Kongsberg Delivers 50th HAIN System

Kongsberg Maritime has delivered its 50th HAIN (Hydro Acoustic aided Inertial Navigation) Reference System, to long-time HAIN user, Ocean Rig. HAIN significantly improves reference data accuracy and update rate sent to Dynamic Positioning (DP) systems to support safer, more reliable and efficient offshore drilling operation. It is also suitable for applications including offshore loading and specialist operations such as offshore construction.

Ocean Rig is an international offshore drilling contractor providing oilfield services for offshore oil and gas exploration, development and production drilling, and specializing in the ultra-deep water and harsh environment segment of the offshore drilling industry. The company was an early adopter of the HAIN Reference system for DP vessels.

“This delivery marks a significant milestone for our acoustic based DP position reference product, which was introduced almost a decade ago,” says Morten Berntsen, Sales Manager Subsea Underwater Instrumentation, Kongsberg Maritime. “We have seen a surge in HAIN Reference System sales in the last four-five years that corresponds both with the boom in rig new builds and a general acceptance of acoustic aiding of inertial navigation for improving acoustic based reference systems.”

HAIN combines hydro acoustic positioning with measurements from an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) to substantially improve position accuracy compared to using acoustics alone. The addition of HAIN to an acoustic positioning system such as KONGSBERG HiPAP or HPR increases position accuracy by up to four times, whilst ensuring a constant 1 Hz update rate. This gives a vessel’s acoustic positioning system the same weighting as GPS within the DP system. HAIN users also benefit from added robustness, less downtime, and less transponder battery use, all aspects that can increase operational efficiency for offshore vessels.

HAIN Reference is primarily installed on drilling rigs and drillships, though Kongsberg Maritime has supplied it for a diverse range of offshore DP vessels including shuttle tankers, pipe layers and construction vessels.

“It is quite fitting that the 50th HAIN Reference system was delivered to one of the first companies to embrace HAIN technology. Ocean Rig has plans to equip all of its vessels with inertial systems, to ensure reliable and accurate DP operations across its fleet,” concluded Berntsen.