Weeks 3 & 4 with WHOI
Monday Oct 23rd- Friday November 3rd
Starting my days off in an office has been an adjustment compared to diving right into shift work on a vessel at sea. The WHOI land-based schedule runs Monday-Friday, from 9am-5pm. I have settled into the schedule and enjoy my free time with my dog, Emma.
My morning usually start with checking emails, logging tasks to be completed and checking off those that have been finished. Once everyone is in the office, we divide and conquer!
The 3rd week (Oct 23rd-27th) we primarily focused on finishing the prep for JASON’s main frame and main lift parts to be dye tested for structural integrity. This dye testing is composed of applying a red blood-like coloring dye to the frame areas that are to be tested. This red dye sits for over 20 minutes and then the excess is wiped away. Then, a lighter, white-colored paint is applied and let sit, which eventually reveals cracks or breaks in areas that are being tested. This is not a long process, but the prep and clean up is what takes time. The red dye and cleaning agents can damage some hoses and cables, so it is essential to have everything separated, taped and papered off to ensure none of these damages can occur.
We were able to complete all of the required testing by Friday afternoon and there were no major issues with the lift structure main frame or lift components! Very tedious work for a rewarding result!
Week 4 (Oct 30th-Nov 3rd) kick started with identifying which model gasket type were needed to replace the ones on all of the 5 vans. This overhaul/maintenance period is not just for the ROV, but also for all of the control/storage/tool vans that accompany the ROV. One of the major concerns for these vans is water exposure, and this summer we identified a leak in one of the main control vans. So we spent this week working in WHOI’s main shop located down near their docking area. Part of the wood floor had to be cut out and then we began sanding and nail-gunning the floor braces to remove the build up of rust. This was slow and mythodical, because we wanted to make sure it was completely cleaned and coated with a hardening gray 400 paint so when the new wood flooring was put down, it would be like new! We were able to apply the last coat of the gray paint by Friday morning so it would have the weekend to completely set before the carpenters began the flooring next week.
One of the days, Tuesday Oct 31st, I spent the day helping lift and removed the inner transformer fromn the main jbox so it could be cleaned. Once finished, I lowered it back into the box and reassembled all of the hardware and cables as directed. I really enjoy being so hands-on while interning here!
To wrap up the week, I completed an online Forklift Certification training course and am all signed up to complete my in-person training next week.
