Skene Subsea Technology has developed the world's first electrically powered friction stud welding system designed for ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle) deployment - providing permanent anode attachment that eliminates integrity issues over the life of subsea assets.
Our electrically powered friction stud welding system is designed to mount on medium-sized ROVs, providing permanent anode attachment to subsea structures without the need for divers or hyperbaric chambers.
Traditional anode attachment methods often compromise structural integrity or fail over time. Our system uses controlled rotational force to generate heat at the joint interface, creating a solid-state bond that maintains the integrity of both the anode and the parent structure throughout the asset's operational life.
Electric power eliminates the hydraulic complexity of conventional systems, enabling deployment from standard ROVs while maintaining precise control over welding parameters. The compact design fits within standard ROV payload envelopes without sacrificing performance.
The system is controlled via an intuitive tablet interface, allowing operators to monitor welding parameters in real-time and adjust force, rotation speed, and cycle timing with precision from the surface.
Our electric powered friction stud welding system delivers permanent cathodic protection without the risks, costs, and complexity of traditional anode attachment methods.
The first electrically powered friction stud welding system eliminates hydraulic complexity, reducing maintenance requirements and enabling integration with standard ROV electrical systems for streamlined deployment.
Designed to mount on medium-sized ROVs, removing the need for specialist dive support vessels and saturation diving operations. Deploy from standard offshore support vessels with existing ROV infrastructure.
Solid-state friction welding creates a metallurgical bond that eliminates the possibility of anode detachment or structural compromise over the asset's operational life - no mechanical fasteners, no fusion welding defects.
The friction stud welding process generates no heat-affected zone degradation in the parent material, preserving the full structural integrity of pipelines, risers, and subsea infrastructure.
Friction welding is an established aerospace and automotive manufacturing process. Our innovation applies this proven technology to subsea environments with electric power for the first time.
Eliminate expensive hyperbaric welding habitats, saturation diving teams, and specialist dive support vessels. Standard ROV deployment dramatically reduces mobilisation costs and campaign duration.
Skene Subsea Technology was founded by engineers with decades of hands-on experience in subsea operations, pipeline engineering, and advanced manufacturing technology.
The concept for our electric powered friction stud welding system emerged from direct operational experience with the challenges of subsea cathodic protection. Traditional anode attachment methods - whether mechanical fastening or diver welding - consistently presented integrity risks and operational complexity that the industry had simply accepted as inevitable.
Our team recognized that friction welding technology, proven in aerospace and automotive manufacturing, could solve these problems if adapted for electric power and ROV deployment. The result is the world's first electrically powered subsea friction stud welding system.
We are currently in the final stages of development and validation, working closely with potential customers to ensure the system meets real-world operational requirements.
