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In March 2010, South Sea Logistics’ LBV 150 mini ROV was mobilized at the site of the Oakajee Port Development, to search for a missing Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) in 19 metres of water which was unable to be located previously by divers.
The ADCP is a sonar instrument that produces a record of current velocities for a range of depths within the water column. ADCP’s can be mounted in many ways such as:
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Side-listening (mounted sideways);
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Downward-listening (on surface facing downwards);
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Mounted on vessels for instantaneous surveys in the ocean or rivers; and
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Mounted on moorings or the seabed for long term current and wave studies.
The ADCP at the Oakajee Site which had been profiling for two months was not identified at its original location and was unable to be located by a dive team who were engaged by OPR to service the instrument. The depth of water the ADCP was moored in only permitted the divers to have a bottom time of approximately 20 minutes. This proved to be a difficult task for the divers as it was unclear to what position the ADCP may have moved to.
Due to the high costs and safety risks associated with mobilizing a full commercial dive outfit to search for the missing ADCP, South Sea Logistics’ mini ROV was provided an opportunity to demonstrate its capabilities by performing an initial search from the surface. The ROV was deployed onsite at the initial position where the ADCP had been moored, and the ROV search began from there.
Within half an hour of piloting the ROV from South Sea Logistics’ Weibbe Hayes small response survey vessel, video footage viewed onboard presented a clear image of the missing ADCP with its valuable data.
JFA Consultants who managed the search operations on behalf of OPR, were pleased with the find and commended the mini ROV’s capabilities as a cost effective alternative for undertaking the search.
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