UK Ocean Technologies Expo Biggest Yet

Ocean Business 2013 at the National Oceanography Centre in Southampton will welcome 300+ worldwide companies to its upcomeng show.

One of the most exciting elements of the show is that visitors can actually see equipment in action and ‘test-drive’ products before they purchase.  This year’s Ocean Business is running an unmissable programme of free training and demonstrations, running over 180 hours where leading companies will introduce new products, technologies and techniques.         
 
As Ocean Business takes place at Southampton’s National Oceanography Centre, the facilities are first class and demonstrations can take place on vessels, at the dockside, in test tanks or seminar rooms.  As well as product demonstrations, there are also many opportunities to learn more about the latest approaches and techniques in a series of training sessions presented by global experts
 
Director of Ocean Business, Versha Carter, comments, “At this year’s show you can expect to see a real mix of product technology and innovation in our training and demo programme.  With so much progress made with information systems, we are also seeing lots of innovation around software and data management, which is reflected in the programme.”
 
One such example is OneOcean, which will be demonstrating the ‘ClipCard’; an innovation to help manage, access and exchange big ocean data from the cloud.  The ClipCard enables data to be linked, emailed or tweeted without downloading any data.  CODAR will also be demonstrating their new software and information technologies which enable ocean surface currents to be monitored in real time over a distance of 200km.  Classroom sessions will be used to demonstrate how CODAR’s technology can be used to support search and rescue, oil spill tracking, navigation and infrastructure operations.
 
Some of the biggest names in instrumentation will be demonstrating their latest devices.  To name a few: Valeport will be showcasing its new CTDF, which is a fast profiling CTD with fluorometer (TBC); the MacArtney Group will be setting the test tank alight with a futuristic ball sensor for monitoring biochemical flux; and there will be dockside demonstrations of Aanderaa’s new FerryBox sensor kit.  Ellen Keegan from Chelsea Technologies talks about their plans, “We are once again delighted to be participating in Ocean Business.  We will be holding two 1-hour sessions onboard the Research Vessel Callista plus an FRRf classroom session. These events are designed to give delegates an opportunity to see first hand our new next generation coastal and oceanographic monitoring sensors, and also to 'road test' them.”
 
Other exciting demonstrations include remotely operated vehicles (ROVs), coastal glider technologies and high-tech visualisation and positioning systems. SeaBotix is running two sessions to demonstrate its vectored MiniROV platform and capabilities in zero visibitiliy.  The session will demonstrate positioning, 360º scanning sonar and an HD imaging sonar working together to produce 3D imaging.  This is a rapidly developing area of technology and there are many other new products that will be revealed at the show. 
 
Ocean Business 2013, takes place from April 9-11 at the National Oceanography Centre in Southampton, click here for more information.