Latest technology reduces risk, taking personnel out of the firing line
Technology used on the decommissioning of Sellafield’s nuclear plant is at the forefront of new methods to help the British Army cross water in hostile territory.
Jacobs, the US-based nuclear specialist with significant operations in Manchester and Warrington, is part of a team selected by the Ministry of Defence to devise a new system to help the Army navigate hostile terrain.
The ‘Map the Gap’ competition asked the private sector how crossings could be scouted and planned without the need for dangerous reconnaissance missions.
A key part of the solution is Jacobs’ 6th Sense data analytics system, which was developed to create high-fidelity 3D maps of legacy radioactive facilities before they are decommissioned.
The concept proposes a semi-autonomous remote system that can collect the required measurements without the need to deploy personnel to the potential crossing location.
Ground surveys will be carried out using a submersible remotely operated vehicle (ROV) carrying data sensors, soil sampling tools and sonar equipment.
The 6th Sense system processes data in real time, helping military engineers to understand how the riverbed, mudflats and banks will take the weight of a temporary bridge and armored vehicles.
Clive White, Jacobs critical mission solutions international senior vice president, said: “We are looking forward to developing a new capability which will enable units like the Royal Engineers to carry out vital reconnaissance tasks without putting personnel at risk.
“We often borrow technology and techniques from other sectors to apply in the nuclear industry, so it is good to see this technology transfer process happening going in the opposite direction.
“This is another example of the mutually beneficial relationships we are building with innovative small and medium-sized enterprises.”
The MOD’s Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA), which ran the competition on behalf of the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, will now fund further research and development of the semi-autonomous reconnaissance and survey system.
The X3 unmanned vehicle
Robert Hammond-Smith, DASA delivery manager for Map the Gap, said: “Our vision is to ultimately remove personnel from these dangerous tasks with a remote system that allows more crossing locations to be surveyed, increasing the choices available to commanders.”
The winning competition entry was led by Digital Concepts Engineering, which developed the rugged X2 ROV, drone providers Frazer-Nash Consultancy, and Eijkelkamp Geopoint SoilSolutions, specialists in ground sampling technology.
Jacobs and Digital Concepts Engineering first paired the 6th Sense data analytics system with an X2 ROV last year when they won a competition, funded by Innovate UK and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, to find new ways to decommission highly radioactive former reprocessing facilities at the Sellafield nuclear site.
