Water trials new autonomous inspection platform Van Oord

At the end of August water trials for the new Van Oord autonomous inspection platform were performed by DEMCON unmanned systems. Van Oord carries out hydrographic inspections to accurately survey the bed profile for dredging and other maritime works.

Learn more about digitalisation in the maritime capital of Europe.

Due to space or environmental constraints, manned boats (sounding boats) cannot be deployed everywhere, for example in cofferdams, drinking water basins and nature conservation areas.

DEMCON unmanned systems

DEMCON unmanned systems – located in Delft – develops robust, unmanned and autonomously sailing inspection platforms for this purpose. These fully electrically driven vessels help make operations more sustainable and promote the digitalisation of processes. Earlier this year Van Oord placed an order for a second autonomous platform.

Small unmanned and autonomous vessels make it possible to perform activities remotely, cost efficiently, and in automated and digitalized ways. DEMCON unmanned systems, develops unmanned autonomous sailing platforms with intelligent controls for this purpose.

Credit: DEMCON unmanned systems

New platform

The new DUS V2500 platform is just 2.5 meters in length and is an alternative to the small manned sounding boats that are approx. 8 meters in length. With regard to data quality is the system also equal to existing equipment, the vessel was recently certified by the Dutch authority Rijkswaterstaat to obtain hydrographic survey data for their purposes.

Source: DEMCON unmanned systems