WATCH: Ecosse Subsea Systems Shows Off SCARJet Trencher

Ecosse Subsea Systems (ESS) has completed detailed design and manufacture, supported by a number of industry experts, in order to develop the SCARJet trencher. 

In November 2016 ESS announced it will invest up to £3 million in developing a water-jetting tool with potential to double trench production rates in seabed trenching operations.

ESS awarded a contract to Northumberland-based Osbit to be the lead detail design and development provider for the SCARJet subsea vehicle which features ESS’s water-jetting and burial performance enhancement technologies.

The SCARJet trenching system is designed for use with standard work class ROVs. The system includes dual jetting swords powered by up to 1.1 megawatt of surface supplied water power. The system will be capable of jetting a trench up to 3 meters deep and 900mm wide.

Target performance for the system is to reduce the project trenching schedule to a single pass solution compared to what is currently available from existing jet trenchers on the market. Key to the superior performance is the new trench energy containment system, validated by industry recognised experts, ESS said.

The system is primarily intended for use in relatively shallow water, up to 100 meters water depth and will have the capability of trenching from the shoreline out to depth in a continuous operation.