Page 48: of Offshore Engineer Magazine (Mar/Apr 2025)

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ROBOTICS INSPECTION, MAINTENANCE & REPAIR

Images courtesy Saab Seaeye

SAAB UK'S RECENTLY

RELEASED SEAEYE SR20

ROV IS DESIGNED WITH

USVS OR MINIMALLY

CREWED VESSELS IN MIND.

As the market shifts toward greater automation, we're seeing more emphasis on automating both data acquisition and data processing to deliver actionable insights quickly." – JON ROBERTSON,

MANAGING DIRECTOR, SAAB SEAEYE deliver actionable insights quickly. neer, The Americas. “And it appears that this is achievable

These advancements are helping to shape the future of for most tasks. Rigging, cutting, cleaning, NDT, reduction the IMR market by enabling more effcient, remote and of biofouling — this can all be achieved by smaller ROVs continuous operations.” with manipulators like Reach Robotics'.

Robertson says the SR20 has a high payload capacity “By using a one-man-portable ROV to effciently per- and can be quickly adapted to a variety of tasks whether form light intervention tasks, such as attaching lifting lead- it’s conducting detailed inspections, performing complex er lines or threading hydraulic couplers, we eliminate the maintenance work or handling heavy-duty repairs and need for divers in the water or the expense of a work class equipment. It can remain stable, even in strong currents, ROV and its support vessel.” to capture accurate data and perform precise interventions. Even where specifc force modulation, situational aware-

The SR20 also comes equipped with dual Seaeye eM1-7 ness or tooling requires a diver, these systems can be a force electric manipulators, and it will be compatible with sub- multiplier by preparing the areas or doing some prework, sea exchangeable tools in the future. not too dissimilar to a surgeon's assistant, he says. “And

Reach Robotics has released its new X7 subsea manipula- we're only on the cusp of what these systems can do. While tors which enable operators to execute dexterous interven- there may always be a need for divers in certain situations, tion operations that traditionally have been performed by if we can reduce that reliance by, say, 75%, we're eliminat- either divers or work class ROVs. “It seems many groups ing a material amount of human risk.” are trying to eliminate the risk and subsequent cost of hu- Oceaneering Product Manager Iain Wylie says the man divers in the water,” says Curtis Opsahl, Sales Engi- company’s Freedom AUV can hover and work in six de- 48 OFFSHORE ENGINEER OEDIGITAL.COM