UK Seaglider Rental Service in focus as KONGSBERG Gears-Up for Subsea Expo 2017

  • First Seaglider rental service from Kongsberg Maritime Ltd
  • Subsea Expo booth to feature established subsea tech portfolio

Aberdeen-based Kongsberg Maritime Ltd is expecting high interest in the innovative KONGSBERG Seaglider™ autonomous vehicle during Subsea Expo 2017, which takes place at the Aberdeen AECC, 1-3 February. KONGSBERG's Subsea Expo 2017 booth (booth 82) will also feature a host of established subsea technology designed to meet the exacting demands of research and commercial users during the annual, free to attend subsea conference and exhibition.

Kongsberg Maritime Ltd, the UK subsidiary of global maritime and subsea technology developer Kongsberg Maritime has recently added Seaglider to its rental pool and it is now available for diverse commercial and research applications alongside KONGSBERG's other autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs).

Seaglider is an autonomous underwater vehicle/underwater glider developed for continuous, long term measurement of oceanographic parameters. Rather than an electrically driven propeller, the vehicle uses small changes in buoyancy and wings to achieve forward motion. The system's pitch and roll are controlled using adjustable ballast (the vehicle battery).

"Seaglider is well known for its work in ocean science but the system is also relevant to a range of commercial operations including environmental monitoring for offshore fields, oil spill detection and supporting decommissioning projects," said Keith Thomson, Rental Manager, Kongsberg Maritime Ltd. "We're delighted to make Seaglider available through our rental service and are looking forward to discussing potential projects with users from the oil and gas industry and research organisations at Subsea Expo."

Much of the technology to be shown on KONGSBERG's Subsea Expo 2017 booth is already recognised as de facto industry standard, with highlights including the recently released cNODE Mini S transponders. As the smallest member of the cNODE series of subsea transponders, cNODE Mini S provides accurate, cost effective underwater positioning for ROV operations and is a compact, lightweight option for users of the extensive cNODE portfolio.

Kongsberg Maritime Ltd will also be running a 1 day AUV Operations Introduction Course at its Aberdeen-based training centre on 3rd February. The training centre saw high interest for this in-depth introductory course in 2016 and expects this year's course to attract similar numbers, especially considering the influx of industry visitors to Aberdeen for Subsea Expo.