Part of the NATO Submarine Rescue System (NSRS), a multi-national project that delivers rescue capability primarily for the partner nations of France, Norway and the UK and to NATO and allied nations, the vehicle was inspected by QinetiQ's marine structural analysis and technical services team.
The team was commissioned to conduct a structural integrity review of the submarine, including a stress-life fatigue assessment, which evaluated the welded joints of the pressure hull against the relevant design standards, and a probabilistic assessment of the likelihood of failure by fatigue.
The assessment, which was accepted by Lloyd's Register and the UK MOD Naval Authority, demonstrated that the SRV would only require visual inspections, rather than complex pressure testing, which would have taken it out of service for six months.
Source: www.bairdmaritime.com
