Fugro announces purchase of FOCUS-2 ROTV systems

Fugro Survey Limited is pleased to announce that it will be operating two brand new purpose built Focus-2 ROTV systems for the 2006 acoustic pipeline inspection season. This new generation of ROTV will be equipped and operated by Fugro to offer the highest definition and most efficient acoustic pipeline inspection service in the North Sea.

In addition to providing increased stability (decimetre accuracy in height above seabed plus superior roll/pitch/yaw control), these latest generation ROTVs use state of the art fibre optic telemetry for vehicle and sensor communication. This results in improved data quality and therefore a more precise image of the pipeline. The systems' increased capacity allows the Focus-2 to carry a broad range of sensor packages of underwater equipment including digital side scan sonar, multibeam bathymetry, mechanical forward looking sonar, mechanical scanning profiling sonar, sub bottom profiler, fibre optic gyro and compass.

Modifications to the design of the Focus housing means the Focus-2 system as a whole benefits from being stronger, lighter and more suited to infield operations. Lower maintenance overheads and therefore better up-times are expected.

Fugro's Focus-2s will be fitted with Edgetech 4200-FS side scan sonar systems operating at 300 and 600kHz to provide highly resolute data with much improved signal-to-noise ratios.

Fully redundant hardware will maximise up-time. Typical production rates will be between 140 and 180 line km per day, for infield and trunk lines respectively.

We will operate from our DP vessel Fugro Mercator. Specifically designed as a multi purpose survey vessel, it is permanently mobilised and can be rapidly deployed to survey locations worldwide. The vessel is fitted with a Simrad EM1002 100KHz Swathe Bathymetry system, a Simrad SDP11 DP system and Simrad HiPAP USBL.

Fugro Mercator can be fitted with an observation class Seaeye Lynx ROV (OBSROV), alongside the two Focus-2 ROTV systems. This would allow for immediate visual inspection of targets identified during the acoustic inspection. Onboard interpretation of pipeline inspection data will be undertaken, to produce a whole dataset that is robust, integrated and interpreted in the context of the environment within which the data were obtained, thus avoiding conflict through undertaking interpretation at different times.

Fugro Survey Limited offers a wealth of ROTV survey, data processing and reporting experience, presenting Clients with a cost effective and high-speed survey tool to acoustically inspect pipeline assets on a periodic basis. We have successfully completed over 70,000 kilometres of ROTV operations in the last ten years, surveying most North Sea pipelines since 1992. We are fully aware and familiar with operating procedures, interpretation, reporting and data submission requirements and have a fully integrated interpretation, charting and deliverables procedure specifically geared to pipeline inspection surveys. Using powerful Geographical Information System (GIS) functionality we are able to provide inspection data in a format specific to individual client requirements for loading into their own GIS platforms and databases. Our GIS technology also allows us to hold data year on year for ongoing pipeline condition assessment and trend analysis. This can input to a safety case for a risk-based inspection regime which directly contributes to lower operational expenditure.

Fugro is a major supplier of pipeline inspection surveys for detecting free-spans, damage and defects, leaks, cathodic erosion and pipeline movement. Our survey and inspection vessels are equipped with ROVs fitted with video cameras, acoustic scanning systems, CP probes and pipe-trackers to locate buried lines, and with ROTVs for acoustic pipeline surveys. Pipeline engineers are presented with fully detailed charts, videos and stills images, detailed incident reports and KP lists in a user-friendly digital format that delivers the data vital for comprehensive assessments of pipe condition. Fugro is at the forefront of pipeline inspection and survey technology, continuously deriving greater benefits and value through innovation and know-how