Lloyd’s Register (LR), one of the world’s leading providers of professional services for engineering and technology, and TWI, the leading independent research and technology organisation, today announce the launch of Fullagar Technologies.
The joint venture will deliver innovative inspection systems, products and services globally using the very latest industry research from the National Structural Integrity Research Centre (NSIRC), combining the advanced welding and non-destructive testing techniques (NDT) expertise of TWI with the technical inspection and verification experience of LR.
LR and TWI’s collaboration has already seen the publication of the first industry guidelines on Additive Manufacturing in 2016 and Fullagar Technologies will continue to lead its industrial development, including in-process (rather than end product) verification and certification
Fullagar Technologies will focus on deploying the latest digital technologies in 3 areas:
• Remote Inspection of surface and subsurface integrity - Application of remote technologies and smart sensors to enable remote inspection of new and in-service components and assets in hazardous environments.
• Additive Manufacturing - Commercialisation of Additive Manufacturing tools and methodologies including in-process verification and certification.
• Digital (IOT 4.0) Manufacturing - Data-driven automation of fabrication methods that have hitherto consisted of manual operations
The joint venture is named after the first fully welded ocean-going ship in the world, which successfully demonstrated the deployment of new technology in a traditional industry. Classed by LR, the Fullagar was built at Cammell Laird shipyard, Birkenhead, in 1920.
Simon Reeve, VP Technology & Innovation at LR said: “Technology is advancing rapidly and there is a significant opportunity for new, remote, digital inspection solutions across different industry sectors to reduce cost, improve efficiency and improve safety. We are very pleased to continue our long-standing partnership with TWI in meeting the needs of our clients through this JV.”
Aamir Khalid, Technology Director at TWI, added: “The technologies being taken to market are being developed by the National Structural Integrity Research Centre (NSIRC) sponsored by LRF, TWI and BP. These technologies will be marketed and developed into products by Fullagar Technologies Ltd, which is a JV between TWI and LRG.”
