While away from home recently, I was sitting at a bar having dinner when conversation was struck up with a local man. As conversations tend to lead – we landed on the topic of diving, and my efforts with the Exosuit ADS in particular. After sharing a picture of the Exosuit to this person, I got the usual response:

1. “You look like the Michelin man.”

and

2. “Can you actually move to do productive work?”

The first always generates a chuckle, and second is the root of lengthy discussion, as the premise of being able to work effectively has been at the cornerstone of barriers to market entry for ADS technology. The gentleman at the bar acknowledged that like anything, it must take ‘getting used to’ and acquiring a feel to carry out productive work, while referencing an analogy to operating an excavator. He stated that an experienced operator can pick up a cellphone with the bucket without damaging the phone. Impressive I thought.

I’ve found that with anything in diving, it comes down to time in the water to reach and maintain any degree of proficiency, especially with specialized tasks or tools. This itself is also a challenge with utilizing ADS, as few have the opportunity to attain, and maintain any degree of proficiency given the expense in carrying out the overall operation routinely.

And so this is my new world – ironically, in working towards making the ADS more accessible to science, I have spent far less time in the water myself…perhaps a small price to pay for what we have coming down the pipe.

The author extends his thanks to the J.F. White Contracting Company for affording a unique opportunity to bring the Exosuit ADS to the science community.

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