According to MER March 2002
The multi-role hydrographic and oceanographic survey vessels ECHO and ENTERPRISE are designed for inshore and continental shelf operations. To serve their purpose properly the vessels require a range of instruments, some of them hull-mounted, others towed. The hull-mounted multi-beam sonar is able to collect highly accurate seabed bathymetric and seabed imagery data at a daily rate.
Towed sensors gathering seabed backscatter data enable automatic classification of seabed type and identify small objects. Undulating through the water column from the surface to a depth of 500m, they are able to measure both biological and physical properties of the sea with high precision. The derived data is accurately positioned by remote sensing from the ship.
By the unique function developed between Kongsberg Simrad and Kelvin Hughes, data describing the planned survey lines are transferred to the bridge navigation system, enabling their display on the ECDIS consoles during survey.