Canada’s Ocean Supercluster (OSC) announced on Jan 16 three new ocean innovation projects valued at more than $9 million, including the $940K Amphibian UWILD Remote Robotic Platform Project. This new, collaborative OSC project will increase the speed and accuracy of ship hull inspections and reduce the risks associated with diving crews, benefiting the shipping industry in Canda, the UK, and globally, OSC said.
This project is led by Halifax, NS-based Marine Thinking, in partnership with Innvotek and Innovate UK, both in London, England. With a total project value of $942, 871 Canada’s Ocean Supercluster is investing $330, 560 with the balance of funding coming from project partners.
The project will allow Marine Thinking to develop a Launch and Recovery System (LARS) for Innvotek’s Amphibian “Underwater Inspection in Lieu of Dry-docking” (UWILD) solution. The Amphibian UWILD offers a safe, technology-driven, and cost-effective robotic solution for underwater inspections, crucial for the thousands of vessels needing inspections. Due to its weight and various payload options, the Amphibian UWILD requires deployment from a LARS. Marine Thinking’s LARS will feature remote control capabilities and ensure efficient and safe deployment and retrieval of the Amphibian robot.
Amphibian UWILD can offer hull cleaning and inspections that cover large areas without fatigue, operating above and below the waterline, and able to access confined spaces that are difficult for divers, allowing pinpoint location of defects and giving more data to perform accurate predictive maintenance analysis.
Adoption of robotics in the ocean sector will lead to increased productivity and new, higher value job opportunities. Through the OSC and Innovate UK Collaborative Ocean Solutions Program, this project will create jobs in both countries and stimulate economic growth in the global sustainable ocean economy.
The global ocean economy is expected to outpace the broader economy by 20 percent by 2030, and Canada’s ocean community has developed a bold, collective goal to grow the country’s ocean economy by 5X to $220B by 2035. Continued investment in the accelerated development and commercialization of globally relevant, made in Canada ocean solutions, including the projects announced, will help us realize this transformative growth potential mapped out through Ambition 2035.
About Canada’s Ocean Supercluster
Canada’s Ocean Supercluster accelerates the development and commercialization of made-in-Canada ocean solutions in energy transition, food security, future of transport, and climate change while also growing more companies, creating more jobs, and attracting ocean talent. As Canada’s national ocean cluster, the OSC is a convenor of members, partners, and networks and a catalyst for transformative growth that helps build the robust ecosystem needed to help realize Ambition 2035 – a 5X growth potential in ocean in Canada by 2035. To date, the OSC has approved more than 100 projects which will deliver more than 220 new made-in-Canada ocean products, processes, and services to sell to the world.