Underwater Engineering News

Kongsberg Maritime AS has signed an agreement to sell its underwater technology subsidiary company Hydroid, Inc. for $350 million to shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII). In conjunction with the transaction, HII and Kongsberg Maritime are also establishing a strategic alliance to jointly market naval and maritime products and services to the U.S. government market and potentially to global markets.Kongsberg Maritime acquired Hydroid for USD 80 million in 2007 and is now selling this US subsidiary for USD 350 million on a debt-free and cash-free basis and as adjusted off an agreed upon working capital."Kongsberg Maritime has driven technology development and created considerable value during the 12 years it has owned Hydroid, and we are capitalizing on this now.

California-based Blue Robotics announced its newest product, the Ping360 Scanning Sonar, which offers small remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROVs) the ability to navigate in low visibility water conditions.The Ping360 is a mechanical scanning sonar – it uses a small acoustic transducer mounted on a motor that rotates it in one-degree increments.As it rotates, it transmits and receives acoustic pulses to build a 360-degree image of the surroundings. This is similar to laser scanners and LIDARs used for ground robotics and autonomous cars but using sound waves instead of light.When mounted on a remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV)…

UK-based marine services company Briggs Marine Contractors (BMC) has been awarded a framework agreement for the underwater inspection and maintenance of SSE Hydro and thermal power generation sites.Under the contract, the company will provide services throughout Scotland and the United Kingdom for three years.The Briggs Marine Dive Team, who are approved for in-water inspection by ABS, Lloyds Register, and DNV-GL, has extensive experience working in remote and challenging locations and will be bringing their collective skills and knowledge to this contract by delivering a sustainable and cost effective solution to the client.Craig English…

The global unmanned underwater vehicles (UUV) market was around USD 2.92 billion in 2018 and is expected to reach approximately USD 7.64 billion by 2025, at a CAGR of slightly above 14.91% between 2018 and 2025.The global unmanned underwater vehicles market is growing, owing to its rising applications in the defense and military sector, scientific research applications, and commercial purposes, said a report from Zion Market Research.Unmanned underwater vehicles (UUV), also referred to as underwater drones, are vehicles that can operate underwater without any kind of human interference.The rising demand for these vehicles in navel applications for safety and security purposes is another major factor driving the unmanned underwater vehicles market growth.

Tenaris has pushed the limits of its high pressure/high temperature (HP/HT) technology, and through precision in execution in testing, delivery, running and expert services, generated outstanding results for its work on Total’s Culzean project.According to the supplier of tubes and related services for the world's energy industry and certain other industrial applications the Culzean gas field is located in the challenging waters of the North Sea, about 145 miles off the coast of Aberdeen.The field began production in June and is anticipated, at peak, to provide five percent of the United Kingdom’s gas demand.Tenaris supplied TenarisHydril Blue Max and TenarisHydril Blue Heavy Wall connections…

Trident, a subsidiary of Wärtsilä, is strengthening its underwater-related servicing capabilities with the opening of a new diving center facility in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates. This expansion into a major global shipping region will enhance Wärtsilä’s ability to serve its  customers with underwater repairs, refurbishments and maintenance. The UAE center became fully operational in February 2019.Wärtsilä already has strong underwater servicing capabilities in Europe through its acquisition of the Trident Group in February 2018…

The marine technology company Kraken Robotics has received $1.7 million purchase orders from Ocean Infinity for the AquaPix Synthetic Aperture Sonar (SAS) sensors and support.According to a press note from the provider of software-centric sensors and underwater robotic systems, product delivery is expected during Q1 and Q2, 2019. This is the second set of purchase orders from Ocean Infinity under an initial master agreement contract announced in Q3 2017.Oliver Plunkett, President and CEO of Ocean Infinity said, “We are very pleased to add additional Kraken technology to our suite of latest generation tools with the order of further AquaPix SAS sensors for our AUV fleet.

Recently Hydrex carried out six stern tube seal operations all across Europe in a very short time span.Here is a review of two of the repairs: In Flushing the four damaged seals of a 268-meter container vessel were replaced underwater with our flexible mobdock technique. In Antwerp a seal operation was performed on a trimmed 185-meter general cargo ship. Both repairs were carried out in cooperation with the OEM.Repair in stages to fit the ship’s scheduleBecause the container vessel had a very tight schedule, Hydrex proposed to carry out preparatory work during an earlier stop in Dunkirk.

In the 1870 Jules Verne classic "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea", underwater explorer Captain Nemo predicted the mining of the ocean floor's mineral bounty - zinc, iron, silver and gold.India is catching up with that only now, as it prepares to unearth treasures down below, aiming to boost its economy.The floor of the world's seas is scattered with vast beds of black potato-shaped polymetallic nodules comprising copper, nickel, cobalt, manganese, iron and rare earth elements.These natural goodies are key to making modern gadgets…

French cable company Nexans said that  it has been awarded a full turnkey contract worth more than $113m  for the manufacturing, delivery and installation of 350 kV HVDC submarine cable in the Philippines.Nexans has been awarded a full turnkey contract for the submarine link of the Mindanao-Visayas Interconnection Project (MVIP) launched by National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP).To optimise the delivery of the submarine cabling system for the MVIP to connect the three power grids of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao into one unified national grid, Nexans will leverage on its global manufacturing footprint.The 350 kV submarine MI cable will be manufactured in Nexans' Nippon High Voltage Cable Corporation plant in Futtsu, Japan as well as in Nexans Norway plant in Halden.

Teledyne Bowtech, which specializes in the design and manufacturing of underwater vision systems, announced the supply of modified LED-V-Series deep water lamps for installation on board Triton submarines for the Five Deeps Expedition, a collaboration between investor and explorer Victor Vescovo of Caladan Oceanic, Triton Submarines and EYOS Expeditions.Teledyne Marine, which is is a collaboration of undersea technology product brands assembled by Teledyne Technologies, said in a press release that after three years of intensive efforts from some of the world’s leading oceanographers, submarine engineers, and scientists, the Five Deeps…

Leslie Controls, part of the Thermal Fluid Division of Circor International,  has been awarded a $5.65 million-dollar contract to provide valves to the United States Navy for ten Block V Virginia-class submarines.The a worldwide manufacturer of valves for the power generation, industrial, marine and oil and gas markets for over a century said that with authorization to begin material acquisition immediately, the schedule calls for delivering two shipsets worth of equipment each year for the next five years.Florida-based Leslie Controls’ early procurement strategies for material consolidation will aid the customer in realizing economies and savings for the program.“Leslie Controls’ relationship with the U.S.

The Indian Navy has inducted a Submarine Rescue System with a Deep Submergence Rescue Vessel (DSRV) along with associated equipment.According to a government press release, this system has a side scan sonar for locating the position of the submarine in distress at sea, providing immediate relief by way of posting Emergency Life Support Containers with the help of Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) and thereafter rescuing the crew of the submarine using the DSRV itself.In a submarine accident, rapidity of response is most crucial to safety of life. To ensure early mobilisation, the System has been procured in a Flyaway configuration which…

Technology group Wärtsilä said it has acquired Spanish underwater services provider Burriel Navarro, S.L.Burriel Navarro, which performs a range of underwater work, including inspection, repair and hull cleaning from Spain's main ports, will be part of Trident, a company Wärtsilä acquired in early 2018.Wärtsilä said the Burriel Navarro acquisition further supports the growth of its underwater services and expands the company’s local presence in the European market – from developing…

UTEC, a global surveying company in subsea services group Acteon, recently commissioned its new launch and recovery system (LARS) for the fleet of seven autonomous underwater vehicles (AUV) it uses for seabed surveys in the oil and renewables industries.UTEC’s new LARS is a floating garage that enables an AUV to be launched and recovered without needing a small boat, thereby simplifying operations and improving safety. It also increases efficiency and reduces costs by enabling AUV surveys in parallel with construction or laying activities, as the LARS can be deployed from the same work vessel.The LARS will see its first use on a pipeline…

Belgian dredging, environmental and marine engineering group Dredging, Environmental and Marine Engineering NV (DEME)'s Board of Directors announced that with effect from January 1, 2019 Luc Vandenbulcke will succeed Alain Bernard as the company’s CEO.Bernard started working for the group in 1980 and has been CEO of DEME since 2006. Over the past 12 years he transformed the group from a purely dredging organization into a diversified marine engineering group with operations worldwide.Under his leadership sales figures increased from €1.1 billion to €2.4 billion (2017), while DEME’s fleet became one of the most innovative and diverse in the industry.Luc Vandenbulcke (KU Leuven, civil engineer) has worked at DEME Group for the past 21 years.

Fugro has commenced a marine site characterization program at Iberdrola’s Baltic Eagle Offshore Wind Farm, in German waters of the Baltic Sea.Under a contract worth over €10 million ($11 million), Fugro will undertake a UXO survey to clear the investigation sites, followed by a geotechnical seabed investigation and borehole drilling. The workscope also includes a program of standard and advanced laboratory testing.The fieldwork takes place between August 2018 and February 2019 from Fugro vessels including the geophysical vessel Fugro Pioneer and geotechnical drilling vessel, Fugro Scout.

ABS announced it has issued the first “Concept Verified” Statement of Maturity to Stress Engineering Services (Stress) for its riser CBM program using Real Time Fatigue Monitoring System (RFMS) with Subsea Vibration Data Logger (SVDL) technology, and to LaserStream, LP (LaserStream) for its Bore Erosion Measurement and Inspection System (BEMIS).This is the second of five technology qualification stages to be completed by Stress and LaserStream for new technology that supports structural integrity evaluation and maintenance assessments of drilling risers.Successful completion of the “Concept Verified” stage follows requirements outlined…

Ocean Installer has been awarded a contract for 3rd Party Verification and Engineering Support work for the Liuhua 29-1 Gas Field Development located in the South China Sea.The work scope encompasses 3rd party verification of detailed design and subsea construction engineering, as well as various other support functions to the client’s engineering team.This is the company’s first job in China, and Ocean Installer will conduct the work as a subcontractor to COOEC Subsea Technology Co., Ltd., which is responsible for the deepwater SURF (Structures, Umbilicals, Risers, Flowlines) EPCI scope towards end-client Husky Oil China Ltd. Work has already begun…

Digital technology developed in Norway will help improve recovery from the Johan Castberg field in the Barents Sea.Equinor has awarded Alcatel Submarine Networks a contract for permanent reservoir monitoring (PRM), which in turn has signed a letter of intent with Nexans Norway AS for delivery of subsea cable.“PRM is a central element of the digital strategy for Johan Castberg and will be an important tool in improving the Johan Castberg recovery rate,” says Johan Castberg project director Knut Gjertsen.The technology is developed in Norway, and the contract is awarded by exercising an option in the framework agreement on PRM that we…

Aberdeen-based oil field technology firm Deep Casing Tools (DCT), which specialises in the design and manufacture of casing and completion tools, has agreed a pact with a Canadian distributor, ProTorque Connection Technologies (PTCT).The partnership with ProTorque, a tubular running service business, will see Deep Casing Tools re-enter the Canadian market, which historically was a successful region for the company.Deep Casing Tools previously had an office in Alberta, Canada, but during the more challenging times of the oil and gas industry downturn and a reduction in drilling activity, took the decision pull out of the region.Following…

Subsea 7 said Friday it has been awarded a contract from Nexen as part of the Buzzard Phase 2 Project, located approximately 55 kilometers off the northeast coast of Scotland. Subsea 7 said the contract is “sizeable”, between $50 million and $150 million.Subsea 7’s contract scope includes project management, engineering, procurement, construction and installation of a 5-kilometer pipeline bundle along with associated well and platform tie-ins, and provision of a heavy lift vessel for transport and installation of a new topside module.Project management and detailed engineering has commenced at Subsea 7’s office in Aberdeen. The pipeline bundle will be fabricated at Subsea 7’s Wester site near Wick, with technical support from Subsea 7’s specialist pipeline group in Glasgow.

Vessels’ repair needs do not always match with planned maintenance schedules. With specialist underwater teams, no vessel is far from fast, high-quality repair and refurbishment that enable operators to avoid the potential loss of income related to dry-docking.Technology group Wärtsilä offers marine service and maintenance, regardless of the vessel’s location. Maintenance and repair services performed by specialist divers add to Wärtsilä’s comprehensive service offering and allow for operators to minimize or eliminate vessel downtime.Late last year…