Robotica in Maintenance Strategies BV (RIMS) has launched inspection services of enclosed spaces to the Maritime and Offshore Industry, using the drone Elios.
Founded in 2015 by David Knukkel, Sr. Maintenance Consultant in Maritime and Offshore Industry, RIMS has the mission to replace all high-risk & resource intensive maintenance activities with smarter drone and robotic technologies to increase safety and cost efficient operations.
The major focus of RIMS was to realise safe inspections of enclosed spaces. Extensive market research was carried out including visiting several Universities in Holland and Switzerland with their partner ‘Flyability’, where they gave a presentation of the drone Elios; a drone within a protective cage, perfectly suited to enter enclosed spaces and carry out in depth inspections of the enclosed areas.
The company together with Rotterdam Offshore Group, Rolldock and Flyability, under supervision of Class, RIMS carried out a test on board the vessel ‘Rolldock Sky’ to check whether the controls and data transfer would be okay in a ballast tank and duct keel.
These tests were successfully completed as depicted in the following brief video
Marine industry is changing fast and the door to a new “world” of technological advances is already open. There is technology available which can change traditional operations, so there is not a question of ‘if’ technology will change the market, but ‘when’ and ‘how’ the voyage will be.
RIMS is of the opinion that it is time for the Maritime and Offshore markets to understand and embrace what can robotics can mean for shipping industriy.
Hiring local unexperienced employees, sceptics against technology and changes and questions like where to start, are all actual challenges of shipping and oil companies. RIMS says that it can support these organizations in finding solutions by offering inspection services with new technology.
Source: RIMS
