Page 49: of Marine Technology Magazine (November 2006)

Revamped SV John

Lethbridge Launched

IXSEA recently completed work on the SV John Lethbridge on behalf of

Comex Deep Sea Salvage Limited (a wholly owned subsidiary of Subsea

Resources PLC). The refit was under- taken by H2X shipyard in coopera- tion with IXSEA and Comex SA. The vessel is currently in the Atlantic working on a number of projects including the MIRANDA project (4,500 tons nickel) and the Ella proj- ect (a 19th Century bullion cargo).

The survey ship is equipped with

IXSEA-fitted sonar equipment that is capable of surveying depths to 6,000 m as well as a Comanche Sub-

Atlantic ROV, which can reach simi- lar depths. The ROV has two work manipulators, HMI lights, digital cameras and flash and 100 kgf/ 200 lbf DC Thrusters.

The SV John Lethbridge is also equipped with an IXSEA positioning system including Posidonia USBL positioning system, PHINS 6000 subsea inertial navigation system and an OCTANS gyrocompass and full motion sensor. Comex SA, supervised the integration of the survey equip- ment with the ROV and also super- vised the refit of the salvage ship. The refit was carried out by H2X, ship- yard specialists in building, refitting and refurbishing oceanographic ships. This Mediterranean coast ship- yard has more than 10,000 sq.-m. facilities,1,500 m of quays with dry- docks, and up to 2,000 tons lifting capacity. The SV John Lethbridge will have a crew of 20 as well as a 10- person survey crew.

Acergy Expands

Capabilities

Schilling Robotics recently sold its ultraheavy-duty ROV system, the

UHD 09, to Acergy, a seabed-to-sur- face engineering and construction contractor for the offshore oil and gas industry. The system is based on

Schilling's standard UHD system, but incorporates features that are designed to enhance operational effi- ciency by allowing easy and flexible configuration for mission-specific tasks. The system will feature 150 shp and is rated for 3000-m opera- tion. This marks the ninth vehicle order in Schilling's UHD product line. Acergy's purchase in March 2006 of two Schilling Robotics UHD systems, UHD 07 and UHD 08, marked the beginning of a collabora- tion between Acergy and Schilling to produce a new fleet vehicle for

Acergy. Unlike the UHD 07 and 08 systems, however, the UHD 09 will be supplied without a tether manage- ment system (TMS). The vehicle will be specifically configured to support high-speed, low-noise, free-flying sur- vey systems. The ROV system will be installed on Acergy's new vessel, the www.seadiscovery.com Marine Technology Reporter 49 people & companies

Scuttlebutt scuttlebutt \SKUHT-l-\, noun: 1. A drinking fountain on a ship; often stocked with strong rum. 2. A cask on a ship that contains the day's supply of drinking water. 3. Gossip; rumor. That ensues after a few sips of the drink

Justin Manley (right) of Battelle (Duxbury, Mass.) and his wife Paula welcomed a daugh- ter, Rowan

Elizabeth, on

October 5. Justin reports that

AUVs are much easier to debug than infants. Brian Wilson, former- ly with Falmouth Scientific (Falmouth, Mass.) as of mid-

November is Customer Service

Manager at Hydroid, Inc. (Pocasset,

Mass.) Webb Research, located in the Falmouth Technology Park in

Massachusetts is expanding its facil- ity, doubling building size to 14,500 total square feet and they are looking for an Engineering

Manager as well as an Electronics

Technician. http://www.webbre- search.com/careers.htm.

Please send your Scuttlebutt items to:

Maggie Merrill at [email protected]

All items must be verifiable, brief, pre-press release and tasteful.

University of

Maine, Orono's addition to their research vessel fleet. (Photo

Credit: Maggie

Merrill)

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