Increasing autonomy in aquaculture with ZeaWatch Docking Assist

In May 2025, Damen Folla CCO Stig Rune Nørbech reached out to Zeabuz CEO and CTO Øyvind Smogeli. The two companies had built up a good relationship with one another during collaboration on the ZeaFalcon. 

Continued cooperation

This sturdy 7-metre HDPE Damen vessel has been integrated with a Zeabuz autonomy system, enabling autonomous navigation, collision avoidance, remote command and control, and autodocking. The vessel offers a considerable boost in safety and efficiency for multiple maritime sectors.

On this occasion, however, Stig Rune’s question for Øyvind was specifically about supporting the aquaculture industry.

Park assist – for boats

Each year, numerous vessels operating at fish farms experience collisions with anchor chains, nets, mooring systems and other submerged infrastructure. This results in costly downtime and repairs to the vessel – and frequently to the infrastructure, too.

What Stig Rune wanted to know was whether Zeabuz would be able to develop a solution, similar to the park assist system on cars, for aquaculture workboats. He had come to the right place; when Øyvind took the call, Zeabuz was putting the finishing touches to a system such as this for an electric sightseeing vessel.

Dedicated solution for aquaculture

The discussion has resulted in the development of a new solution, dedicated to the aquaculture industry. ZeaWatch Docking Assist gathers data from a range of sensors – sonar, cameras, 4D radar and GNSS – building a dynamic map of the vessel’s surroundings, both above and below the water.

The ZeaWatch software then consolidates all this data, presenting it to the vessel operator on a single, clear interface showing nearby objects, distances and warning zones in real time.

Manoeuvring with confidence

“ZeaWatch Docking Assist is based on well-proven technology,” Stig Rune says. “What is unique about the system is that it was developed with fish farming in mind. It supports approaches, dockings, backing and close-quarter operations around cages and docks.

“With the system integrated into an aquaculture workboat, operators will be able to manoeuvre safely. The extra awareness they will gain of their surroundings will allow them to act early, manoeuvring with extra confidence, less stress and, crucially, fewer incidents.”