Offshore inspection and maintenance face a number of critical challenges: demanding environmental conditions such as strong currents, biofouling, corrosion, and limited visibility significantly complicate precise underwater operations. At the same time, diver-based inspections are costly and associated with considerable risks, further increasing the need for automated alternatives. Additionally, there is still a lack of standardized and proven technologies for autonomous underwater inspections, meaning that many processes continue to rely on manual work or extensive logistics. As a result, the demand for data, simulation, and inspection systems that reliably aggregate, digitally represent, and efficiently evaluate information is steadily rising.
To effectively address these complex challenges, leading research institutions and industrial partners join forces in the FORE-PAIR project. The Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing (BAM), the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials (IFAM), and Rosenxt, as a technology group, combine scientific expertise, long-standing offshore experience, and advanced technological development to create new solutions that make underwater inspection, maintenance, and cleaning safer, more efficient, and more sustainable.
Key Innovations and Technological Focus Areas
The project aims to develop technologies that fundamentally improve the inspection, maintenance, and cleaning of floating offshore platforms. This includes autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) capable of reliably assessing the supporting structures of offshore installations, even at greater depths and under challenging conditions such as strong currents or limited visibility.
High-resolution 3D sensing systems and digital twins will map platform conditions in real time, automatically detect changes, and support data-driven maintenance decisions. In addition, sustainable protective solutions will be investigated to reduce fouling and extend asset lifetimes. AR/VR-supported tools will also be developed, enabling maintenance personnel to simulate operations in the digital twin, optimize workflows, and prepare inspection scenarios efficiently.
The importance of the project is underscored by the participating partners. Özlem Özcan, expert for material and surface technologies at BAM, explained: “Reliable assessment of material conditions under extreme environmental influences is a key factor in ensuring the safety and longevity of offshore energy systems. With FORE-PAIR, we are laying the foundation for integrating advanced inspection and testing technologies into a fully autonomous system and establishing new standards for the operation of such installations.”
“Future offshore energy systems require robust, automatable, and sustainable solutions—from reliable repair processes to innovative protection technologies. FORE-PAIR provides a unique opportunity to bring together our expertise in adhesive bonding, surface technologies, cyber-physical quality assurance, and mobile robotic systems to develop practical applications for the maritime industry,” said Tim Heusinger von Waldegge, Project Manager at Fraunhofer IFAM.
From the perspective of industry partner Rosenxt, the focus is on transferring the technologies into real operational environments, as Dr. Peter Kampmann, Head of Maritime Robotics, emphasized: “As a technology-driven company specializing in operations in harsh environments, we see FORE-PAIR as a key step forward for the offshore energy sector. The funding enables us to contribute our engineering expertise to the development of market-ready solutions that make inspection, maintenance, and cleaning at sea safer, more efficient, and more sustainable.”
The project, running until 2029, is funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi) and supported under the Maritime Research Program by Project Management Jülich (PtJ). Further information on the progress of the program is available at www.fore-pair.de.
