Following what has been an unprecedented year for many, Subsea Technology & Rentals (STR) have taken the opportunity to give back to one of its local community colleges and donated a Digital Whiteboard.

Catch22 College located in the Keystone Innovation Centre, Thetford are a non-profit social business, who specialise in offering learning and training opportunities for students who, for whatever reason, did not stay in a traditional academic environment. Catch22 ensure young people are supported to gain the skills required to progress into apprenticeship training, employment or further education.

Neil Jackson, STR’s Group Commercial and Regional Director Europe, said “For many, this year has seen challenges in our country like no other and STR has chosen to refocus our efforts on annual client Christmas gifts to supporting our local charities and colleges.

Having known the team at Catch22 for a number of years, the work they do every day to inspire the next generation of young people is outstanding and we look forward to hearing how this fantastic digital white-board will enhance classroom sessions”.

Richard Smith, Norfolk Regional Manager, Catch22 said “We are very grateful to STR for providing this classroom resource for the young people of Thetford. Many of learners arrive at Catch22 with negative experiences in school, so attending a college with the latest technology allows us to deliver more engaging lessons and gives our staff the tools to help make significant change in our young people’s lives.”

Following the continued growth of Subsea Technology & Rentals (STR) operations, STR is pleased to announce the appointment of Scott McLay as Sales Manager for the Europe, Middle East & Africa region.

This appointment comes at a pivotal time for STR’s Aberdeen team, who are preparing to relocate to larger facilities in the early new year to facilitate STR’s rate of growth to service our customers operational demands. This strategic expansion is being driven by STR’s Board of Directors who are committed to investing in our Aberdeen offering which will allow STR to continue to offer its local customers with the expertise and subsea technology they have grown to expect.

Scott Johnstone, STR’s Group Managing Director, said, “We are thrilled to announce the appointment of Scott and welcome him to the Team. We have known Scott throughout his career, and we have admired his professionalism and work ethic. When the opportunity to employ Scott arose, this is something we could not let pass us by. Scott’s vast knowledge and first-hand experience will be a great attribute to STR, and this will further complement the organisation as we evolve”.

Scott, who is based in Aberdeen, began his Offshore Energy career over thirty years ago and has invaluable offshore operational experience having started his career as an ROV Pilot Technician before progressing into the survey equipment rental business. Throughout Scott’s career he has gained experience in global technical and commercial positions with a range of leading suppliers to the Subsea Energy Industry.

Scott McLay, Sales Manager EMEA said “I am looking forward to embarking on this next challenge in my career and join the STR team at an exciting time as they take the next step in their expansion. Throughout my career I have been a user or supplier of subsea rental equipment from offshore engineer level through to senior management and I have a good understanding of what is important to our customers and delivering innovative solutions.”.

iXblue new Gaps M5, has been selected by global rental company Subsea Technology & Rentals (STR) to offer a practical, easy to export and cost-effective USBL solution to their global base of customers.

Broadening STR’s existing pool of subsea equipment, Gaps M5 addresses the accuracy and performance needs and requirements for vertical and horizontal tracking applications.

Latest addition in iXblue’s USBL product range, Gaps M5 is a compact, export-free and omnidirectional USBL system that offers accurate location, positioning and tracking of subsea assets. It integrates an Attitude and Heading Reference System (AHRS) for stable heading roll and pitch compensation and a true north reference. Smaller, lighter and easy to install, Gaps M5 is a ready-to-use and calibration-free system that offers an accuracy better than 0.5% up to 995m operating range. The USBL system is extremely efficient in shallow water and horizontal conditions and is suitable for any tracking operations, from diver- to multiple subsea assets- or inspection ROV- tracking.

“We’ve been offering iXblue products for over 20 years now, including their INS, AHRS and USBL systems. As a global leader which proven technology is recognized worldwide within our industry, their systems are great assets to have and they’ve always met our customer’s’ requirements,” explains Scott Johnstone, Group Managing Director at STR. “USBL, in particular, are critical components of our rental offer, and the new Gaps M5 is perfectly suited to our customers’ needs and jobs. Our new Gaps M5 is already being utilised by our customers on geophysical surveys for offshore windfarms site investigation, and other tracking and towed services and we received very positive feedback on the performance, lightweight, and compact nature of the new system.”

“We’re very happy to see our latest Gaps USBL system already benefitting subsea operations worldwide and we want to thank STR for their longstanding partnership and continued trust in our navigation and positioning technology,” states Régis Blomme, Sales director at iXblue. “We now look forward to supplying STR with other high end products in order to meet their demanding requirements as they strive to always offer the latest industry solutions available to their customers.”

Subsea Technology & Rentals (STR) is delighted to announce the appointment of Stephen Miller as Senior Business Development Engineer for the Europe, Middle East & Africa region.

Stephen, who is based in France, began his Offshore Energy career in Aberdeen over 18 years ago and has gained invaluable field experience having previously worked for Fugro and Technip.

This strategic expansion is being driven by STR’s Board of Directors, following the success of our recent international growth. Neil Jackson, Group Commercial and Regional Director Europe, said, “We are pleased to welcome Stephen to the STR Team. We have known Stephen for a number of years and admired his dedication and commitment to deliver to his customers. Stephen will further complement our established teams’ capabilities with his wealth of knowledge and experience.

“This appointment is a natural evolution for STR, and will allow us to continue to service existing customers in Europe, Middle East & Africa with the expertise they have grown to expect, but also allows us to develop relations with new customers locally.”

Stephen Miller, Senior Business Development Engineer EMEA said “I am delighted to be a part of the STR team and build on the strong foundations they already have in region. Having watched STR evolve in recent years, both geographically and its technical capability, I am looking forward to showcasing our first-class innovative technology and solutions first-hand to our customers.”

Slangerup, Denmark – October 8, 2020. Teledyne Marine is proud to announce that Subsea Technology & Rentals (STR) has made a significant investment in BlueView’s MK2 imaging sonar systems.

The investment in a large quantity of the recently launched BlueView M Series MK2 imaging sonar.

confirms STR’s ongoing commitment to providing the latest equipment from Teledyne Marine. It follows recent commitments for additional SeaBat T Series multibeam systems and the latest generation TOGS AHRS and INS systems.

“The MK2 combines clearer imagery with a number of new options including a 6000m variant in Titanium and is already proving rock solid on shallow and ultra- deep water projects alike; the dual frequency proving especially popular with ROV pilots the world over” says Ed Cheesman of Teledyne Marine.

“The M-series MK2 BlueView is significant as it follows a recent move of the product line from Seattle, USA to Slangerup in Denmark and marries together BlueView’s crisp imagery with RESON’s rich heritage in building robust subsea sonar solutions. It highlights the strength of Teledyne’s vision to add value to our successful marine brands and their associated products through consolidation.”

Scott Johnstone, Group Managing Director, STR said, “STR firmly believe continuous investment in the latest subsea technology is more important than ever to ensure our clients need not compromise on quality for their project requirements. Partnering with STR gives the flexibility to easily scale up and down to meet project needs with operations supported through our offices in Australia, Singapore and the UK and we are proud to include the latest BlueView MK2 in our growing portfolio.

Great Yarmouth based marine technology experts Subsea Technology and Rentals (STR) are pleased to announce the supply of 2 SeaSpyder underwater camera systems to the Association of Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities (AIFCA), for use by its ten individual statutory organisations.

The delivery of SeaSpyder underwater camera systems and deployment solution to the IFCAs is to improve their ability to gather information on seabed habitats and species across England’s inshore waters. This work is to support Defra’s ambitious target of achieving a well-managed network of marine protected sites by 2016.

The SeaSpyder underwater drop camera system is part of a family of field proven underwater camera systems manufactured by STR for the marine survey and environmental communities. The SeaSpyder is designed for operation in shallow-medium water depths with the standard system having a working depth range of 500m. For applications demanding a deeper rating, a “telemetry” model is offered which operates over longer cable lengths for operation down to 1000m. Both models are fitted with a next generation digital SLR camera offering high resolution digital stills and HD video for the highest imagery detail. The high specification digital SLR camera offers an impressive 18.0 mega pixels resolution and both manual and automatic focus for achieving the sharpest images. The captured digital stills are framed with the aid of a dedicated real-time video camera and images are transferred “on the fly” to the topside for real-time review.
Neil Jackson, sales and operations manager at STR, said: “In recent times STR has made significant investments in its research and development capability, with key focus on our underwater camera technology. The IFCA’s commitment to purchase 2 new SeaSpyder camera systems is a testament of our capabilities.”

Sam Davis at Cornwall IFCA which has already started to use the SeaSpyder dropframe system, said: “IFCAs are responsible for managing a sustainable marine environment and inshore fisheries for the benefit of all in the inshore marine zone. After a number of successful trials of the SeaSpyder camera system, the decision to purchase was easy. We are looking forward to further exploring the already impressive capabilities of SeaSpyder to further our knowledge of the environment within our areas, and to achieve a sound, fair and effective management of these protected sites.”

For further information on products and services offered by STR visit www.str-subsea.com

Following the continued success of Subsea Technology & Rentals (STR) in the Asia Pacific region, STR is pleased to announce the appointment of Karl Weedon as the region’s Sales Engineer.

The Company, which specialises in the design, production and rental of advanced subsea technology, has made this appointment following an increase in customer enquiries and demand for subsea equipment in the region. This enables STR to deliver its full suite of technology and support services locally and support their client’s operational requirements.

Jason French, Asia Pacific Regional Director, STR said, “We are delighted to welcome Karl to the STR Team. Karl brings with him a wealth of technical and operational experience from his former technical role at Sonardyne and this skillset will be invaluable as we continue to expand. Since entering the Asia Pacific region, we have established key relationships with existing and new customers which has set a strong foundation in the region for future opportunities in current and new markets”.

Photograph: Jason French, Regional Director – Asia Pacific and Karl Weedon – Sales Engineer.