Saronic Technologies, Austin, Texas, has launched its second Marauder medium unmanned surface vessel at its Franklin, La., shipyard, with the vessel operating under its own power, according to co-founder and CEO Dino Mavrookas.
In a LinkedIn post, Mavrookas said the second hull required 8% fewer labor hours than the first, which launched in May and began on-water trials.
“The team really stepped up across the board,” Mavrookas wrote. “Every build needs to be more efficient than the last.”
The launch marks another step in the company’s effort to establish serial production of autonomous vessels at Franklin. Mavrookas said the yard was shutting down when Saronic took it over and is now active and expanding. At full production, the facility is expected to build 20 Marauders annually, he said.
Designed for defense and commercial applications, the aluminum-hulled Marauder is intended to conduct long-range operations autonomously or under remote human supervision, without an onboard crew.
According to Saronic, the vessel has a top speed of more than 25 knots, a range of up to 5,400 nautical miles, and a payload capacity of approximately 165 short tons. It can accommodate up to four 40' ISO containers or eight 20-foot containers. Potential applications include logistics, maritime domain awareness, intelligence gathering, research, and other government or commercial operations.
