The Navantia Seanergies shipyard in Fene has carried out, for the first time, the visual inspection of an offshore wind structure using an autonomous aerial drone, in the presence of representatives from the three main offshore Classification Societies: Bureau Veritas, DNV and Lloyd’s Register. This innovation will enable improvements in the efficiency of production processes, initially during the final inspection phase.
This new drone functionality is the result of a project developed under a collaboration agreement between Navantia Seanergies and the Andalusian Association for Research and Industrial Cooperation (AICIA), through its Robotics, Vision and Control Research Group (GRVC), linked to the Higher Technical School of Engineering of the University of Seville.
During the session, the visual inspection carried out by the drone was displayed on a screen located in a room at the shipyard, allowing attendees to observe the details of the jacket structure selected for the inspection. Images were shown in standard view as well as at different levels of magnification—up to x40 optical zoom and x80 digital zoom—enabling accurate detection and precise localization of defects. It was also verified that a x5 zoom is equivalent to the visual capability of an expert operator, in accordance with applicable regulations. The day concluded with a joint discussion among participants to define the next steps.
Carla Chawla, Director of the Navantia Seanergies Fene Shipyard, highlighted that the system “will bring greater efficiency and safety to the final inspection process of large offshore units with clients and Classification Societies”.
In this regard, María Antonia Gálvez, Business Development Manager at DNV, described it as “an incredible qualitative and quantitative leap that will improve quality and safety in inspections”. Javier González, Head of Floating Wind at Bureau Veritas, agreed with this assessment, further emphasizing “the savings in working hours for inspectors and operators”.
This collaboration builds on previous joint projects between the two entities, such as ePark+, focused on the development of autonomous inspection solutions for offshore wind farms.
The event also served to outline plans aimed at training the Fene Shipyard in the use of this technology, with the objective of consolidating its progressive integration into industrial inspection processes.
This initiative contributes to the transformation, modernization and digitalization objectives of the Fene Shipyard, enhancing the efficiency of production processes and strengthening product quality assurance. It is being developed within the framework of Navantia Seanergies Coex Green Energies (Navantia Seanergies’ Centre of Excellence), reinforcing the company’s commitment to technological innovation applied to the offshore industry.
