FlowScout 600 Long-Range Acoustic Flow Meter
LinkQuest Inc. (San Diego, California) recently introduced the single-beam 600-kilohertz FlowScout 600 acoustic flow meter, which is capable of reaching a range of up to 110 meters with an accuracy of up to 0.5 percent ± 2.0 millimeters per second and has a standard depth rating of 100 meters.

The system is typically used to precisely measure water velocities in water channels and rivers. It can be installed on an irrigation channel bank, a bridge abutment or a riverbank.

Cargotec Introduces Portable Training Simulator
For Offshore Crane Operators
Cargotec Corp. (Helsinki, Finland) announced on Tuesday that it has developed a simulator that provides valuable, realistic training for operators of offshore load-handling equipment employing advanced active heave-compensation (AHC) technology, such as AHC offshore and subsea cranes.

The simulator was designed, constructed and tested in-house by a team of system engineers at Cargotec’s offshore load-handling site in Kristiansand, Norway.

"The rapidly expanding base of active heave-compensated cranes on offshore ships utilized in subsea load handling and their operational complexity were decisive factors in selecting this type of equipment for training by simulator," project manager Eldri Nærum said.

Comprehensive training in the proper use of equipment has great benefits in terms of safety and efficiency and also reduces the likelihood of damage, downtime and repair costs due to incorrect operation, Cargotec said.

The simulator features a full-scale crane cabin interior with multiple high-resolution displays that provide an unrestricted view of the entire simulated operating area through numerous windows. The complete simulator package, including all the necessary hardware, is housed in a single 20-foot container.

"In addition to its primary training function, the simulator also enables Cargotec to demonstrate and assess the various functions of its products, plan marine operations and log data for playback to evaluate and improve future operations," Nærum said. "It can also be used for the rapid design and testing of new concepts."

RBR Announces a New President
And Chairman of the Board
RBR Ltd. (Ottawa, Canada) announced Tuesday that Greg Johnson, who for two years has led the engineering developments of the company, will take over as president on September 1. Kara-Lee Golota will continue as vice president, and Frank Johnson assumes the role of chairman of the board, with a particular interest in fostering new activities allied to the work of RBR and instrumentation.

In order to ensure a seamless transition, Johnson has already handed over to the internal team many of the customer and agent-support duties that he has led for the last decade, the company said.

BP Deploying Liquid Robotics
Wave Glider Vehicles in Gulf of Mexico
BP Plc (London, England) announced this week that it is deploying two satellite-controlled, unmanned Wave Glider vehicles as part of its long-term monitoring and research program in the Gulf of Mexico.

The vehicles, developed by Liquid Robotics (Sunnyvale, California), derive their propulsion power from wave action and use solar power for their electronics. They were deployed on Wednesday and began a months-long, ongoing research program in the Gulf of Mexico, BP said. This is the first application of this technology in the Gulf of Mexico, BP said, and a second pair Wave Glider vehicles will be deployed in September.

"These vehicles will provide us a steady stream of data about water quality and should significantly increase the available data for ongoing research activity," said Mike Utsler, chief operating office of BP’s Gulf Coast Restoration Organization. "We will initially deploy the Wave Gliders between the Macondo well and the shoreline, and look to expand from there in the future."

BP said the Wave Gliders will monitor key environmental variables, including water quality (to detect any emulsified, dissolved and dispersed oil in water), phytoplankton (chlorophyll), colored dissolved oxygen matter, marine mammal vocalization, and weather and water temperature data.

"Initially we will be calibrating a set of nine optical sensors to monitor water quality, including trace amounts of dispersed oil, and will then add acoustic monitoring of marine mammal activity," Roger Hine, president and chief executive officer of Liquid Robotics, said. "We look forward to working with BP on this extended research program."

Data collected by the vehicles will be relayed via satellite and posted on a public website.

New BlueView 3D Scanner
Gives Researchers Tool for Viewing the Past
The Institute of Nautical Archaeology recently partnered with OceanGate and BlueView Technologies (Seattle, Washington) on an expedition to create 3D imagery of the A.J. Goddard, a sternwheeler "ghost shipwreck" in Lake Laberge in Canada’s Yukon Territory.

Recently designated as a Yukon Historic site, the frontier-era steamer disappeared in a winter storm in October 1901. Researchers and OceanGate "citizen scientists" used BlueView’s BV5000 3D scanning system to create the first high-resolution, 3D digital model of the perfectly preserved steamboat, BlueView said.

BlueView said the survey would have taken years to complete with traditional technologies, but it took only days employing the new BV5000 system.

The BV5000 is able to scan a large target area from a stationary position. The final 3D images of the Goddard can be viewed at http://opentheoceans.com/goddard/technology.htm.

Colligo Marine Introduces New Synthetic Lifeline Kits
Colligo Marine LLC (Mesa, Arizona) announced this week that it has introduced kits for installing Colligo Dux lifelines. Each kit uses lashings and stopper knot systems for easy installation and maintenance, the company said.

For boats up to 40 feet, each kit includes enough five-millimeter Dynex Dux, lashing line and all the hardware needed to complete one lifeline. Two kits are available: the CSS2000 without gates and the CSS2100 with gate hardware included.

Made from heat-stretched Dyneema®, the lifelines now approved for offshore use by the International Sailing Federation.