Strategic Alliance Formed for Global AUV Services

By Caroline Rees / 09 Nov 2021
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Ocean Floor Geophysics Inc. (OFG) and DOF Subsea AS (DOF) have formed an alliance for Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) services to the global offshore industry, leveraging the companies’ collaboration in the development of the OFG AUV non-contact integrated Cathodic Protection (iCP) inspection system and allowing the sharing of resources on several pipeline inspection and geohazard surveys. The alliance will also provide the framework for a coordinated response to the demand for AUV surveys.

DOF OFG AUV

OFG’s iCP technology delivers greater efficiencies during AUV pipeline and infrastructure inspections by allowing for anomalies and the overall system health check to be analyzed in near real-time offshore. Its miniaturized electronics also simplify integration and deployment on light logistics AUVs, Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) and shallow water active towfish for pipeline, cable, structure and umbilical inspection.

“Since our first project together in 2018 to prove the iCP technology on an AUV pipeline inspection survey, we have found that there is a clear alignment between our two companies in performing safe operations and providing the highest quality data in the market,” said Marco Sclocchi, EVP of DOF North America. “This alliance will also enhance the global footprint of both DOF and OFG through the coordination of asset utilization enabling us to expand our existing operations.”

Matthew Kowalczyk, CEO of OFG added: “DOF Subsea has a proven track record of performing AUV pipeline inspections around the globe and the introduction of iCP into the AUV market removes the final barrier for fully autonomous inspections. We have already worked together to successfully deploy the iCP systems on AUV and ROV projects for major oil and gas operators across three continents and we are excited to continue our work with DOF Subsea to build on this offering.”

The shared resources will provide the alliance with a full suite of specialized sensors such as a CathX laser and photogrammetry system and HiSAS synthetic aperture sonar on top of the standard sensors capable of performing geophysical and pipeline inspection surveys.

The partnership will also allow both companies to better serve and expand their client bases in the offshore energy and seabed mining industries with an emphasis on safety, data quality and increased autonomy.

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Posted by Caroline Rees Caroline co-founded Unmanned Systems Technology and has been at the forefront of the business ever since. With a Masters Degree in marketing Caroline has her finger on the pulse of all things unmanned and is committed to showcasing the very latest in unmanned technical innovation. Connect & Contact