ROV Makes ‘Splash’ With Demo Aboard USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7)

Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center (MARMC) hosted a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) tank inspection demonstration aboard USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7) Feb. 16 to assess how the technology could be used to improve maintenance availability efficiency.

A team from Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PSNS & IMF) led the demonstration, inspecting a 9,000 square-feet ballast tank aboard the amphibious assault ship with a VideoRay Pro 4 ROV. PSNS & IMF have been using the ROV for some nuclear tanks and voids inspections for a couple of years. With that success, the Navy is looking at the possibility of broadening its use at regional maintenance centers and other maintenance facilities.

Nearly 20 leaders in maintenance and innovation from Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Southeast Regional Maintenance Center, Southwest Regional Maintenance Center, warfare centers, and other ship maintenance facilities watched as the ROV navigated through the tank water recording and capturing images of the tank’s structural integrity.