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News F ollowing the Underwater Inter- vention ’14 exhibition in New Orleans, the crew from Seatron- ics, an Acteon company headed to the sunny shores of Florida Atlantic Univer- sity (FAU) in Fort Lauderdale for a dem- onstration to key clients of the new and improved Predator II Observation class ROV. According to those who attended, the demo was impressive. Florida Atlantic University (FAU) was the home for Seatronics’ recent dem- onstration of the Predator II ROV, the latest addition to the formidable stable housed by the specialists in the rental and sale of marine electronic equip- ment, covering a range of applications: geophysical survey; navigation and po- sitioning; oceanographic systems; video inspection; ROV survey; ROV tooling and diving and non destructive testing. In short, Seatronics and its clients gathered at FAU to: Demonstrate the new Predator II system to various top end clients. Operationally test the new thruster arrangement Operationally test the new topside arrangement Perform training to key personnel in the operation of the system, and to Operationally test, evaluate and give feedback on the Seebyte Co- Pilot automated pilot control sys- tem under various conditions Meet the Predator II ROV The Predator systems, IP and manu- facturing rights were purchased from Global Marine Systems Limited in No- vember 2012, as Seatronics was looking to increase interest in ROV rentals and develop a small ROV with improved ca- pabilities in fi tting Survey Sensors and ROV Tooling. Predator was identifi ed as having the necessary performance, stability and ease of mobilization to meet these criteria. Historically Seatronics supplied opera- tors with Survey Sensors, but no suppli- er offered a one-stop-shop solution. To- day Seatronics, which built its business and reputation as a leading supplier of Subsea Rental Technology and Equip- ment partly because it offers a complete tested, working system, now offers a complete ROV system with a range of sensors for hire or purchase. Hand-built by Seatronics, Predator is a 300m-rated inspection class ROV de- signed to function in all market sectors globally including Oil & Gas, Military, Fisheries, Inshore Survey, Scientifi c Research, Telecommunications and En- ergy. Predator is designed to be compact and portable, easy to use and easy to maintain and is very different and al- most unique in fact to the current obs- class ROV offerings currently on the market. The full ROV system comprises of: Surface Control Unit (SCU) Surface Power Unit (SPU) Surface Hand Controller Umbilical tether cable ROV vehicle Options include: Sonar (Teledyne BlueView) Various additional cameras Additional lighting Laser scaling Altimeter, and Manipulators SeeByte CoPilot automated control software. The Demonstration The Predator demo at FAU was de- signed to show the vehicle as versatile and capable under a number of condi- tions, and the fi rst three days were spent demonstrating the system in a shallow harbor (1-2m) with low visibility (<1m) with no apparent current. A second demonstration site was utilized on the campus in the ICW later in the week in a 2 to 3 knot current. The ROV performed a hull inspection and bridge support structures in low visibility conditions. The demonstration was coordinated by Great Eastern Group’s (GEG) Director of Operations - Bruce Morris at the FAU Dania Beach Campus. Great Eastern Predator II ROV Put through its Paces @ FAU April 2014 8 MTR MTR #3 (1-17).indd 8 4/9/2014 12:27:55 PM
