Fugro’s Coastal Monitoring Contract Extended For 5 Years

Operated by six lead authorities the RCMP network continuously observes and records coastal processes, providing data to support shoreline management plans, coastal defence strategies and operational management of coastal protection and flood defence. Fugro is already familiar with the programmes having installed and maintained oceanographic and meteorological equipment under contracts dating back to 2003 and covering five of the country’s six regions.

Fugro maintains 30 wave buoys, two seabed mounted acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCPs), 12 tide gauges and 13 meteorological stations, and provides constant monitoring of all real-time instruments, whilst facilitating the transfer of data to the Channel Coastal Observatory (CCO) website. Using its in-house software it undertakes automated quality checks on incoming data and monitors equipment integrity. In addition to real-time data provision, Fugro also provides the RCMP with a comprehensive data processing and reporting service.

Andrew Gowland, Fugro’s Senior Oceanographer and Project Manager for the RCMP network, explains, “Our system distributes alerts in the event of sensor damage or telemetry failure, ensuring a fast response to warnings and incidents. Our processes and methods have been incrementally developed over the last 13 years, and continue to evolve to provide the RCMP with an efficient and cost-effective approach.”