DOF Subsea Tests JFD’s New Diving Rebreather

DOF Subsea has carried out the first major offshore dive with JFD’s new deep diving rebreather, COBRA (Compact Bailout Rebreathing Apparatus).

Earlier this year, JFD released COBRA into the market to replace conventional SCUBA bailout methods, providing divers with extended supply of breathing gas in the event of a primary supply failure. Last month COBRA was granted full CE marking status, making it the only approved system of its kind to achieve NORSOK U101 (Diving Respiratory Equipment) and EN14143 (Self Contained Rebreathing Apparatus) standards.

Upon delivery of their new COBRA systems, DOF Subsea divers and technicians received familiarity and maintenance training from JFD on-board the Skandi Singapore DSV before embarking on a saturation diving project to 270msw in Australia.

At these extreme depths, traditional bailout systems would offer the divers less than 3 minutes of emergency breathing gas, whereas the COBRA system provides 20 minutes minimum duration for this depth.

COBRA has been designed and developed by JFD to reduce a diver’s gas usage by recycling the diver’s breath, removing carbon dioxide and injecting a flow of fresh breathing gas to replace the oxygen consumed. COBRA can be tested at any time, giving divers vital reassurance through the single turn activation valve on the helmet. This allows the diver to mechanically switch COBRA on and off as a pre-dive check.

The divers were satisfied with the set’s performance during the dive and JFD said it received positive feedback with regards to ease of use, comfort, practicality and the greatly improved safety benefits offered by the system.

JFD managing director, Giovanni Corbetta, commented: “JFD is delighted with COBRA’s recent performance throughout both the CE marking testing and the recent dive to 270msw. We are confident that the system provides divers with a reliable and practical solution to an issue which has been of huge concern to diving contractors and oil and gas operators for a number of years. Previous bailout systems’ shortfalls have now been addressed and we are expecting companies to adopt COBRA within their procedures to raise the safety level of diving activities and to ensure preventable diver casualties are widely reduced.”