ROV money drains are closely linked to poor quality materials and technology. Businesses that invest in long-living and high-quality ROVs can expect to see significant cost savings and revenue generation opportunities compared to those using poor-quality, short-lived alternatives. These savings and revenue increases can potentially amount to tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars over the lifetime of the ROV. A good ROV for your business makes back its, initially higher, investment costs over time.
Unfortunately, this industry is highly specialised and it can be challenging to compare your options. If you take away only one piece of advice from this post, please remember the following. How good is your relationship with your manufacturer? At SEAMOR we strive for quality ROVs and quality relationships with our clients so that we can provide them with the best possible products and solutions. If your current ROV dealer/manufacturer does not offer you that, it may be time to switch it up.
What are the specific considerations to take into account when you want to avoid ROV money drains?
Design
Lack of Modular Design. A modular design allows for flexibility and easy customization of ROVs according to specific mission requirements. A lack of modular design makes it difficult to integrate new components or adapt the vehicle for different tasks or environments.
Limited Payload Capacity. ROVs often need to carry various equipment or sensors for specific tasks. Limited payload capacity restricts the types of instruments or tools your ROV can carry. This hinders its versatility and usefulness in different applications.
Fragile Construction and Lack of Stability. ROVs need to withstand the harsh conditions of underwater environments, including pressure, currents, and impacts. Poor quality ROVs may have fragile or inadequate construction. Often a result of this is structural failures or damage during operations.
Customer Support and Care
Poor Customer Support and Maintenance. Reliable customer support and maintenance services are essential for addressing issues and ensuring the optimal performance of ROVs. Poor quality ROVs may be associated with inadequate customer support or limited availability of spare parts, making it challenging to maintain and repair the vehicle effectively. If a manufacturer believes in their ROVs, they are willing to back their claims with adequate, training, maintenance and warranties like we do at SEAMOR Marine.
Downtime. During downtime, businesses are unable to use their ROVs for productive work, resulting in lost revenue. Your manufacturer should be as passionate about decreasing downtime as you are when your ROV is in for repairs and maintenance.
Compliance. Regulatory requirements, such as safety standards or environmental regulations, can add additional costs and administrative burdens for businesses relying on ROV technology. Make sure your ROV follows the required standards. You can do this by asking many questions in the buying process. The better the ROV and the better your dealer, the better the answers will be.
Individual Components
Weak Thrusters. ROVs rely on thrusters for propulsion and maneuverability. Poor quality ROVs may have underpowered or unreliable thrusters, resulting in sluggish movement or difficulty in controlling the vehicle, especially in adverse conditions such as strong currents. We even sell our thrusters separately because they are that good! A sign that our ROVs should be your next investment. 😉
Weak/Wrong Materials or Substandard Manufacturing Processes. Mechanical failures such as cracks, fractures, or deformations can be a result of subpar processes and materials. This can occur in structural components, manipulator arms, or other moving parts, compromising the overall integrity and functionality of the ROV. And at the end of the day, subpar components mean you’re risking your mission success too.
If this post did not provide you with enough answers and insights, the SEAMOR team is here for a chat. Reach out and we will get back to you ASAP.