ABB Makes 5 km Subsea Operations Safe

Marine software and hardware to assist multi-purpose diving support vessels in complex deepwater projects

Power and automation technology group ABB will provide the technology that will help three vessels safely carry out construction and maintenance tasks up to 5 kilometers under water. 

The vessels will be equipped with ABB’s OCTOPUS software that uses sensors and the Internet of Things, Services and People (IoTSP) to interpret weather conditions, allowing the crew to make informed decisions during sensitive operations. The ships will be built for Ultra Deep Solutions at CSIC Huangpu Wuchang Shipbuilding Company Limited and China Merchants Heavy Industry. The largest vessel’s apparatus will include two remotely operated underwater vessels (ROVs), that will dive up to 3,000 meters, and a 400 ton crane that can drop 5,200 meters. It will measure 142 meters in length.

The OCTOPUS suite of products is a tool that provides onboard decision support and operational advice during weather-sensitive offshore operations by monitoring and forecasting vessel motions. When working in deep water without mooring or anchoring lines, an important part of the setup is the OCTOPUS-Operational forecast function. This extension within OCTOPUS makes it possible to define an optimal operational window during weather sensitive operations on DP.

Juha Koskela, Managing Director of ABB’s Marine and Ports business, said, “The broad scope of supply we have on these vessels is a demonstration of the wide range of solutions we have to offer the maritime sector. These vessels will benefit from some of the most established software and hardware technologies in the shipping industry.”

The vessels will also feature ABB generators, motors, drives and switchboards.