Corporate Member Profile:
Founded: 2017
Website: www.seatrac.com
What are your company’s main products and services offered to the sea services?
SeaTrac manufactures, sells and rents cost-effective, multi-purpose Uncrewed Surface Vehicles (USVs) — boat drones, in other words — perfect for hosting sensors and cameras to persistently collect data and monitor situations in all marine environments.
How does your company believe it can help further the United States’ defense and security sectors?
Taking the warfighter out of the equation appears to be a trend that will not reverse any time soon. Our solar-powered surface vehicle can be deployed as a force multiplier in various mission scenarios to perform operations with greater persistence and lower cost than traditional methods while keeping warfighters out of harm’s way. The USV can be useful to sea services in multiple ways: as a communications relay to pass data across subsea, aerial land-based assets; as a geolocator for underwater assets; as a force multiplier for mow-the-lawn missions such as hydrographic surveys; as a more persistent environmental data collector with greater spatial and temporal scale than crewed boats; and as an acoustic monitor/tracker of enemy targets or marine mammals, by serving as wide area electronic fence. In each case, using a USV to supplement/complement/in some instances replace crewed vessels can make missions greener, safer, and less costly.
What differentiates your company from similar players in your market?
Our founders are experienced, frugal, practical marine engineers who met in the hallways of MIT’s Naval Architecture Department 30 years ago and have been collaborating successfully ever since. SeaTrac is their third startup, with the first two solving complex technology challenges for large corporations as well as the Navy with products that were simple, reliable and cost-effective. Before settling on SeaTrac’s production model, the solar powered 4.8-meter SP-48, they spent years trialing and perfecting a prototype that would be simpler, cheaper, more versatile and more reliable than others on the market. Our price point is well below the market pricing of similar USVs, and our available payload wattage is higher than many. Our vehicle can go upwind, downwind, loiter, cut tight radius corners and operate in 2 feet of water as well as in the open ocean for months at a time. With a brushless electric motor, it is not reliant on or waves for propulsion. It’s a sensor-agnostic workhorse, at a low enough price point to trial new battle theater concepts or operate as part of a swarm.
What do you think is one of the biggest challenges addressing the sea services today?
Doing anything out in the water is always challenging, with or without the threat of an enemy adding to the tension. The speed of technological progress and entrepreneurship in the private sector, contrasted with the longer time horizons, complex budgetary requirements and bureaucratic aspects of working with the military make matters challenging for sea services to readily adopt the latest and greatest. But who doesn’t love a challenge? Doing hard things well is part of the job description for members of the sea services. It’s also in SeaTrac’s DNA.
What made your company decide to join the Navy League of the United States? How do you see your company participating or working with the Navy League to further their mission?
Apart from a trial with the SEALs, and some proof-of-concept and ANTX exercises, SeaTrac is new to working with the military. The Navy League comes highly recommended, and we wanted to set ourselves up in the best possible manner to introduce ourselves to decision-makers in the sea services. In addition, reaching out to youth appears to be part of your mandate. We are biased but think drones are incredibly cool and appeal to the next-generation members of the sea services who will be tasked with safeguarding our nation’s defense, well-being and prosperity.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
We have a short introductory video. We are eager to learn more about the sea services’ challenges and mission mandates. Complex sensor integrations and big hairy technological problems welcome! Please don’t hesitate to spread the word. Even autonomy requires a village.