HydroSurveyIQ — Deepak Kaira | Survey Consultant & Trainer

About Deepak Kaira

Three Decades.
One Discipline.

Starting as a Survey Tech aboard Indian Naval Hydrographic ships in 1994, Deepak has progressed through every tier of hydrographic survey — from Survey Engineer and Party Chief to Offshore Project Manager and Fugro Certified Trainer & Assessor. He has worked with Fugro, Gardline, Horizon Geosciences, Bibby HydroMap, Guardian Geomatics (Ocean Infinity), Subsea 7, and L&T Uncrewed Marine Systems across every major ocean and survey discipline.

Fugro Certified Trainer Fugro Certified Assessor TQUK L3 Education & Training Party Chief Assessor OPITO FOET

2026–Now
Freelance Survey Consultant
HydroSurveyIQ · L&T Uncrewed Marine Systems
2023–26
Survey Engineering Trainer
Fugro Academy & Training Centre, Plymouth UK
2021–23
Survey Party Chief
Gardline · McDermott · Horizon Geosciences
2020–21
Sr. Survey Tech — AUV/USV
Guardian Geomatics for Ocean Infinity
2010–19
Sr. Survey Engineer / Party Chief
Horizon Geosciences · Fugro FGBML · Bibby HydroMap · Subsea 7
2001–06
Sonobuoy / Hydrography Technical Equipment Instructor
Technical Position Sonobuoy, Mumbai / National Hydrographic School, Goa
1994–01
Survey Tech — Naval Ships
Indian Navy · INS Sutlej · INS Nirdeshak

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What We Deliver

From nearshore bathymetry to deep-sea AUV campaigns — comprehensive hydrographic services across every marine environment and project type.

“Hydrographic Survey proposals are evolving. Lean, focused teams using flexible resources can deliver precise, time and cost efficient results that often exceed client expectations”.

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Bathymetric Surveys

Single-beam and multibeam echo sounder surveys for navigational charting, dredging, and seabed mapping. IHO S-44 compliant deliverables.

MBES / SBES surveys
Port & harbour bathymetry
Pre/post dredge surveys
Coastal & nearshore mapping
Deep-sea multibeam (Reson 8060 / EM304)

Geophysical Surveys

Full-suite geophysical campaigns combining multibeam, side scan sonar, sub-bottom profiler, magnetometer, and seismic systems.

Analogue & Hi-Res seismic
Side scan & SSS surveys
Sub-bottom profiling
Magnetometer / Gradiometer
Environmental baseline (EBS)

Search & Recovery

AUV and surface vessel search, detection and recovery campaigns using sector scan sonar, SSS, USBL, and specialist acoustic positioning systems.

Near-shore geophysical search
Wreck Investigation
Sector scan / SSS detection
DGNSS & acoustic positioning
Sonar Wiz & MS1000 processing

Oil & Gas

Wellsite surveys, pipeline route assessment, ROV positioning, rig moves, and geotechnical campaigns for operators across the Gulf, North Sea, Caspian, and Red Sea.

Pre/post-drill site surveys
Rig move positioning
Pipe lay TDM & as-laid survey
ROV support & USBL positioning
IMR & Geotechnical surveys

UXO Surveys

Unexploded ordnance surveys using 2D and 3D EIVA ScanFish, magnetometers, and gradiometers at offshore wind farm and cable route sites in the UK North Sea.

3D & 2D EIVA ScanFish III
Geomatrics G-882 magnetometer
TVG Gradiometer systems

Offshore Construction & Windfarm

Survey support for wind farm site investigations, pile and platform installation, cable lay, geotechnical CPT, and construction vessel positioning.

Wind farm site investigation
SCPT & geotechnical support
Post-lay MBES surveys
Barge & construction positioning

Hydrographic survey team handling tide gauge operations on vessel deck

Project Highlights

70+ Global Campaigns

Selected highlights from a career spanning the Indian Ocean, Arabian Gulf, North Sea, Baltic, Mediterranean, Red Sea, and South Atlantic.

UK North Sea

Hornsea Windfarm — Post-Lay MBES

Party Chief onboard M/V Ivero for multiple rotations of post-lay multibeam survey at Hornsea offshore wind farm.

Client: Boskalis · Equipment: R2Sonic 2024, QINSy

Poland / Baltic Sea

FEW Baltic II — Geotechnical WFI

OPM / Party Chief onboard M/V Ocean Vantage for offshore wind farm site investigation geotechnical survey with SCPT 200kN.

Client: RWE Offshore Wind Poland · Sonardyne Ranger 2

UK / Norway

Geophysical Offshore Wind Site Investigation

Party Chief onboard M/V Ocean Endeavor covering UK and Norwegian Continental Shelves for wind farm geophysical survey.

Client: Ocean Wind Caledonia · V7, EdgeTech, Innomar

Red Sea, Saudi Arabia

Uncharted Red Sea Hazard Survey

Lead Survey Engineer mobilising deep-sea (2000m) and shallow-water multibeam systems across uncharted Red Sea for navigation hazard survey in accordance with IHO S-44.

Client: Aramco · Reson 8060, Knudsen SB

Mediterranean / South Atlantic

AUV Campaign — Guardian / Ocean Infinity

Sr. Survey Tech operating Hugin 6000 AUVs and EM304/EM2040 multibeam systems aboard MV Island Pride across globally undisclosed locations.

Ocean Infinity · HiPAP, APOS, Seapath

Ushuaia, Argentina

South Atlantic Offshore Survey

Geophysical and geotechnical survey campaigns offshore Tierra del Fuego and Chile including cathodic protection and drilling campaign support.

Client: Total Austral S.A. · Horizon Geosciences

Chennai, India

L&T Search & Recovery — Kattupalli Port

Survey Consultant for near-shore geophysical investigation and search/recovery campaign using ArcScout SSS, Starfish SSS and KM 1071 Sector Scan Sonar.

Client: L&T Uncrewed Marine Systems

Caspian Sea

IMR Services — Shah Deniz / ACG Fields

Sr. Survey Engineer aboard DSV Akademik Tofiq Ismayilov providing USBL positioning for work-class and inspection ROVs at BP offshore assets.

Client: BP (British Petroleum) · HiPAP, EIVA NaviPac

Falmouth, UK

Dry Dock Sensor Installation

Survey Party Chief overseeing installation and integration of survey sensors at Falmouth dry dock, coordinating with shipyard and engineering teams.

Horizon Geosciences · M/V Horizon Geobay

Training & Education

Built from the
Field Up

As a Survey Engineering Trainer at Fugro Academy & Training Centre, Plymouth (UK), Deepak has designed and delivered technical programmes for Survey Engineers, USV Technicians, ROC Operators, and Party Chiefs — with a TQUK Level 3 qualification in Education & Training and Award in Assessing Vocationally Related Achievement.

Fugro Academy Trainer TQUK L3 AET Party Chief Assessor Onboard / Onsite AUV / USV Systems Survey Networking Sensor Integration

Survey training and project collaboration collage

Hydrographic Survey Fundamentals

Core bathymetric surveying, positioning systems, tidal observations and data collection for new-entry survey engineers.

Foundation

Survey Networking & Sensor Integration

Global delivery of survey networking for autonomous platforms — USVs, AUVs, ROVs — covering hardware, software and ICT integration.

Autonomous Platforms

Multibeam Echo Sounder Operations

End-to-end MBES workflow: installation, calibration, data collection and processing based on Teledyne RESON and Kongsberg systems.

Intermediate

USBL & Underwater Positioning

Practical Sonardyne, Kongsberg HiPAP, and Tritech USBL operations, calibration, and error analysis for ROV and AUV positioning.

Specialist

Party Chief Leadership & Operations

Field leadership, crew management, HSE responsibilities, client interface, and daily survey operations management for senior professionals.

Advanced

Bespoke Corporate & Onboard Training

Custom-designed programmes for survey companies, port authorities, and O&G operators — delivered onsite, onboard, or remotely.

Corporate

Competency Development

Structured Pathways
to Survey Mastery

Deepak brings Party Chief Assessor training and a Masters Diploma in Personnel Administration to build evidence-based competency frameworks aligned to IMCA and IHO standards.

Competency Assessment

Structured evaluation of surveyor skills against defined standards — identifying gaps and development priorities aligned to IMCA.

Framework Design

Custom competency frameworks for survey teams — role profiles, skills matrices, and progression criteria for your operational context.

IHO / IMCA Alignment

Map existing team knowledge against IHO Category A/B and IMCA competency requirements, ensuring readiness for certification.

1-on-1 Mentoring

Individual mentoring by a Fugro Certified Trainer and Party Chief Assessor — guiding surveyor development through practical feedback.

Remote & e-Learning

Structured remote modules for field teams — technical content and self-assessment tools accessible wherever operations are based.

Team Competency Reviews

Periodic review for survey departments — verify ongoing skill standards, support CPD, and prepare for project mobilisation.

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Knowledge on Demand

Video Library

A curated collection of training snippets, field dispatches, and professional discussions — distilling decades of hydrographic survey experience into accessible formats.

Survey Training Snippets

Why Training?

In an age of internet, YouTube & AI learning — why does structured training still matter?

HydrographicSurveyExcellence

Three Decades.One Discipline.

What We Deliver

Bathymetric Surveys

Geophysical Surveys

Search & Recovery

Oil & Gas

UXO Surveys

Offshore Construction & Windfarm

70+ Global Campaigns

Hornsea Windfarm — Post-Lay MBES

FEW Baltic II — Geotechnical WFI

Geophysical Offshore Wind Site Investigation

Uncharted Red Sea Hazard Survey

AUV Campaign — Guardian / Ocean Infinity

South Atlantic Offshore Survey

L&T Search & Recovery — Kattupalli Port

IMR Services — Shah Deniz / ACG Fields

Dry Dock Sensor Installation

Built from theField Up

Hydrographic Survey Fundamentals

Survey Networking & Sensor Integration

Multibeam Echo Sounder Operations

USBL & Underwater Positioning

Party Chief Leadership & Operations

Bespoke Corporate & Onboard Training

Structured Pathwaysto Survey Mastery

Competency Assessment

Framework Design

IHO / IMCA Alignment

1-on-1 Mentoring

Remote & e-Learning

Team Competency Reviews

Hands-On Across Every System

Multibeam Echo Sounders

USBL & Acoustic

Positioning & INS

Geophysical Systems

AUV / USV

Survey Software

Contact Deepak

Suggested Articles on Survey & Training

Beyond the Sensors

AI and Us (Offshore Workers)!

A Few Reflections on Geodesy — Part I

3D ScanFish — Mobilisation Brief

Serial Data Communication Control — Simply Stated

PHINS Coupled RDI DVL — A Concise Note

Beyond the Theory: My Reflections & Survey Engineering Training

AUV — How the System Works: Configuration & Core Concepts Made Simple

Doppler Velocity Log (DVL) — The System & Operation Made Simple

Beyond Operations: My Reflections & the Role of Hydrographic Survey Party Chief

Video Library

Why Training?

Smartest Person Onboard

RS232

Star Players vs Star Teams

Computer Interfacing

Logical Survey Troubleshooting (OSI) by DPSK

Cables & Protocols

RS422

Network Troubleshooting

Grab Sampling

The Dubai Dry Docking

Small Survey Boats

Offshore Construction

Vessel Grounded OTS Recovery

3D UHR Survey

Early Days of Surveying

Scanfish

Just a Throwback!

Survey Computer Network

Geotechnical Survey

Router and Fibre Optics

Ethernet

Transceiver

Resolution Specs

Kings Park, Perth

Stall Bar

Gibraltar

Hydrographic
Survey
Excellence

Three Decades.
One Discipline.

Built from the
Field Up

Structured Pathways
to Survey Mastery

Let's Chart the Next
Course Together