Norwegian-headquartered Kongsberg Discovery has unveiled its new FS80 Trawl Sonar, hailing the compact, modular and multifrequency solution as the market’s first sonar system to combine net monitoring, intake profiling and bottom detection in a single unit.
According to Kongsberg Discovery, the FS80 makes the very latest sonar technology accessible to all fishery customers.
“Our market experience and understanding gives us unique insight into customer pain points, while our technological expertise allows us to develop the solutions to solve them. The FS80 Trawl Sonar provides the proof,” Kongsberg Discovery VP Sales Mads Dahl said. “This is a first time a truly integrated system has hit the market, with a wide range of functionality and advanced multifrequency performance, delivering an operational flexibility, and reliable results, that all customers can take advantage of – whatever the pelagic fish types, whatever the size of the trawl. To enable more sustainable trawling, both environmentally and commercially, fishery businesses need precise targeting, control and monitoring abilities.”
Dahl added: “The FS80 Trawl Sonar is tailored to deliver, opening a new window for efficient, responsible and profitable performance.”
The FS80 builds on the legacy of the popular FS70, which has been a trusted market leader for the past 20 years. Alongside the upgrade in performance and integration, the new solution also supports a broad range of different telemetry cables, easing adoption for diverse customers.
A further innovation comes in its modularity, with Dahl revealing that Kongsberg Discovery is on the cusp of launching the FH80 HUB, a central platform upon which modular components, such as the FS80, can be based. This will customers to “pick and mix” the optimal Kongsberg Discovery technology for their individual needs, giving them a unified, high performance trawling approach.
“The modular nature of this solution, and our complementary systems, adds a further degree of flexibility and efficiency for customers,” Dahl said. “Components such as the FS80 can be integrated with, for example, cameras, lamps, active selectors and acoustic modems for door control. This creates a scalable ecosystem that will continue evolving as it matures, with the ability to add the very latest innovations – such as AI-driven monitoring and intervention technologies – in the years to come. We see this as the beginning of a new era of sustainable success, both for Kongsberg Discovery and SIMRAD, and our many valued customers.”
