In-water Hull Inspection and Cleaning Innovation Call for Proposals (CFP) 2025

Background

The maritime industry plays a pivotal role in global trade and transportation. One of the key challenges in maintaining vessel performance and operational efficiency is marine biofouling— the accumulation of microorganisms, plants, algae, or animals on submerged structures such as hulls. Biofouling significantly reduces vessel’s energy efficiency by increasing hydrodynamic drag, leading to higher fuel consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

Conventional methods of hull inspection and cleaning are often labour-intensive, time-consuming and pose safety risks. Regular hull inspection and cleaning while in the water (in-water inspection and cleaning) between dry dockings is important to maintain a clean hull, which improves fuel efficiency while keeping the vessel operational. This practice also reduces vessel’s downtime, cost and the risk of spreading invasive species.

Objective

The CFP aims to support the development and deployment of in-water robotics inspection and cleaning solutions with enhanced performance in safety, efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and environmental sustainability. We would like to invite committed industry stakeholders to submit proposals that will serve as successful demonstrations and pilots in Singapore.

Challenge Statement

Marine biofouling on ship hulls significantly increases hydrodynamic drag, resulting in higher fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. Current in-water inspection and cleaning operations are often reliant on divers and robotic solutions with limited capabilities and capacity.

1. In-water hull inspection and cleaning could present significant safety risks to divers due to limited visibility, harsh ocean environment, entanglement hazards, exposure to marine growth and biofouling debris, and potential encounters with harmful marine organisms. Additionally, the physically demanding nature of the task, coupled with the shortage of qualified divers, creates manpower constraints that limit the port’s services and operational efficiency and capacity, and potentially increase shipowners’ opportunity costs to due prolonged waiting time.
2. Existing robotic solutions for in-water hull inspection and cleaning offer a broad range of capabilities for the maritime industry. However, several gaps remain across most solutions, creating R&D and innovation opportunities to improve in-water robotic performance. Key areas for development include enhancing operational efficiency in harsh environmental conditions, developing advanced systems for inspecting and cleaning complex hull geometries such as propellers and rudders, integrating certified waste capture and filtration systems with sustainable recycling solutions, improving real-time data processing and decision-making capabilities, and scaling solutions to support large-scale port operations. Addressing these gaps through innovation will strengthen the industry's ability to meet the growing demand for safe, efficient, cost-effective, and sustainable maritime services.

Development Areas / Scope

The proposed robotic solutions to enhance in-water hull inspection and cleaning must conform with relevant regulations and standards from the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and International Organization for Standardization (ISO).

A. Inspection System

1. The inspection system can perform tasks with minimal or no human intervention including niche areas (e.g. Bilge keel, propeller and rudder, etc.).
2. The system can provide real-time feedback on pre/post inspection data and automated report generation in Singapore water conditions to assess and determine the fouling classification based on IMO biofouling ratings.
3. The system is capable of operating in port environment with limited space between the berth and vessel and without affecting the cargo operation.
4. The proposal should include the performance targets and verification process, conduct trials to demonstrate clear improvements compared with conventional inspection method, this includes but not limited to:
   1. Accuracy in assessing fouling conditions
   2. Data capture and documentations
   3. Manpower needs per operation
   4. Productivity such as area covered per hour and overall time duration for inspection per vessel
   5. Scalability of service capacity such as number of vessels could be serviced per month alongside the berth or at anchorage
5. Propose and trial the certification process with criteria according to international standards.
   

B. Cleaning System

1. The cleaning system can perform tasks with minimal or no human intervention including niche areas (e.g. Bilge keel, propeller and rudder, etc.).
2. The cleaning system can remove biofouling without damaging the hull coating protection.
3. The system is capable of operating in port environment with limited space between the berth and vessel and without affecting the cargo operation.
4. The system is capable of capturing all the biofouling waste and prevent the release of invasive species with sustainable disposal or valorisation.
5. The effluent filtration system is capable of filtering down the captured particles, including organisms, to less than 10 microns (μm) in all dimensions.
6. The proposal should include the performance targets and verification process, conduct trials to demonstrate clear improvements compared with conventional cleaning method, this includes but not limited to:
   1. Fuel consumption reduction – Before and after cleaning with verification method.
   2. Capture efficiency of all visible macro-fouling and particulate waste
   3. Effluent filtration capability  
   4. Manpower needs per operation
   5. Productivity such as the area cleaned per hour and overall time duration for cleaning per vessel
   6. Scalability of service capacity such as number of vessels could be serviced per month alongside the berth or at anchorage.
7. Propose and trial the certification process with criteria according to international standards. ​
   

Expected Deliverables

The applicant should develop the enhanced robotic in-water hull inspection or cleaning system, provide the actual test cases and demonstrate that the developed solution meets the focus area(s). If there are specific areas or requirements that the proposed solution is unable to meet, the applicant should clearly indicate these limitations and reasons in the proposal. The system shall comply with relevant cybersecurity standards which provide a comprehensive framework for securing industrial automation and control systems (ICS) against cybersecurity threats.

Field Trials / Demonstrations

Initial field trials to commence from April 2026 and final demonstration by end of the project. Applicant to submit interim and final reports to MPA on the trials and demonstration.

Eligibility and Proposal Requirements

Qualifying Organisations:

1. Companies incorporated under the Companies Act (Cap. 50) and operating in Singapore, with a minimum paid-up capital of 50% of the total project costs that will use funds to engage in either R&D or test-bedding in Singapore for new or better products, processes, and applications relevant to the maritime industry.
2. Secure commitments from shipping owners/operators as the primary end users to align the solution development with operational needs and provides the critical pathways for scaling.
   

The proposal (to be submitted in MPA’s MINT Fund application form) should contain:

1. Project Background
2. Objectives and Scope
3. Project Description
4. Market Potential
5. Project Deliverables
6. Name and Role of Collaborators
7. Assessment of Key Project Risks including Intellectual Property Risks
8. Project Team
9. Project Schedule
10. Details of Project Cost
    

Duration: The project duration shall not be more than 18 months

Evaluation Criteria and Funding Support

The applications are evaluated based on the following criteria:

1. Relevance and impact to the maritime industry
2. Innovation and differentiation from existing solutions
3. Capability development in Singapore
4. Local value capture
5. Organisation and team competency

Selected projects may be supported for up to 30% (for non-SMEs) or up to 50% (for SMEs) of project grant from the MINT fund for qualifying items. More information on MPA’s MINT Fund can be found on our website.

Timeline