Deep Marine Technology

Flying deep┬áBusiness strategies that seemed viable at the outset donÔÇÖt always live up to expectation. As Alan T Swaby learns from the COO of Deep Marine Technology, sometimes plan B is the better option. For all those young businesses finding the going a bit tough, take heart. Deep Marine Technology was in exactly that position for the first two years of its existence, but in the last few it has appeared not just once but twice in the top 10 of Entrepreneur magazineÔÇÖs Hot 500 list.Deep Marine Technology is a service company to the offshore oil and gas industries located primarily in the Gulf of Mexico. Set up in 2002, its initial objective was to provide underwater services to oil exploration companies. In addition to manned diving, it had two directly operated vehicles (DOVs) for hire, essentially mini submarines, capable of working to depths of 2,000 feet. But although there was plenty of experience behind the venture, it never really took off. Good equipment, no doubt, but not the right equipment for the application.Nevertheless, the experience of the team did pay off. ÔÇ£Four years ago,ÔÇØ says chief operating officer Wade Abadie, ÔÇ£the directors decided on a different strategyÔÇöto pursue the deep-sea market sector. On the strength of the people involved, the business was able to attract new investors that provided the funds to buy vessels and equipment needed for deeper waters. Since then, the companyÔÇÖs fortunes have turned completely.ÔÇØIn order to work at the deepest levels being explored so far in the Gulf, it is necessary to invest in remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), unmanned vehicles controlled entirely from the surface. ItÔÇÖs an expensive exercise: each ROV carries a price tag of $5 million or more, and its latest boatÔÇöacquired by DMT at a cost of $70 millionÔÇöhas two of them.An ROV is just a means of getting power, vision and tools to the seabed. It goes there with a specific task in mind: open a valve, align certain items of equipment or take measurements. As such, it will be fitted out with any of dozens of different tools, specially designed for the work at hand.In DMTÔÇÖs case, each ROV is manned by a team of three, with a superintendent overseeing the work of both teams. ÔÇ£WeÔÇÖre no longer looking for operators with diving experience,ÔÇØ says Abadie. ÔÇ£Instead we look for hydraulic or electronic skills and good spatial awareness.ÔÇØOperating an ROV is a lot like playing computer games. Images from the camera are projected onto a large, flat screen in the control room, and movements are controlled by joysticks. At 10,000 feet there is absolutely no natural light, but at least in the Gulf the waters are clear. An ROV lights up the surrounding areas, but operators have vision in only specific directions. Thus, the pilots who ÔÇ£flyÔÇØ these vehicles need to be able to retain awareness of all thatÔÇÖs around them, even if itÔÇÖs not in their direct vision at the time, and see things in three dimensions.┬á Despite the attraction of playing some of the most complicated and expensive computer games in existence, DMT, like others in the business, has difficulty finding a ready supply of suitable staff. There are no specific qualifications for the job. Rather, itÔÇÖs a matter of finding someone with the right temperament and lots of on-the-job training acquired while working up through the ranks, assuming ever-higher levels of responsibility. Unfortunately, not everyone, it seems, is attracted by 12-hour shifts and being isolated in the middle of the sea for 28 days at a stretch. Things are so strained at times that employers are obliged to offer sign-on bonuses to key ROV team members.Although the entry costs to this line of business are extremely high, Abadie says there is no shortage of competition. But the purchase of DMT Emerald two years ago gave them an edge. ÔÇ£The Emerald is the first vessel of its kind in the Gulf,ÔÇØ he explains. ÔÇ£It has its lifting tower centered directly over the moon pool [an opening in the base of the hull through which the ROV enters the water], providing the most stable operating platform possible and enabling us to work in heavier seas.ÔÇØCompensating for the unpredictable rise and fall of the sea is a critical benefit. Without it, the ROV could be smashed into the seabed or, worse still, into whatever it is working on. Alternatively, it could be dragged away from the work area at a critical moment. In itself, heave control is not new, though it is still far from universal. Its greater complexity, cost and deck space requirements usually mean that it is rarely found outside the most high-specification systems.The turnaround in DMTÔÇÖs fortunes since the change of strategy has been remarkable. From the seven or eight original staff members, employee numbers have risen to almost 300. After two difficult years, the first year of servicing the deep-sea sector saw revenue of $20 million. This year the business expects revenues of $90 million. Figures like these have put DMT into EntrepreneurÔÇÖs Hot 500ÔÇöwhere small to medium enterprises are evaluated for sustained growth. In fact, DMTÔÇÖs rapid growth has led to a third change of address, as more and more space has been needed. Its new location in Houston provides 67,000 square feet of office space and warehousing, enabling both the administrative and operational sides of the business to be housed together for the first time.Interestingly, and despite both the general economic woes and a lower-than-peak oil price, deep-water exploration activity is still proceeding at a healthy pace, though interest in shallower waters has dropped off to some extent. The view is that there are plenty of oil and gas reserves to be found, which should keep the DMT pilots flying deep for some time to come. ÔÇô Editorial research by Kristina Perley┬á