With several decades of experience designing ultrasonic testing (UT) equipment for the offshore and underwater environment, Cygnus Instruments fully understands the requirements of subsea inspection, repair and maintenance and has injected a wealth of subsea IRM knowledge and expertise into the ultrasonic Flooded Member Detection (FMD) solution.

Flooded Member Detection is an inspection regime designed to screen an offshore platform’s underwater structures for flooding in members. A cracked weld, for example, can allow seawater to ingress into the member, which may create a point of failure for the structure. 

Cygnus Flooded Member Detector (FMD) combines intelligent, advanced software and electronics with a truly simple-to-use interface. The system gives a simple RED if flooded or GREEN if dry, along with A-scans. The purpose-designed system boasts the highest reliability thanks to its advanced signal processing, a peak detection algorithm, and low distortion/low noise data acquisition which enables it to eliminate false readings confidently. Inspectors such as offshore engineers and inspection technicians particularly like the contact sensor, which confirms a correct contact with the member before taking any measurement, while the 4-way gimble enables the correct probe alignment. With simple and intuitive software, subsea inspectors can generate PDF or Excel reports for post-inspection analyses. 

The FMD system is both diver or ROV deployable. Being of a compact design, the probe can get into hard-to-reach areas (e.g. K nodes) where other inspection methods cannot. There are a range of versatile options to suit working depths and varying requirements; examples are three stainless steel handle options to suit divers and ROVs, an umbilical cable with either 120M or 350M length, and a cable protector which provides extra cable protection and an attachment point for divers.

The FMD System is owner-operated and extremely easy to learn and understand. Due to its simplicity, it can be used by operators with varying experience without the need for external contractors.

One customer feedback stated, “The new Cygnus Ultrasonic FMD System was perfect for our recent application. Our technicians found the software to be very easy to use with features that ensured a quick and reliable result. It’s a great addition to the Westerton Access capability, offering FMD inspection from the Falcon ROV.”

Cygnus Instruments celebrated its 40th anniversary last year and has been a leading manufacturer, providing reliable ultrasonic testing equipment for asset integrity management (AIM) above and below water across various industry sectors. All Cygnus ultrasonic testing equipment is simple to use, robust, and has a three-year warranty.