Underwater Vehicles Conference

Transcription

1 Underwater Vehicles Conference Tuesday 21 st November 2017 Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre Exhibition Avenue Bridge of Don Aberdeen AB23 8BL

2 09:30 Registration/Bacon Rolls 10:00 Welcome and Scene Setting 10:10 Work-class ROVs are in use throughout the offshore energy industry primarily in support of construction activity for oil & gas infrastructure, windfarms, drill-support and operational support for maintenance modifications and operations (MMO). In this paper Westwood Global Energy set out the underlying drivers for the use of ROVs, the current state-of-play and the outlook going forward to 2021, taking data, forecasts and insight from the firm s World ROV Market Forecast, SECTORS platform and nearly three-decades of consulting in the ROV sector. Andrew Reid Managing Director Douglas- Westwood Ltd Andrew began his career with an oilfield supplies company before joining investment bankers Simmons & Company in Aberdeen. This was followed by a period with Ernst & Young where he specialised in energy industry mergers & acquisition work in addition to valuations, strategic reviews and corporate development projects. Andrew joined the board of Douglas- Westwood in 2007 and has since advised clients on deals totalling several billion dollars. Andrew holds an MA (Hons) in Economics & Political Science, and an MBA from the Aberdeen Business School, where he is now a Visiting Professor. 10:30 Digitalisation and Subsea Robotics Traditional offshore Oil and Gas developments face increasing competition not just from onshore and shale, but new entrants to the energy sector such as Solar City and Alphabet. These new entrants - known as digitally native companies - are better placed to take advantage of the 1.6 Trillion (source: World Economic Forum) value at stake from digitalisation. Ross Doak Subsea Engineer Shell This presentation aims to present the key links between competitive subsea projects and the implementation of digital in the form of Big Data, Analytics, Artificial Intelligence and Robotics. By doing so, the aim is to show how Autonomous and Hybrid Underwater Vehicles could evolve to enable subsea projects to deliver more competitive returns in the future. Ross Doak is a Subsea Engineer for Shell U.K. Limited and is part of the Shell s AUV Community Experts, and Robotics Strategic Alliance. He has worked on a variety of underwater vehicle and new technology developments in the United Kingdom, Brazil, Gulf of Mexico and Norway. He previously worked for Oceaneering Umbilical Solutions, specializing in investigating, developing and testing innovative solutions. Ross has a MEng in Robotics and Cybertronics from Heriot Watt University, Edinburgh.

3 10:50 The Development of a High Speed ROV Graeme Jaques Head of ROV Sales SMD Driven by the current industry price pressures causing operators to reduce costs by performing tasks faster and more efficiently, SMD have engineered an ROV system with a top speed of over 6Knots and the ability to hold position in currents of up to 4Knots from any direction. This performance makes it an ideal tool for reducing costs in areas such as seabed mapping and pipeline inspection where survey times could be reduced by 50% when compared to conventional work class ROV systems. The high speed ROV can also significantly extend operational window in areas of high currents often associated with the renewables market. Graeme graduated from the University of Liverpool with a Bachelor of Electronic Engineering degree specializing in telecommunications. He immediately joined the Racal group in 1991 as an Electronic Engineer and worked offshore on various international projects in the areas of precise positioning, seabed site investigations and pipeline and cable installation support and inspection. Using this experience Graeme performed various roles in the following years including project manager, technical manager, operations manager, survey division manager and base manager in countries throughout the Americas finally spending the last 15 years working in Brazil for Fugro as business development manager. Graeme returned to the UK in 2016 bringing with him 25 years of subsea survey and inspection experience to his new role as Head of ROV Sales for SMD based in Newcastle. 11:10 11:30 Coffee 11:30 New Generation DVLs for Underwater Vehicle Navigation The error sources associated with Doppler velocity log (DVL) based navigation are relatively extensive and have been well documented. Claire Cardy Director Nortek UK In order to improve the accuracy of DVL based navigation, Nortek has developed a new Doppler velocity log (DVL) which makes use of a novel bottom detection principle. This method improves the ability of the DVL to detect the bottom over a wider range of distances, either at close range or greater ranges. This advanced processing method achieves this estimating individual beam and ping Doppler measurement noise in real time, referred to as a Figure of Merit (FOM). In addition, to support these improvements further, the new DVL makes use of a more accurate timing reference of the velocity estimate, which improves synchronisation with timing references from inertial navigation systems (INS). Using the Kongsberg Maritime HUGIN autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) as a testbed, we present the sea trial results undertaken with our DVL. Our results show exceptional performance of the new DVL. The specified position error-drift target of 0.2% over time was exceeded by an order of magnitude in the trial suggesting that Nortek s new DVL is a highly accurate and viable alternative for high end state of the art underwater navigation.

4 Claire studied Oceanography at the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton. After graduating, she worked for several years for Fugro and BMT in metocean data analysis. During this period, Claire worked primarily on global offshore oil and gas projects, ranging from feasibility studies through to front end engineering design. Following this, Claire joined ABPmer to focus on numerical modelling of currents and waves for the UK marine renewables sector. Since joining Nortek in 2016, Claire has become increasingly involved in subsea navigation using DVLs and is responsible for managing sales and technical support within the UK. 11:50 HydroPACT 660, Teledyne Marine s Next Generation Pipe Tracker Solution With the HydroPACT 660, Teledyne Marine introduces the next generation pipe tracker solution specifically designed and suited for small electrical vehicles and AUVs where size and weight is of absolute importance. In a market where the entire supply chain is pushed on price, many applications are moving towards smaller platforms for cost saving reasons. For these applications, there is a requirement for a small form factor pipe tracker without giving way on the reliability and accuracy of the larger 440. Rolf Christensen Product Line Teledyne Marine Developed from the 440, the 660 is based on pulse induction technology which provides four major advantages over other systems when used for pipe and cable tracking or detection applications: It detects any type of conductive material including nonferrous metals such as brass, aluminium and light alloys. Terrestrial magnetism has no effect upon the system operation or its measurement accuracy. The system can measure and electronically compensate for the local conductive effects of the ROV, regardless of vehicle heading. Simplified operating procedures built into the system give it a high degree of measurement and stability. With the 660 achieving almost identical performance to the 440 but with a 70% weight reduction and a 60% size reduction, Teledyne Marine have set the bar for what is achievable with an observation class ROV or AUV. Together with the 440, Teledyne Marine now provide the most comprehensive portfolio for submarine pipe tracking solutions for all sizes of vehicles and ranging from shallow to deep water environments. Rolf Christensen is Product Line at Teledyne Marine managing the product portfolio for Teledyne TSS. He received a M.Sc. in Electronic Systems from Aalborg University in Denmark specialising in inertial navigation systems. After graduating university Rolf worked for 7 years at CDL in Aberdeen where his main focus was on inertial navigation solutions and motion reference systems. After having been

5 acquired by Teledyne Rolf moved into a Product Line role at Teledyne TSS where he has worked since June :10 Solving the Navigation and Communication Challenges for Shore Deployed, Shore Operated AUV Surveys Ioseba Tena Global Business Sonardyne International Ltd The weather window has been a dominant factor in limiting the use of AUVs in the North Sea. The launch and recovery phase of an AUV operation is typically the most delicate part of an AUV mission. The AUV needs to be recovered, often in the presence of swell and currents. To do so, the vessel used to operate the AUV, must manoeuvre within close proximity and fish the vehicle out of the water without damaging it or the vessel itself. As the sea state increases, it becomes more challenging to carry out this operation safely. At a certain sea state, this operation cannot be conducted. And so, in the North Sea, AUV operations are limited by the weather window during the summer months when the smaller sea states enable a successful and safe launch and recovery. Shore deployed AUVs can mitigate for this limitation as the AUV can be safely deployed and recovered in a sheltered environment. However, in order to successfully deploy from shore, developers needed to solve the navigation and communication challenges. The AUV needs to be able to accurately make its way from shore to the survey area and must be able to communicate with operators while in transfer, and when in the operations zone. Integrated inertial Navigation Systems and Doppler Velocity Logs can improve dead-reckoning performance to enable long distance deployments to sites already equipped with Long BaseLine (LBL) arrays, but it requires that the AUV surfaces for communication and limits the opportunities to communicate. In tandem with an Unmanned Surface Vehicle (USV) equipped with Ultra Short BaseLine (USBL), acoustic and free space optical telemetry, an AUV will be capable of reaching the operation area. The USV and AUC pair will maintain the same accuracy and improve the communications typically available when operating an AUV missing from a manned crew. This talk will explore the challenges and provide an overview of the technical solutions that have recently been demonstrated to meet them. Ioseba (Joe) Tena is tasked with shaping and growing Sonardyne s instrument business for marine robotic systems across all application domains including offshore energy, defence and ocean science. He works alongside his colleagues to ensure that clients operational requirements are completely satisfied through the delivery of low-risk, subsea technologies, products and services. He has been involved in developing smart solutions for the underwater vehicle industry for more than 15 years and continues to lend his engineering expertise to the team. 12:30 13:30 Lunch

6 13:30 Vehicles Innovation SCARJet Today s World Redefine the service delivery to meet the expectations of the market place with respect to safety, efficiency, innovation and ultimately cost. ESS is rising to this challenge within the trenching market with the introduction of SCARJet proven SCAR Seabed technologies. Dave McIntosh Product Development Ecosse Subsea Systems SCARJet has been designed, built and will be delivered to the market in Q incorporating the next evolutionary step change in jet trenching technology. The SCARJet innovation incorporates a unique ESS-developed water jetting technology (patent pending), which reduces the overall vehicle power requirements, increases jetting process efficiency and reduces the environmental impact of jet trenching operations beyond that currently available on the market today. The SCARJet vehicle is of a modular robust tracked design, incorporating a surface fed water delivery systems for the primary and secondary burial tooling arrangement, as well as using an innovative approach to generating low pressure (LP) backwash water from the high pressure (HP) water supply system. The vehicle has been primarily designed to complement the existing suite of SCAR technologies by having the unique capability of being able to track and jet trench within a plough formed trench, this has a multitude of operational advantages. SCARJet can also be utilised in a traditional tracked jet trenching mode on uncut seabed, therefore providing a unique offering to the market. The vehicle will be provisioned with 2m and 3m length main jetting swords incorporating high pressure (HP) and low pressure (LP) water delivery systems, a jetting stinger arrangement for product positioning and an energy optimising water containment system t improve jetting efficiency and reduce the environmental impact of jet trenching. Basic control motive power is provided for by a WROV docking interface, compatible with the most widely used WROV systems in service today, Logistically, the SCARJet system has been designed for compatibility with simple launch and recovery systems and procedures, such that smaller and readily available vessels can be utilised without the need for large construction vessels which would be typical of modern day jet trenching systems. This allows for rapid project mobilisation/demobilisation and overall reduction in project costs. In summary, the SCARJet system offers a new value-generating alternative trenching solution for the offshore renewables and oil and gas sectors. Dave McIntosh has over 18 years of subsea trenching experience ranging from operating trenching equipment to successfully managing a market leading trenching business unit. He has managed all aspects of jetting, cutting and ploughing operations on a worldwide basis extensively in the Renewables/Oil and Gas industries, culminating in an excellent understanding of both industries needs in relation to trenching operations. Dave is presently engaged with Ecosse Subsea Systems (ESS) as the Product Development responsible for the build and delivery to market of the ESS next generation jet trencher SCARJet.

7 13:50 Improvements in Offshore Trenching Royal IHC have recently produced a new range of cable trenchers with improved productivity, performance and cable protection features. The innovations cover the full range of seabed conditions and extend the usability of both ploughs and tracked trenching systems. The technical improvements will be presented along with the associated customer benefits which can be expected from this new generation of trenching assets. Ralph Manchester Subsea Products and Technical Royal IHC Ralph Manchester graduated from Newcastle University with a 1 st class honours degree in mechanical engineering in After becoming chartered he has spent the last 20 years developing a range of innovative products for the marine industry and is currently the Subsea Products Technical for Royal IHC ltd. 14:10 Innovative Approach to Reduce ROV Operating Costs and Improve Reliability At Light Speed! Maurice Fraser European Sales Focal Technologies The ongoing development of Deepwater ROVs and increased deployment of high bandwidth sensors has seen a significant increase in data communicated from the ROV back to the surface vessel via the ROV optical communication system. There has also been an increase in the amount of electrical energy required to power the ROV including additional tools and sensors. The optical communication link and power distribution system between the ROV and the support vessel are critical, if either is lost the ROV operation will grind to a halt, critical projects will be delayed and money is lost. Optical communication faults are typically diagnosed using an Optical Time Domain Reflectometer (OTDR), this test equipment is expensive, difficult to use in an offshore environment and requires trained engineers to interpret the results. When using an OTDR engineers will normally have to break into the optical communications system thereby losing all communication from the ROV data network, it is also very difficult to diagnose intermittent communication faults that may only be present at depth. One of the critical areas distributing electrical power to the ROV is through the slip rings fitted in the topside ROV umbilical winch and subsea Tether Management System. Presently there is no health monitoring of these slip ring components which makes it difficult to predict any potential failures. This presentation will outline the technical advances that Moog Focal engineers have taken to solve the challenges of monitoring the integrity of the optical communication system and the health of the electrical slip rings integrated into the ROV power distribution circuit. Having now solved these challenges offshore ROV engineers will have the ability to monitor the health of these critical systems in real time, quickly diagnose any potential problems and ultimately reduce expensive operational downtime. Maurice Fraser is the European Sales for Focal Technologies (a Moog company based in Nova Scotia, Canada) supporting their local sales channel partners and customers in the

8 region. Prior to this I was the Business Development for Moog Components Group managing specialist areas of the Oil & Gas and Renewable Energy Market in Europe. I spent 22 years in the Royal Air Force as an Aircraft Ground Engineer before embarking on a new career in the Subsea Industry in 2003 joining Tritech International Ltd as their Training & Commissioning Engineer then moving into senior commercial management roles within the company, Tritech was acquired by Moog in :30-14:50 Tea 14:50 Vehicles Innovation SHUTTLES SHUTTLE systems cut the capital cost and the operating cost of underwater vehicle systems by up to 90% and be more versatile. A SHUTTLE system can be operated from a much smaller surface vessel than an equally capable ROV system. An obvious cost saving, but also an opportunity for more vessels to get involved in supporting underwater operations. A SHUTTLE s payload can be tailored to suit complex scopes of work in a single dive. Saving time for a better return on effort in a limited weather window. Brian Abel Managing Director ALL OCEANS Engineering Ltd This presentation compares the capability and versatility of 6000m SHUTTLE system with a Work Class ROV system. One has an all up deck weight of 6Te and the other 60Te. Brian Abel is the owner and Managing Director of All Oceans Engineering. Founded in 1985 to provide engineering design and consultancy services to the Diving, ROV and Marine markets. Graduating in Aberdeen in 1976 he went on to develop his design and project management skills within a Unilever food producing business, then Dive System and Launch and Recovery System design with Seaforth Ocean Engineering, and latterly worked at Subsea Offshore where he was Dive Systems Engineering. All Oceans core specialisations are centred on Launch and Recovery, having delivered two 6000m systems. Tether Management Systems for any cable or ROV including the 6500m ISIS system. Underwater Winches and systems from 10kg to 65Te SWL, and off course the ground breaking AC-ROV and class leading hand carry 100m underwater inspection tool. Mini ROV production capability now extends to the proven 3000m Fly-out variation with its own TMS, and now the 6000m MAC-ROV system and SHUTTLE approach to versatile and affordable underwater discovery and development.

9 15:10 Dex-OS: Intelligent Telerobotic Control of Robot Arms Luke Wissmann Vice President BluHaptics Although fully-autonomous subsea operations are a sought-after ideal by many, there are many challenges in execution. Variable autonomy capabilities are here today and can offer immediate safety and operational benefits. BluHaptics has built a software platform, Dex-OS, that can be plugged into commercially available robot arms, replacing their existing proprietary controllers and offering simplified controls using a familiar gamepad with haptic feedback. Looking beyond simple direct control, whereas many companies are beginning to use special algorithms like machine learning, computer vision, and force feedback, Dex-OS will couple all of these capabilities into a single control loop allowing for tele-robotic abilities far greater than automation or manual control could achieve alone. A Dex-OS Software Development Kit (SDK) will enable engineering teams to introduce varying levels of automation with an intuitive user interface and that is integrated with their unique ROV configurations. As Vice President of business development and special programs for BluHaptics, Luke Wissmann is in charge of continuously assessing the company s technology to identify application development opportunities and matching those opportunities with the needs of BluHaptics stakeholders. In this role he works to build programs and partnerships with organisations that are interested in enhancing the safety and efficiency of their robotics operations. Prior to joining BluHaptics, Wissmann was Vice President of business development and sales at OceanGate Inc., which provides manned submersible assets and expertise for commercial, research and military applications. At OceanGate, Wissmann was responsible for identifying business growth strategies for small manned submersible services with the U.S. Department of Defence and science and adventure tourism markets. He was also the program architect and manager for the design, build, test and certification of OceanGate s 4000-meter, 5-man submersible for adventure travel and defence businesses. Over a six-year period, Wissmann held several management positions at Sikorsky Aircraft, including manager of business operations for the International Defence Systems and Services group, and manager of the International Product Support estimating team. He led the proposal effort for the Sikorsky-Lockheed team s VH-92 U.S. Presidential Helicopter program, whose efforts resulted in a multi-billion-dollar contract win and earned his team the Igor Sikorsky President s Award. Prior to working at Sikorsky, Wissmann served as a vehicle systems engineer at Ford Motor Company, was a consultant to General Motors on the value of automated safety technologies and was a product and process quality specialist at United Technologies Aerospace Systems. Wissmann co-authored the book Value Driven Product Planning and Systems Engineering, and also co-authored The Implications of Product Architecture on the Firm. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in industrial engineering and a Master s of Science degree in engineering from the University of Illinois. In his spare time, Wissmann is a backcountry enthusiast, aspiring mountaineer, mountain biker and very beginner surfer. He also volunteers with the U.S. Coast Guard Auxillary. 15:30 Conclusions and close