Published19 minutes ago
It sounds like science fiction. Ocean-going ships with no-one on board. But this vision of the future is coming – and sooner than you might think.
You can glimpse it in a Norwegian fjord where a huge, lime-green vessel is being put through its paces. At first glance, it seems like any other ship. Look closer, though, and you suddenly see all the hi-tech kit. Cameras, microphones, radars, GPS and all manner of satellite communications.
“We’ve added a lot of additional equipment and designed her especially to be what we call ‘robotic’,” says Colin Field, the head of remote systems at US-UK company Ocean Infinity (OI).
The ship is part of OI’s new “Armada” – a fleet eventually of 23 vessels – that will survey the seabed for offshore wind farm operators and check underwater infrastructure for the oil and gas industry.
Strikingly for a ship that’s 78m (255ft) in length there are only 16 people on board. A traditional ship carrying out the same kind of work would need a crew of 40 or 50. OI believes it can reduce the numbers still further.
That’s because many of the roles can be done hundreds of miles away on land.
Entering the company’s remote operations centre in Southampton is like walking on to a futuristic film set. The dimly lit room is vast, and
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