This report was delivered in partnership with Innovate UK’s Workforce Foresighting Hub and sponsored by RenewableUK.

Robotics and autonomous systems (‘RAS’) are expected to play a significant role in the operations and maintenance of offshore wind assets by 2030, where they can significantly reduce costs and improve safety (Bernardini et al., 2020; Mitchell et al., 2022). Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult estimate the UK market in this area will be worth £56M by 2030, rising to £496M by 2050 (Smart, 2021).

Some of the capabilities required in the supply chain include the development of vehicle platforms (aerial, surface, sea and subsea); development and production of cross-platform technologies such as control systems, batteries, motors and drives; and development of wind farm infrastructure and turbines to suit robotic and autonomous activity.

Development of these capabilities in a relatively short timescale takes people with the appropriate knowledge, skills and experience. This is the necessary – but missing – foundation in achieving UK offshore wind targets in 2030 and beyond. The “development of human capital in adequate quantities” was identified by the European Wind Energy Association (‘EWEA’) as one of five challenges in the development of the offshore wind industry back in 2009 (Jacobsson & Karltorp, 2012), and is one of the pillars of the recent European strategic research and innovation agenda document (ETIPWind, n.d.).

Through Workforce Foresighting, Renewable UK and the Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult are therefore attempting to identify the capabilities that are key to facilitating the use of RAS in offshore wind operations and maintenance. The preparation workshops for this study developed a manageable scope, considering the design, deployment and operation of systems for operations and maintenance tasks.