Page 36: of Marine News Magazine (October 2018)

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SPECIAL REPORT: TECH TRENDS

The Drones are Coming

Nimble and quick, unmanned aerial vehicles have evolved into a valuable tool for marine and offshore applications.

By Jim Romeo hen a U.S. oil tanker conducts a Critical Area a day. Not all personnel have to be lowered into the tank.

Inspection Plan (CAIP) as required by ABS, it is There’s no risk of items being dropped (and/or lost) in the

W an onerous process. For example, each tank re- tank, and the drone can easily go where it might be otherwise quires seven days of set up with scaffolding and staging. An dif? cult and dangerous for humans to survey within the tank.

ABS inspector and UDT technicians must access, and be carefully lowered into the tank with instrumentation and

Drones for Maritime Applications tools. Inspection points in far reaching places are surveyed.

Drones have arrived. Using a remote-controlled un-

Carried out in the traditional fashion, it can be a dif? cult, manned aerial vehicle (UAV) or drone, infrastructure in- dangerous, time consuming and expensive procedure. spections may be conducted easier, better and with less

Now, the same tanker is using drones to perform much of this function. A drone inspection can be conducted in about

Credit: DNV GL

October 2018

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