, all terrain crawler which
acts as a platform for conventional survey sensors and also has the
facility to carry an onboard ROV. With full independent suspension
supporting each drive system, the crawler is designed to provide
the optimum platform for the onboard sensors. These will be used to
track and survey both route corridors as well as fixed assets,
including pipelines and cables. The ROV is also available to be
remotely deployed for additional inspection of hazards, areas of
particular interest or offshore installations which can be reached
in a single journey from the shore.
Accurate positioning of the combined system is achieved using
multiple technologies which ensure continuous navigation data is
available, even through the harsh intertidal zone.
Rigorous design criteria were developed and adhered to during
development, ensuring that the crawler platform will be capable of
working in currents in excess of three knots, across all types of
seabed terrain from soft sands, subsea obstacles to bedrock and up
to 40° slopes.
System deployment to point of mobilisation will be achieved
using a single HGV. From there, it may be loaded onto any vessel of
opportunity from a multicat to a DP 2 vessel. Use of a crane based
LARS ensures little or no modification of a host vessel is
required, whilst control and monitoring will be undertaken from a
standard ROV control van. The platform will be operated
using a bespoke software system which will provide both ROV and
crawler control.
The all inclusive capabilities of this single package are
designed to offer customers significant cost savings when compared
with the use of multiple conventional packages to meet the survey
and inspection requirements of key assets.
With flexibility being a keystone of the design specification,
positive feedback has already been received from Energy and
Telecommunications customers. The system is scheduled for delivery
in 2012 and, commenting on the development, OMM's Director of
Survey & Subsea, Arron Burrows said:
"Importantly, this hybrid solution will remove the need for
multiple vehicle mobilisations as is currently commonplace in the
offshore environment. We believe that many operators will therefore
see this as a cost-effective solution, avoiding the need for
additional equipment and personnel. It will also be small enough to
be easily-transported within a multicat or dynamic-positioning
(DP)
vessel, yet remains highly adaptable and high-powered."
"As offshore work ramps up around the UK coastline, the need for
such a vehicle is increasing almost by the day. However, rather
than rush through a quick-fix solution we've taken great care to
ensure that the vehicle will be useful for many years to come. Once
the production and testing stages are complete, we expect it to be
available for customers to use from Q3 in 2012."
"OMM is also developing an innovative approach to expedite
seabed asset protection. This system will be available for use in
Q2 2012 and further details will be released in due course."