The Geological Survey of Ireland (GSI) has purchased two moving vessel profilers (MVP) from AML Oceanographic to improve their survey operations.
GSI works in partnership with the Marine Institute of Ireland under the joint programme INFOMAR to survey the coastal and deep waters surrounding Ireland, respectively, and have committed to having all Irish waters mapped by 2026.
After experiencing the benefits of real-time, underway profiling first hand on board the Marine Institute’s MVP200-equipped vessel, Celtic Explorer, GSI decided to bring those benefits to their 16m survey catamarans RV Mallet and RV Keary to ensure on-time project completion, AML explains.
“The MVP is expected to improve productivity by over ten percent, but more importantly they will enhance safety,” explained Project Manager Sean Cullen. “GSI’s vessels run with a small crew, with hydrographic surveyors handling everything from mapping the ocean floor to preparing meals. With each cast taking up to 30 minutes of vessel time, often in inclement weather out on the deck, conducting static water column profiles frequently enough to ensure high data quality is a costly and at times dangerous affair. The compact MVP30-350 system will automatically and continuously collect SVPT and output the data to the multibeam echosounder in real-time while the vessel travels at 8-10 knots, allowing the crew to focus on other survey tasks.”
The first of the two systems was commissioned aboard RV Mallet in November 2018, with delivery of the second MVP30-350 for RV Keary to occur in 2019.
To date, over 130 MVP systems have been provided to organizations around the world seeking to reduce the technical and financial unpredictability of hydrographic and ocean science surveys. Due to high demand for the solution, AML has expanded their Nova Scotia operations and relocated to a new customised production facility to accommodate a higher volume of MVP builds.