Results of investment in subsea trials and training facilities revealed to industry
The Underwater Centre in Fort William has invested £2 million over the last six years in improvement and expansion of its facilities, including upgrades to the pier infrastructure and additions to the onshore complex, such as a new ROV electronics and engineering workshop.
As a leading supplier of commercial diver and ROV training as well as trials facilities to the energy sector, many of the industries’ key players have visited the Centre previously and the open day was an opportunity for them to see the extent of the changes resulting from the investment.
On the day, representatives from the various companies, including Shell, Fugro and DOF Subsea, enjoyed a cruise to the Centre’s deep dive site, a tour of the saturation diving barge and pier, including, ROV cabins, dive stations, as well as the indoor dive complex, ROV and NDT classrooms.
Steve Ham, General Manager at The Underwater Centre said: “The investment over the past six years has transformed The Underwater Centre. Our facilities are now of an even higher standard which, along with our unrivalled team of staff, allows us to provide cost-effective, industry leading, subsea training.
“We have a strong relationship with many companies within the industry and the open day was a fantastic opportunity for them to fully appreciate the improvements that have been made and see first-hand what we have to offer now in terms of facilities.”
The Underwater Centre, Fort William, which also has a school in Tasmania, is based on the shore of a seawater loch, and is well sheltered by the surrounding mountains. The Centre’s unique location allows it to provide year-round training and testing in an open-water environment, whilst still being centrally located in the largest town in the Scottish Highlands. With access to depths of over 100 metres, it is the ideal location to perform realistic and industry specific saturation and air diver and ROV pilot technician training, as well as providing a convenient location for subsea equipment trials.
In addition, it is the only subsea training centre to provide commercial diver and ROV training in one purpose-built underwater training site, giving students experience in an environment similar to what can be found offshore.
The Underwater Centre’s extensive pier complex includes four dive stations, classrooms, workshops and decompression chambers. In addition to this, there are three fully equipped barges set up to support a variety of diving disciplines including closed bell, wet bell and surface supplied diving. With accommodation and additional classrooms based at the landward end of the pier, The Underwater Centre is set up to provide its students with the skills and experience to succeed in their new careers.