About Us
Wavefront Systems
Wavefront was founded in 2004 with a mission to apply engineering excellence to the problems of underwater detection, imaging and navigation. Wavefront works with its customers to make the underwater world visible – protecting Critical National Infrastructure (CNI), preventing maritime collisions, monitoring the integrity of undersea assets and exploring our under-water world with stunning high-resolution imagery.
Industry-leading Sonar Systems
Wavefront is proud to have designed and developed some of the world’s most capable commercially available sonar systems:
- Sentinel IDS® is the world’s most deployed Intruder Detection Sonar capable of detecting, tracking and classifying underwater targets including new drone threats;
- Vigilant FLS® is a Forward Looking Sonar with unique patented technology capable of depth finding at ranges ahead of your vessel in excess of 20 times the prevailing water depth;
- Solstice MAS® is a unique Multi-Aperture Sonar designed to provide world-class imagery by blending the high performance of Synthetic Aperture Sonar with the reliability and robustness of conventional side-scan; and
- Sentry IMS is a field-proven Integrity Monitoring Sonar designed for ocean depth deployments where it continuously monitors billions of cubic feet of seawater around critical seabed assets.
Wavefront’s industry-leading products are in use globally in civilian, public, defence, offshore and commercial markets.
WAVEFRONT
Our Team
Our dynamic engineering team has over 100 years combined experience at the leading edge of sonar design and competencies derived from many aligned and relevant engineering and maritime disciplines.
Dr. John Chapman
Director of Programmes
John was one of the co-founders of Wavefront in 2004. In previous roles he worked on the development of submarine and minehunting sonars for the Royal Navy and export customers. As a Director in Wavefront he has overseen the development of all current products and helped grow the business from a small design consultancy to a world class sonar supplier. John has a BSc in Physics and a PhD in Physics of the Atmosphere.
Dr. Rob Crook
Research Director
Rob has held this position since co-founding the company in 2004. During this time Rob has been instrumental in the design, development and testing of all of Wavefront’s major products, including Sentinel, Solstice and Vigilant.
Rob has experience in academia as a research physicist and various UK government defence agencies as a research scientist, most recently in industry as head of sonar research at a multinational defence contractor. Rob has an MA in Theoretical Physics from Queens’, Cambridge and a PhD in nonlinear optics from Exeter.
Paul Badger
Managing Director
Paul joined in 2021 and took the role of managing director at the start of 2022. Paul brings with him engineering and leadership experience from multiple sectors including military aircraft avionic system design and development, aircraft test and evaluation and most recently wind turbine design, production and deployment.
Peter Tomlinson
Engineering Director
Having worked on Wavefront’s products for over 14 years, Peter is a well-established, experienced member of the team, with an in-depth knowledge of subsea systems. He has meticulously designed and managed a vast range of projects in this time, and his primary focus in his current role is to manage the engineering teams ensuring that all products meet Wavefront’s commitment to both innovation and quality.
Phil Parish
Head of Operations
Phil joined in 2021 taking on the Head of Operations role, moving from Sonardyne where he had been since 2013. Phil brings a wealth of experience in delivering and managing projects worldwide across multiple technologies and sectors including military communications, security, key infrastructure and most recently marine. Having worked at all levels of the project delivery process, from engineer to designer and project manager
Our History
Wavefront Systems throughout the years
Our Story
Over the Years
2004
Wavefront Systems founded
2007
2008
Wavefront acquired by Sonardyne Group Ltd
2011
First trials of NOAS Navigation and Obstacle Avoidance Sonar on manned submersible
2012
First deployment of Sentry-W Integrity Monitoring Sonar in Gulf of Mexico
2017
First deployment of Sentry-B Integrity Monitoring sonar off Papua New Guinea
Trials of CO2 leak monitoring systems in the North Sea for CCS storage site integrity monitoring
2018
First Ship Protection Sonar System (combined Sentinel and NOAS) fitted to first mega yacht
2020
Redeveloped NOAS to improve form factor, range and cost to create Vigilant Forward Looking Sonar under Sonardyne brand
2022
2023
Wavefront launches next generation Sentinel Intruder Detection Sonar with advanced Simultaneous In-band Active and Passive Sonar (SInAPS®) capability
Wavefront Solstice MAS™ 4000 delivers SAS-like imagery in trials in Plymouth Sound.
Voyis / Wavefront Recon module launched featuring Solstice MAS 3000 and and high-resolution optical sensors (lasers and cameras)
2024
Wavefront Solstice MAS integrated with Eelume-S All-Terrain AUV
Vigilant V600 exceeds expectations in sea trials ahead of first deliveries in 2024
Sentinel IDS May ’24 release includes new Active Passive Track Correlation (APTC) with onscreen marker for more rapid threat evaluation
Covelya Group
Our Group Companies
We’re part of Covelya Group, a family of companies which operates in a wide range of sectors within the offshore energy, ocean science, maritime security, shipping and water monitoring. Together we develop, manufacture, sell and support instruments, systems and solutions worldwide.
Companies within the group support the exploration of the world’s oceans and waters. Our combined innovative products, technologies and solutions are used in a vast array of scenarios which continue to grow as the world awakens to the resources available from its waters.
