Atlantas Marine Introduces Underwater Inspection Service

Marine surveyors and engineers who need to examine a situation under water can now use a quick-reaction ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle) inspection service that has been launched by Atlantas Marine. The company is available to deploy an observation class ROV that will enable clients to see with their own eyes a damaged propeller, for example, or the situation inside a thruster tunnel. Surveyors and engineers are expected to find this more reassuring than relying upon a description provided by a diver and the availability of the new Atlantas Marine inspection service may be regarded as a highly practical new tool.

Atlantas Marine is also the UK distributor of the world-leading VideoRay range of very small but powerful observation class ROVs. Barely larger than a shoebox, a VideoRay is equipped with powerful lights and can provide high definition real-time images of the situation beneath a hull. It can return images from inside pipes or tanks and go to places that would be inaccessible to divers. When water conditions eliminate visibility it can employ enhanced video imagery and can also be fitted with a compact sonar to produce an acoustic image through the gloom. A simple manipulator grab can also be fitted and used for recovering items or for positioning instrumentation.

The entire deployment package is contained within a large suitcase-sized crate that can be transported as luggage by its operator. Once on location the ROV can be in the water in less than 15-minutes and years of experience enable the Atlantas team of ROV pilots to cope with a wide range of conditions.

When explaining the benefits of the new service, Charlie Foll, managing director of Atlantas Marine was quick to point out that the service could never replace the work of professional divers. “Divers are essential for much underwater work but there are many occasions when the simple option of being able to take a quick look for oneself is all that is needed. With divers operating in two-man teams and with each needing a substantial amount of equipment, setting them to work is not something that is undertaken lightly. If the work is being carried out abroad, language difficulties can also add to the problem of understanding a diver’s report,” he said.

“Our company has sold very many VideoRay ROVs because they are versatile and easy for owners to operate. Unfortunately it can still take a while for someone to learn how to use them with confidence in any situation. Strong currents can tax the pilot’s competence while underwater navigation can be a real challenge. Finding something on the underside of a big ship and then returning to it quickly in poor visibility demands considerable practice. Someone such as a professional marine surveyor may not have the time to acquire that practice and buying a system for one’s own use is a major investment that may not be justified. This is why it can be more efficient to employ someone else who has that expertise and that is what we are now making readily and economically available,” explained Charlie Foll.

When sea conditions are more challenging Atlantas Marine can also provide the same service by using a larger and more powerful Ocean Modules ROV. This is able to perform a wider range of tasks than the VideoRay and Atlantas ROV pilots are all familiar with the wide range of tools and instruments that are available for use on VideoRay and the larger ROVs. These may not be something that potential customers are aware of and is why a tentative discussion with Atlantas might reveal solutions that are available from the survey service that the client had never envisaged.

Atlantas Marine is based in southwest England from where it benefits from rapid links within the UK and the rest of the world. It was recently designated as the world’s top company for VideoRay sales for which it provides a comprehensive customer support service. With small ROVs now capable of many of the observation tasks previously assigned to larger vehicles Atlantas Marine is proving that remote underwater inspection is both practical and economical.