Subsea Europe Services has opened a new R&D centre at its premises in the Ocean Technology Campus Rostock. The new department is led by Dr. Frank Niemeyer and has been established to help us continue and expand on our mission to simplify the acquisition of marine data by leveraging new integrated, autonomous and digital technologies.

Dr. Frank Niemeyer, Head of Research and Development

Following Dr. Niemeyer’s appointment as Head of Research And Development in January 2023, Subsea Europe Services plans to grow the department further with new data science, mechatronics, software development and platform management roles to ensure cross-discipline in-house expertise informs the development of truly autonomous survey platforms and new Data-as-a-Service workflows, which can significantly reduce cost and provide Cloud-access to high-quality marine data.

Offshore Technology Campus Rostock is widely regarded as one of Europe’s leading marine technology and research clusters, making it the perfect location for Subsea Europe Services’ next phase of expansion. The new R&D facility measures 100 m2 and will be used for further developing the company’s autonomous platform capabilities for marine survey with the “Autonomous Surveyor” Autonomous Surface Vessel (ASV) and underwater inspection, with the “A.IKANBILIS” Hovering Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (HAUV).

The Subsea Europe Services R&D team will also focus on creating new application specific AI-powered autonomous control systems and unlocking the potential of swarm surveys featuring multiple autonomous vehicles with crewed or uncrewed motherships capable of managing the entire operation. These cutting-edge marine survey technologies and methodologies contribute to a unique and disruptive strategy that can positively transform marine survey and underwater inspection for all stakeholders.

“Our expanded R&D department underpins our mission to simplify marine data acquisition as it will drive the development of truly autonomous survey systems that deliver high-quality data at extremely low operational costs, without the need for in-house client expertise or large operations centres to scale,” said Soren Themann, CEO, Subsea Europe Services.

Dr. Frank Niemeyer joins Subsea Europe Services from his previous role as a Scientific Research Associate at the Fraunhofer Institute for Large Structures in Production Engineering, where he has been on secondment at the Rostock branch office of the “Smart Ocean Technology” research group, working on diverse technical R&D projects. He has also held R&D positions including Research Associate at the University of Rostock, and Chair of Geodesy and Geoinformatics.

“I’m excited to apply my R&D experience in the pursuit of achieving true autonomy for marine surveying as well as supporting the development of the entirely new business models it will enable,” said Niemeyer. “Subsea Europe Services has quickly established itself among the top tier technology companies in this field and I look forward to becoming part of a team with huge ambition and the skills and expertise to make it happen.”