DIVING COMPANIES USE CABLE TRACKERS & PINGERS

A number of commercial diving and marine service companies are currently using cable trackers and acoustic pingers for a variety of applications.  Cable trackers are one of the best pieces of equipment to locate   and track power and communication cables.  They work by detecting the 50 or 60 cycle frequency of a live power cable, or by detecting a tone that is induced onto the cable by a topside signal injector.   A pinger is used to mark the location of underwater objects.  Once activated the pinger can transmit an acoustic signal for weeks or months.   A diver carrying a pinger receiver can easily locate these transmitters. 

         One company using this equipment is Michigan based Durocher Marine, which specializes in difficult marine and heavy construction projects throughout the US and Caribbean. The company performs a broad range of work that includes the construction and repair of ocean piers and breakwaters, intake and outfall piping, environmental cleanup, diving services, salvage operations, and the installation and maintenance of submarine power and communication cables.  Durocher is currently working on a job at NRG Energy’s Norwalk Harbor Generating Station in Connecticut.    Part of the project involved locating several underwater cables and marking their location.  Project manager Tim Paquette contacted JW Fishers, a leading manufacturer of underwatter search systems, for the right equipment.  Fishers supplied a CT-1 cable tracking system, several acoustic pingers, and the PR-1 pinger receiver.  “The equipment is doing a fine job for us”, Paquette reports. “We were able to quickly find the cables, follow their path, and mark the position.”

            Another company successfully using pingers and a receiver is Weatherford Pipeline and Specialty Services based in the United Arab Emirates. Weatherford  provides a variety of services to their oil field customers including the inspection, cleaning, drying, and testing of pipelines.  According to project engineer Pat Williams saturation divers recently used the pinger receiver to track the location of a pig travelling through an offshore pipeline in Egypt.  Pat reports, “The PR-1 has been great.  The divers were able to follow the pig as it travelled through several kilometers of pipe. Our client is more than happy with everything we’ve done.”

            Also based in UAE is Southern Gulf Surveys, a company with substantial knowledge and experience in Hydrographic, Topographic, and Geophysical surveys.  They have a fleet of small shallow water vessels, and a pool of survey equipment and personnel available for rental on short or long contracts. Best known for their work in dredging and reclamation, they have provided services to many international clients.   Recently the company was hired to locate and track several power cables.  Managing director Stephen Hart reports,  “The CT-1 cable tracker is doing its job. The cables we’re searching for are 11kva and 50Hz.  We got good signals both on the beach and offshore.  We found the cables 70 meters out of position and buried down 150 cm.  They were supposed to be 15 meters apart and buried down 60 cm.  The client commented that we’ve done what no one else had managed to do so far!”

     For more information contact Chris Combs at info@jwfishers.com or go to www.jwfishers.com.