Sagar Defence Engineering and Lloyd’s Register (LR) have agreed to develop certification and assurance processes for autonomous and remotely operated maritime systems, with a focus on supporting their transition from development to operational deployment.
The agreement will cover verification, validation and testing, classification readiness assessments and the development of safety cases for autonomous systems.
The two organisations will also work on operational concepts and mission profiles, alongside engagement with regulators, government agencies and industry stakeholders to support the development of certification frameworks.
LR will contribute its classification, assurance and regulatory expertise, while Sagar Defence will provide experience in developing autonomous and remotely operated platforms.
David Lloyd, Vice President, Naval and Government Business at LR, said: “Through this collaboration, Lloyd’s Register will work with Sagar Defence to establish credible, evidence-based pathways from concept development and system integration through trials, certification readiness, operational acceptance and in-service assurance.”
The work will consider how autonomous platforms, software, sensors, communications, remote operators and supporting infrastructure interact under normal, degraded and failure conditions.
Dipali Kuchekar, Global Director, Naval Autonomous Systems at LR, added: “This will help translate operational needs into clear engineering requirements, define proportionate test and evaluation evidence, and support a traceable pathway towards certification, operational acceptance and assurance throughout the system lifecycle.”
