General

Arctic Rays Announces Acquisition by Inkfish

Arctic Rays, a pioneering leader in subsea imaging technologies, proudly announces its acquisition by Inkfish, a newly established organization dedicated to providing services to support marine researchers globally. This strategic acquisition is set to combine Arctic Rays's innovative product offerings with Inkfish's ability to connect with scientific partners and causes around the world.

Founded in 2015 on a commitment to manufacture turnkey custom imaging solutions with superior responsiveness, Arctic Rays has consistently delivered patented lighting packages, still and video capture payloads and other integrated systems for subsea vehicles operating as deep as 6,000 meters.

Inkfish was founded in 2021 to support marine researchers by planning and executing research expeditions, providing resources and developing new technologies to further research initiatives.

With this acquisition, Inkfish recognizes the value of Arctic Rays's market position and its dedication to quality engineering design, manufacturing processes and post-deployment support.

“Today marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for our company and ocean exploration,” said Dirk Fieberg, general manager and co-owner of Arctic Rays. “As we join forces with Inkfish, we embrace the opportunity to pioneer new technologies and make discoveries beneath the waves. Together, we will chart new frontiers in marine exploration, inspiring innovation that will define the future of our industry and beyond.”

This acquisition marks a significant milestone in the evolution of both companies. Customers can expect continued support and availability of Arctic Rays's current product lines, including repairs, replacements and ongoing customer service. In alignment with the acquisition, new custom development will be evaluated on a case-by-base basis. The Arctic Rays brand will be phased out and will take the Inkfish name, including its Satellite Beach, Florida, location and equipment sales.

“What Inkfish has accomplished quietly in only three years, is nothing short of amazing,” said Lee Frey, director of engineering and co-owner of Arctic Rays. “We are proud to add Arctic Rays’ extensive engineering knowledge and field experience to the exceptional Inkfish team, and we look forward to an exciting future together, pushing the boundaries of technology toward furthering marine science and the betterment of our oceans.”

"This acquisition represents a pivotal moment for marine exploration and technology," says Annika Andresen, who oversees Inkfish operations and research programs. "By combining our expertise and resources, we'll be able to push the boundaries of ocean research further than ever before, developing cutting-edge tools and methodologies that will benefit the entire marine industry."

For more information about the acquisition, please visit arcticrays.com or contact [email protected]

by Mariana Csanyi

New Partnership in Germany with Ocean Metrics

Impact Subsea has appointed Ocean Metrics, a leading provider of innovative solutions in environmental monitoring and marine technology, as its official distributor.

With their expertise and commitment to customer service, Ocean Metrics is the perfect partner to ensure German sensor users receive continued exceptional support.

Ben Grant, Managing Director says,

“We are thrilled to work closely with Ocean Metrics in Germany to further enhance our customer support in the region.

 The technical focus and capability of Ocean Metrics is well aligned with the customer supporting ethos of Impact Subsea.”

by Mariana Csanyi

Kraken Robotics completes High Resolution route survey contract in Australia

Kraken Robotics Inc. announces the successful completion of a contract to supply high-resolution seabed mapping sonar service to Precision Hydrographic Services (PHS), a customer supporting the Australian Department of Defence. The Australian Department of Defence project sought to undertake Hydrographic High Resolution Route Surveys (RS) for a number of Australian ports. The purpose of these surveys was to enable the collection of Maritime Geospatial Information (MGI) to support maritime domain awareness through the acquisition of high-resolution seabed foundation data and associated oceanographic data.

Managing Director of Precision Hydrographic Services Pty Ltd (PHS), Neil Hewitt stated: “Our decision to partner with Kraken Robotics and the KATFISH synthetic aperture sonar (SAS) system for this important Defence project has proven to be highly successful. Over the course of five months our team travelled non-stop from port to port and surveyed several thousand line-miles of Australia’s most important ports and waterways for Defence. The Kraken KATFISH performed faultlessly with not one hour of downtime.”

Kraken President and CEO, Greg Reid commented: “The Australian Defence Route Survey project has provided an excellent opportunity to test and demonstrate the performance of the Kraken KATFISH system. This is the first time that a customer has undertaken a wide area, multi-port survey project of this scale with the KATFISH - anywhere in the world. To do so in a safe and efficient manner with no downtime is a great credit to the vessel crew and the teamwork of the technical and survey personnel from PHS and Kraken Robotics.”

Under the scope of Kraken’s contract, a KATFISH™ high-speed survey/detection solution was used to acquire high-resolution route surveys of Australian ports. Under the contract, the survey campaign commenced in January 2024 and was fully complete in May 2024. This contract follows the results of a successful in-country demonstration of KATFISH™ for the RAN in Q1 of 2023 and the purchase of a KATFISH system by the RAN in Q2, 2023.

ABOUT KATFISH

The KATFISH is a high-speed seabed survey system providing ultra-high resolution seabed imagery and bathymetry for defense and commercial customers. The acoustic imagery and bathymetry collected by KATFISH systems provides customers with actionable intelligence about subsea assets and infrastructure such as subsea pipelines and fiber optic cables, as well as important hydrographic information about the safety of key transit routes for ocean going assets. Kraken has integrated KATFISH to a variety of manned and unmanned vessels of opportunity, providing both standalone turnkey seabed mapping as well as optional integration to a customer’s combat mission management systems.

ABOUT KRAKEN ROBOTICS INC. 

Kraken Robotics Inc. (TSX.V:PNG) (OTCQB: KRKNF) is a marine technology company providing complex subsea sensors, batteries, and robotic systems. Our high-resolution 3D acoustic imaging solutions and services enable clients to overcome the challenges in our oceans - safely, efficiently, and sustainably.  Kraken Robotics is headquartered in Canada and has offices in North and South America and Europe. Kraken is ranked as a Top 100 marine technology company by Marine Technology Reporter.

by Mariana Csanyi

Wavefront announces shipment of first batch of Vigilant FLS® 600

Wavefront, a leader in innovative sonar technology, is thrilled to announce the shipment of the first batch of its highly anticipated Vigilant FLS® 600. This latest addition to the Vigilant family of forward looking sonars will see the first units installed in a range of applications including surface and subsurface, crewed and uncrewed platforms.

Vigilant FLS 600 is a compact navigation and obstacle avoidance sonar creating – with unrivalled resolution and detail – a real-time, easy to interpret 3D terrain map of the seabed with automated alarms warning of objects in the water column ahead.

Vigilant has two principal operating modes: 3D and SONAR mode, both of which offer a class leading 120 degrees field of view on all range scales. Vigilant’s unique patented technology allows our 3D mode to provide stunning 3D depth imagery, further ahead of the platform than any competing system, at ranges in excess of 20 times the prevailing water depth up to a maximum 600 m range and down to 100 m depth. Sonar mode processes the intensity of the acoustic data to extract long-range positional data of objects up to ranges of 600 m. Data from both modes are used to automatically generate alerts for the operator or supervising system to warn of the presence of a navigationally relevant obstacle.

With its history mapping capability, a comprehensive picture of the underwater environment surrounding the vessel is built up. This provides crews and autonomous systems with maximum situational awareness for collision or ground avoidance, tight manoeuvres or backing out of confined areas.

Speaking about this milestone for the Vigilant FLS 600, Paul Badger, Wavefront Managing Director, said ‘Vigilant FLS 600 bridges the gap from UUV, AUV and ASV applications all the way through to mega yachts and cruise ships to deliver high resolution navigational imaging and long range obstacle avoidance’.

About Wavefront

Wavefront was founded in 2004 with a mission to apply engineering excellence to the problems of underwater detection, imaging and navigation. Wavefront works with its customers to make the underwater world visible – protecting Critical National Infrastructure (CNI), preventing maritime collisions, monitoring the integrity of undersea assets and exploring our under-water world with stunning high-resolution imagery.

Wavefront is proud to have designed and developed some of the world’s most capable commercially available sonar systems:

• Sentinel IDS is the world’s most deployed Intruder Detection Sonar capable of detecting, tracking and classifying underwater targets including new drone threats;
• Vigilant FLS is a Forward Looking Sonar with unique patented technology capable of depth finding at ranges ahead of your vessel in excess of 20 times the prevailing water depth;
• Solstice MAS is a unique Multi-Aperture Sonar designed to provide world-class imagery by blending the high performance of Synthetic Aperture Sonar with the reliability and robustness of conventional side-scan; and
• Sentry IMS is a field-proven Integrity Monitoring Sonar designed for ocean depth deployments where it continuously monitors billions of cubic feet of seawater around critical seabed assets.

Wavefront’s industry-leading products are in use globally in civilian, public, defence, offshore and commercial markets.

Contact Information:

Andy Covey, Marketing Manager, [email protected]

Wavefront Systems Ltd - Camway, West 303, High Street, Sparkford, Yeovil, Somerset, BA22 7JQ, UK

by Mariana Csanyi

Grand opening of Teledyne GAVIA AUV Service Center in Poland

Teledyne Gavia ehf. Headquartered in Kopavogur, Iceland, proudly announces its attendance at the grand opening of the Gavia Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) Service Center established by ENAMOR Limited in Gdynia, Poland.

ENAMOR Limited has supported the Polish Navy´s expanding fleet of Gavia AUVs for over a decade. To commemorate this long-standing relationship, the Service Center has been opened in partnership with the Polish Naval Academy. Several honored guests, including highly respected Polish Navy Admirals, Captains, and Officers, attended the grand opening in July 2024. Representatives from Teledyne Gavia in Iceland, Teledyne Marine personnel from the United States and Europe, as well as various NATO partners and Gavia AUV Users, attended the grand opening.

Teledyne Gavia and ENAMOR have developed a robust partnership over the past ten years. The Polish Navy’s initial acquisition of Gavia AUVs in 2013 was facilitated through a contract secured by ENAMOR Limited. Following the delivery, the Polish Navy received guidance and training from both Teledyne Gavia ehf. and ENAMOR Limited.

The Polish Navy has been successfully operating Gavia AUVs for mine countermeasures (MCM) since 2013. Beginning with that initial delivery ENAMOR has continued to support the Polish Navy both operationally and technically over the last decade. With an increased number of Gavia AUVs in Poland and with other NATO users combined with an increase in critical underwater projects in Europe comes an increased need for Gavia service and support outside of Iceland. To expand Gavia technical support in Europe, as well as increase ENAMOR’S technical support capabilities, ENAMOR has dedicated personnel and investments to open a Gavia AUV Service Center in Gdynia, Poland. The service center can perform Gavia Maintenance with a faster turnaround for Polish and other continental customers due to its central European location.

Stefan Reynisson, Vice President, and General Manager of Teledyne Gavia ehf., was very pleased with the Service expansion into Europe. In his speech at the grand opening, Reynisson highlighted the strong partnership between ENAMOR, the Polish Navy, and Teledyne Gavia. “A strong and successful working relationship has been the foundation of the success of Gavia AUVs in Poland. Thank you to both ENAMOR and the Polish Navy. Teledyne Gavia looks forward to continuing our partnership and collaboration.”

by Mariana Csanyi

The Convex Seascape Survey

CMs GeoScience Ltd recently partnered with the Blue Marine Foundation, the University of Exeter and Jersey Marine Resources on an exciting project, The Convex Seascape Survey. This initiative is a pioneering collaboration of world-leading scientists working to quantify and understand blue carbon stored in the coastal ocean floor, and the effects of marine life upon it. It will deliver new, reliable open-source data which will educate, inspire and enable informed decisions on ocean use, to harness the power of the sea in the fight against climate change. The role of CMS’s specialised geotechnical team was to collect 55 vibrocores and 8 multicores across various locations in the waters around Jersey.

They collected undisturbed samples of sediment and supernatant water using a multi corer at 8 locations on the south and east of the island. One core from each location was transferred back to shore where the research team could perform eDNA testing. Dr Richard Tennant established a field molecular laboratory that allowed the team to both extrude and subsample the cores, as well as purify and sequence the DNA in Jersey. This data was then taken back to Exeter where they will investigate which flora and fauna are contributing to carbon stocks and determine how they have formed over the past two centuries. As the survey team were able to conduct on-site analysis, the data they generated can be validated once the other cores have been received in Exeter, to better understand the impacts of storage and/or transportation.

The project also looked at how protection from trawling and dredging activities might affect the capacity of the seabed to accumulate and store organic carbon. Researchers had a particular interest in how this protection affects the biodiversity of seabed habitats, as it is likely that the animals that live around jersey may play an important role in the flux of carbon through these environments.

The CMS team collected cores both inside and outside of the Jersey Marine Protected Area where mobile fishing gear is prohibited. This will allow academics to compare the differences in seabed organic carbon content and biodiversity according to different levels of seabed disturbance. The samples they cored will be analysed alongside short sediment cores of 30-60cm that they survey team gathered by hand using SCUBA.

Researcher, Dr Ben Harris, utilised a range of techniques to measure differences in biodiversity. Baited Remote Underwater Video Systems (BRUVS) were deployed to collect information on the abundance and body size of different fish and highly mobile invertebrate species such as crabs or lobsters. ROV and photo-quadrants were used to quantify the density and species diversity of less mobile animals living on-top of the seabed, these include sponges, ascidians and hydrozoans. The third approach was collecting sediment grabs for counting the biodiversity of animals, like worms and bivalves, living within the sediment itself.

CMS GeoScience worked with Anna Smith and the Convex team to design this survey. Jersey is a challenging place to operate, having the third-largest tidal range in the world with a range of >10m and 5-6 knots. Looking at sediment types as well as potential obstructions and limitations, CMS advised on sample locations to ensure that the needs of the project were met. With more interest in the top layers of sediment, it was decided that the HPC corer would be deployed in 3m mode, with a smaller corer aiming to help mitigate some of the tidal restrictions. After consultation, the project scope was defined as 55 vibrocores, predominantly around the south and east of the island.

Jersey is a busy tourist destination, attracting many small craft, sailing and leisure boat users. This is always a challenge when working close to shore, but particularly trying in such a picturesque location. The team consulted with Jersey Harbour Authorities and local agents to establish a plan that avoided any major maritime events, as well as using moorings and quay space around the island to limit steaming time.

Hayley Santer, the Senior Surveyor on the project, highlighted the need to remain fluid in approach to a project such as this. Each location was assessed and categorised depending on whether they were exposed to weather or tidally restrained. Weather forecasts were changeable and so it was vital that the team acquired the more weather sensitive sites, with contingency plans in place for operations to go ahead depending on the observed sea conditions at the time.

Hayley spoke about the level of preparation needed: ‘To maintain efficiency, and with several tidal locations spread in various bays around Jersey, it was crucial that we worked to minimise time spent waiting on the tide when trying to access more shallow locations.

In addition to significant tidal ranges and rocky coastline, many of the reefs were poorly charted. With the team finding that there were large discrepancies in the data, it was important for us to take the additional time to capitalise on rising tides as well as note and mark a safe route into shoal areas, paying particular attention to locations that, while technically deep enough, were enclosed behind prominent, sometimes awash, rock. Using these proven routes, and ensuring we received regularly updated tidal information, enabled real-time assessment of the observed depths both on approach and when were deployed at each location. This also allowed us to establish what depths we could expect on completion of the sampling.

Communication went beyond those involved and extended to local power companies  who had seabed assets within our remit. Consultation was key in carving out exclusion zones, with these companies requiring our assurance that any instance of seabed touch-down, be that from a sampler or sound velocity profiler, was logged outside of the reduced cable zones.

We were often operating within busy shipping routes, and St Helier VTW and the Jersey Coastguard were instrumental in reminding other vessels of the requirements of space and safe passing. To add to the intricacies of this project, our team were working over a number of weekends which meant that the increase in recreational club activities added to the difficulties of working in an area where marine traffic was already saturated. Our choice of a smaller, more compact vessel enabled us to work alongside these clubs and societies and we were able to complete the campaign safely with minimal disruption to us and the public’.

The geology around Jersey also presented a specific challenge to the team, with rocky outcrops being exposed by the high tidal range. Extensive planning using tidal and weather forecasts, as well as water depths, enabled the team to maximise working windows.

Owing to the unique tidal movements around the island, Rory Bardner, CMS Marine Geologist, found it interesting to discover such variation in the geology sampled throughout the campaign:

‘Cores recovered deposits ranging from silty sands to coarse gravels, often in proximity, and igneous bedrock was samples in many cases. Using the multi corer to recover undisturbed samples of the shallow seabed gave a real insight into the sediments, marine life and seagrass below us. 

Due to the testing required, the cores had to remain at a constant temperature of between 4-5 degrees, which was made more difficult as many of the locations were >4-hour steam away from harbour. By working with the client and the vessel, a solution was found which allowed for onboard chilling facilities, as well as a space to safely operate the vibrocoring system, the multi corer and other equipment. Through creative thinking, the CMS team were able to meet this requirement to guarantee the quality of the samples and the subsequent data.

Mechanical Design Engineer, Jack Foll, reported on the difficulty in operating the geotechnical systems and the performance of the team overall:

‘There was a great deal of preparation in anticipation for this campaign as we knew we would be working within a demanding environment. The waters in which the team were deployed experiences a tidal height of up to 12m, and this meant that our HPC corer had to operate in 3m to compensate for the strength of the tide. As well as this, we experienced unseasonably inclement weather throughout our time on the island which meant the team had to work within tight windows of opportunity, adding even more to the complexity of the project.  We worked to ensure that our systems were tested, checked and serviced prior to commencing the project, and everyone onboard carried out their duties safely and effectively. The extensive planning from all involved meant that the contract was completed without any system breakdowns, and the team operated the equipment well, without incident, despite the many difficulties they faced.’

CMS GeoScience is proud to have played its part in helping researchers to highlight the need to preserve the ecologically, economically, and culturally important marine habitats of the Island, especially when Jersey relies so heavily on the ocean as a resource.

by Mariana Csanyi