Pittsburgh-based Gecko Robotics has received a $300 million IDIQ contract with the U.S. Navy to combat corrosion using advanced technological tools. The company's robotic inspectors can traverse various metal structures and accurately identify defects, helping clients to plan maintenance in advance and create digital records of asset conditions.
Increased Efficiency in Fleet Maintenance
For the Navy, the most critical metric in maintenance is yard time; understanding a ship's needs means better preparedness for the yard period, which helps optimize the capacity of both the yard and the ship. Technological tools can reduce the time ships spend in the yard, assisting the Navy in achieving its goal of maintaining 80% combat readiness.
Increased Inspection Speed
According to Gecko, the company's systems can identify structural issues on ships up to 50 times faster than human methods, completing digital inspections in just a few days. Gecko's proprietary technology can move across flight decks and scan beneath thick non-slip coverings. By combining this method with artificial intelligence analysis, a comprehensive map of corrosion is produced.
Jake Lusardi, co-founder and CEO of Gecko Robotics, said, "By saving millions of dollars for each ship, turning months of inspections into a few days, and quickly returning warships to sea, the U.S. Navy is showing the world how technology can be deployed at scale."
Expansion of Projects
This contract expands upon a previous $71 million contract for work on 18 ships in the U.S. Pacific fleet that was announced in March. Gecko will also participate in non-destructive testing of submarine components at future Anduril manufacturing facilities in Sparrows Point, Baltimore, and Orange County, California. The new Sparrows Point yard is expected to be operational by 2030, with work at the OC site currently underway.
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