FIRST SEAGOING UNMANNED SURVEY VESSEL DEPLOYED IN MARINE AND OFFSHORE CONDITIONS BY ANY DREDGING CONTRACTOR
As the first step toward unmanned and autonomous offshore survey operations, Jan De Nul Group has ordered Maritime Robotic’s well-proven and hybrid Mariner Unmanned Surface Vehicle (USV). This vessel, known as Beluga 01, will sail under the Luxembourg flag and will be used for international hydrographic and environmental investigations on maritime and offshore building projects. Jan De Nul is the first dredging contractor to use an autonomous survey vehicle in marine and offshore environments.
The Beluga 01 is based on Maritime Robotics’ unique Mariner class USV, which has demonstrated its mobility and seaworthiness for data collecting in severe circumstances for years. Jan De Nul was persuaded by Maritime Robotics’ technology because of its well-engineered, high-quality design based on ten years of expertise. As an alternative or supplement to larger manned vessels, it offers a user-friendly, cost-effective, and low-risk platform for data collecting at sea.
Jan De Nul completely commits to better safety and operational control during survey activities, lower carbon emissions, and more efficient data collecting by opting for unmanned surveys with the Mariner class USV.
“For some years, we have been exploring several autonomous systems,” says Mike Lycke, Survey Manager Offshore Projects at Jan De Nul Group. Our major goal has always been to expand our knowledge of autonomy for marine survey operations. Because of the worldwide conditions in 2020 and a maturing USV industry, we were able to take the next step and purchase a complete vessel for our marine and offshore projects. Marine Robotics, a prominent provider of innovative unmanned systems for maritime operations and data collecting, was the ideal partner for us.”
“We are very delighted to have been selected as a supplier for Jan De Nul Group,” says Eirik Hovstein, COO of Maritime Robotics. We stand for systems built in-house with the goal of sustainability and autonomy, in close collaboration with civilian, governmental, and military partners. We look forward to working with Jan De Nul on the Beluga 01’s future development. We will investigate the future of unmanned technologies in order to assure safer, greener, and more cost-effective data collecting at sea.”
Carbon footprint is reduced.
The Beluga 01 has a completely redundant hybrid propulsion system. A diesel engine is mechanically linked to the water jet and serves as the primary source of propulsion. Alternatively, the vessel can be run entirely on electricity. The vessel can be manoeuvred in delicate marine zones thanks to the extra electrical Torqeedo propulsion mounted parallel to the primary engine.
There is also a range extender module to charge the batteries so that they can run for longer than 12 hours. This system emits less pollutants than the primary engine, which can also serve as an alternator for the batteries.
Furthermore, in the event of a primary engine failure, the electrical propulsion functions as a backup for the main engine, or vice versa.
Jan De Nul is dedicated to reducing carbon emissions. The Group’s plan includes zero-emission propulsion on future boats. Jan De Nul, for example, considers the environmental effect and confronts environmental concerns by focusing on lowering the imprint of its activities, notably on water and air quality and the climate.
Proven track record in adverse offshore circumstances
The Beluga 01 can operate in sea states up to five, although this normally prohibits capturing any relevant survey data. The vessel can withstand sea states of up to seven. The Beluga 01 requires only 80 cm of water to function.
