This project is led by Halifax, NS-based Marine Thinking, in partnership with Innvotek and Innovate UK, both in London, England. With a total project value of $942,871, Canada’s Ocean Supercluster is investing $330,560, with the balance of funding coming from project partners.
The project will allow Marine Thinking to develop a Launch and Recovery System (LARS) for Innvotek’s Amphibian “Underwater Inspection in Lieu of Dry-docking” (UWILD) solution. The Amphibian UWILD offers a safe, technology-driven, and cost-effective robotic solution for underwater inspections, crucial for the thousands of vessels needing inspections. Due to its weight and various payload options, the Amphibian UWILD requires deployment from a LARS. Marine Thinking’s LARS will feature remote control capabilities and ensure efficient and safe deployment and retrieval of the Amphibian robot.
Amphibian UWILD can offer hull cleaning and inspections that cover large areas without fatigue, operating above and below the waterline, and able to access confined spaces that are difficult for divers, allowing pinpoint location of defects and giving more data to perform accurate predictive maintenance analysis.
Adoption of robotics in the ocean sector will lead to increased productivity and new, higher-value job opportunities. Through the OSC and Innovate UK Collaborative Ocean Solutions Program, this project will create jobs in both countries and stimulate economic growth in the global sustainable ocean economy.
