Ocean Infinity has launched a new marine technology and data company, Armada, which will bring in 15 robot vessels to be used for offshore surveys. The fleet is currently under construction and is expected to be delivered by the end of 2020.
The Armada marine robots will be equipped to perform various offshore data acquisition and intervention operations in water depths of up to 6,000 meters. The robot ships will be capable of remotely deploying a wide range of the latest sensors as well as autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) and remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) for visual and acoustic data acquisition.
Ocean Infinity states that Armada’s fleet requires neither people on board nor a host vessel nearby, as the vessels will be controlled and operated by mariners via satellite communications from onshore facilities in both Austin, Texas, and Southampton, England.
The fleet will produce up to 90% less CO2 than other conventional survey vessels, the company said.
“We’ve been driven to innovate by a desire to further reduce our impact on the environment and the time people spend at sea. We have built an outstanding team who boast world leading expertise to take this next stage of our business forward for the benefit of our clients and all those who work with us,” said Oliver Plunkett, CEO of Ocean Infinity.
“The pioneering technology makes our operations world leading in terms of environmental sustainability and safety, whilst still achieving the very highest levels of data quality and value for our clients,” said Dan Hook , Managing Director of Armada. “With no requirement for a host vessel, we are breaking new ground in the area of sub-sea technology and data.”