Uncommontech delivers instructor-led ROV training at your facility or through remote delivery, based on your needs. Course content is aligned with industry best practice and built by someone who has worked the industry from both manufacturer and operator sides since 1990. Hands-on ROV piloting, supervision, systems design and integration, and offshore delivery stand behind every module.
Level 1 — Introductory ROV Course
A five-day, classroom-based course for trainees new to the ROV industry and new entrants to subsea operations. Up to six trainees per cohort; handouts, exercises and a certificate of completion included.
- Introduction to ROVs — vehicle classes, applications across oil & gas, offshore wind, science and defence, career pathways
- Systems and components — vehicle architecture, control systems, TMS, umbilicals, tooling
- Operations — launch and recovery, vehicle handling, navigation, offshore safety practice (PTW, JSA, toolbox talks)
- Maintenance and troubleshooting — PM regimes, common failure modes, structured diagnosis, documentation
- Missions, review and assessment — mission planning, operational rhythms, reporting, written assessment
Graduates leave with the operational vocabulary, systems understanding and safety foundation to step into simulator-based piloting, hands-on maintenance training, or a structured path toward IMCA Pilot Technician certification.
Advanced curriculum — Level 2 and beyond
For working ROV personnel ready to move past the introductory tier, the Advanced curriculum is built as two one-week tracks at the same experience level — teachable in either order, and delivered separately or as a combined two-week programme:
Level 2 — Operational Competence (Week 1)
- Video, lighting and survey sensors — imaging, sensor integration, real-time and post-mission data workflows
- Complex navigation and control — advanced positioning, DP interfacing, spatial awareness in congested infrastructure
- Emergency procedures and communications — redundancy strategy, emergency recovery scenarios, structured incident response
- Specialised mission planning — custom mission profiles, multi-vehicle SIMOPS, lessons-learned discipline
Level 2 — Technical Competence (Week 2)
- Hydraulic systems and fault diagnostics — structured diagnosis from symptom to root cause
- Electrical and electronic systems — power distribution, telemetry, sensor and tooling interfaces
- Maintenance depth — beyond routine PM: inspection, repair decisions, documentation discipline
- Structured troubleshooting — methodical isolation under operational pressure
Training heritage
Mark Bokenfohr has worked in subsea robotics since 1990, for manufacturers and operators alike, and has been building ROV crew competence programs since 2004, when he developed and delivered Saipem’s first ROV technical training program — the “Remote Systems Specialist” certification, praised by client BP and tailored to their deepwater field development. He is one of the founding members of the ROV trades qualification board in Vestland county, Norway and remains an active assessor and board member. Because the training draws on delivery experience across multiple operators, vehicle classes and industries, trainees get frameworks that aren’t tied to a single in-house way of working.
Simulator-based training
Uncommontech works with simulator technology partners to extend classroom delivery into simulator-based piloting and mission rehearsal, supporting the industry’s move toward remote operations. Ask about current simulator options when scoping your programme.
Scoping a course
Every delivery is scoped to the cohort and the operator’s needs — from a single L1 intake to an ongoing competence programme. Get in touch to discuss dates, content and delivery location.