UTROV ^® Our Story

The company was formed in November 2013 by Patrick Crawford to capitalise on a specialist ROV and tooling spread previously developed to carry out salvage operations.

“Salvage operations were performed on a ‘no cure – no pay’ basis therefore failure was not an option. We were acutely aware of the value of vessel time since the company operated both the UTROV® system and vessel.  Our equipment had to be robust and reliable with minimal downtime required for maintenance. We quickly learnt that cutting corners and utilising cheap components was a false economy; in the end you always pay for it. These learnings have underpinned all we do at Utility ROV Services and we strive to provide our clients with the best suited, quality equipment.”

The salvage roots of the company shone light on the requirement for a similar approach in other sectors. Key learnings were made in four main areas and remain the key focus of the team today:

SAFETY

Salvage is a hazardous task to be performed by divers. By converting to remote, diverless subsea technology with controllable launch and recovery solutions, the risk to personnel was significantly reduced.

EFFICIENCY

Bringing controllability and monitoring to the heavy tooling allowed wrecks to be surveyed in real time, whilst also streamlining the task at hand.

MULTI-PHASE CAPABILITY

Regardless of preparedness, salvage projects inevitably produce the unexpected. Re-mobilising with alternative equipment was not economically viable, therefore we needed to react using what was onboard. The multiple phases found in salvage projects had to be performed by a singular, versatile ROV, which became the primary driving factor in the development of the UTROV® and our multi-tool approach.

FIT-FOR-PURPOSE

During salvage projects, it was not necessary nor required to utilise over-complicated equipment. Instead, equipment was robustly designed to provide functionality and reliability, without being unnecessarily complicated.

UTROV® EVOLUTION

Today, the UTROV® system has evolved to operate in various sectors; however, our desire to pursue continuous improvement, based on the key pillars above remains as strong as ever.