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OSC’s MV Orca is a general purpose survey vessel and workboat adapted for various uses, including marine mammal and seabird surveys, crew transfers, safety, diving, wildlife watching, and fishing.
MV Orca is stored in OSC’s warehouse, situated in the coastal town of Dunbar. The vessel is transported, launched and recovered, using a heavy duty, double-axle, braked trailer, which includes a spare wheel and salt water flushing kit. A dedicated Toyota Amazon Land Cruiser 4.2 L 4×4 is supplied for towing to locations throughout Europe. MV Orca is available to mobilise anywhere in Europe at short notice.
All safety equipment exceeds minimum requirements of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA).
MV Orca is equipped with a detachable observation tower designed specifically for Marine Mammal & Seabird Observation (MMSO), which permits a minimum eye height of 5 m above sea level.
A stern-mounted davit/boom and detachable manual winch have been installed for the deployment and recovery of up to 500 m of Passive Acoustic Monitoring (PAM) hydrophone array cable or other oceanographic instruments. The on-board 2 KW Honda ‘whisper’ diesel generator can be used for powering environmental monitoring equipment exclusively. It has low-operational noise of just 52 dB (less than normal speech), and three-pin electrical sockets inside the cabin with sufficient power to run several laptops and associated electronics. There is seating and table-ledges available for operators.
For MV Orca’s specification sheet, click here.
Contact us to discuss your charter vessel requirements.
OSC periodically hires charter vessels for survey work. Charter operators and companies are invited to submit their details, where vessels meet the desired specifications to support any of our range of services for both coastal and offshore projects.
If you feel your vessel may be of use to OSC, please contact us.
OSC personnel are qualified to operate fast crafts and small vessels, for which they have received WIldlif SafE (WiSe) training and accreditation (‘Accredited Marine Industry Operator’), a scheme designed to promote universal protocol for safe navigation of boats in the vicinity of macro marine wildlife (e.g. cetaceans, pinnipeds, sharks and turtles) and minimise any disturbance to these animals. WiSe is a self-regulatory scheme that is entirely funded by the UK government and receives the logistical support of many mainstream international NGOs. For more information visit: www.wisescheme.org.
