The spotlight was on cutting-edge technology, significant company announcements and exciting new launches on the second dayof Oi24, as visitors continued to pack the aisles at ExCeL London today.
After a strong opening day at the ocean technology and marine science event, the momentum continued with exhibitors in upbeat mood across the spectrum of sectors, reporting high numbers of new leads, collaborations and opportunities.
Among the key news of the day was confirmation that Teledyne Marine has agreed to acquire Valeport, a market leader in the design and manufacture of underwater sensors and profilers. The acquisition expands the products and solutions offered by Teledyne Marine, a leading-edge subsea technology company, and enables it to provide customers with a wider range of underwater solutions.
Valeport is one of the UK’s leading manufacturers of oceanographic and hydrographic instrumentation. The independent family-owned business, which was established in 1969, designs and manufactures instrumentation for the oceanographic and hydrographic communities with a worldwide customer base that includes: subsea, hydrographic, metrological and positioning, oceanographic, ports, harbours, dredging, energy and scientific research sectors.
Ole Søe-Pedersen, VP & GM Teledyne Marine Europe said: “We are delighted that Valeport will join Teledyne Marine and expand our technology offerings. Valeport is a respected and recognized brand of underwater sensors and profilers and will complement the Teledyne Marine portfolio of technologies and solutions.”
Matt Quartley, Managing Director of Valeport said: “Our family is very proud of where we have brought Valeport so far, but the time is right for the next phase of its journey, and I am so pleased that this will be as a part of Teledyne Marine. The prospect of working with the rest of the Teledyne group to bring our customers an even greater range of superb, high-quality products is something that we are incredibly excited about, and will undoubtedly be to the benefit of Valeport, Teledyne, and most importantly, all of our customers.”
On the Valeport stand, Guy Frankland, Head of Marketing, added that Oi24 was a “fantastic show, where we are engaging with customers and distributors, and making new relationships”. “Following the news about Teledyne, we can look forward with confidence to the future.”
Meanwhile, Subsea robotics manufacturer SMD announced a new contract win with Dutch company Jan de Nul for its new Electronic ROVs (EROV).
Mark Collins, Innovation Director, said the company has been investing heavily in R&D for its EROV programme and has been carrying out extensive tests.
Forum Energy Technologies’ (FET) today announced that its Subsea Technologies product line executed a memorandum of understanding (“MOU”) with an underwater inspections provider, SAFEEN Survey & Subsea Services (SAFEEN), to collaborate on the development of cutting-edge electric thrusters for remotely operated vehicles (ROVs).
A signing ceremony took place at Oi24, as FET launched its updated 300Vdc and 600Vdc range of direct current thrusters.
Under the Sub-Atlantic brand, FET has been a pioneer in the thruster market for over 20 years. The recently launched 600Vdc ROV thruster option for all observation and light work class thrusters is equivalent to the well proven SA-300 hydraulic thruster.
As part of the SAFEEN MOU agreement, the thrusters will be subject to extensive cycle testing to fully validate functionality, durability and integration capabilities with existing ROV systems. Testing will also ensure smooth deployment and operation.
In the Ocean Innovation Lounge, Canada’s Ocean Supercluster (OSC) CEO Kendra MacDonald announced almost $18 million in new projects. The three new projects will accelerate the development and commercialization of innovative solutions in marine shipping and involve project partners from the east and west coasts of Canada.
One of the day’s product launches was by first-time exhibitor uWare Robotics, a leading start-up in dual-use autonomous underwater robotics and AI systems for environmental monitoring, infrastructure inspection and assets management.
Sayri Arteaga, the CEO and lead robotics engineer, presented the core concepts of the highly-mobile, cost-effective, untethered AUV, the uOne. By using an integrated approach, the uOne streamlines monitoring and provides unparalleled depth in marine ecosystem analysis, which is crucial for effective management and conservation. Furthermore, the system will allow for the digital twinning of infrastructure assets.
He said: “At Oi, it is very useful to put faces to names with all the companies and to talk to them about collaborations and projects.”
Jaia Robotics also chose Oi24 to introduce its new product, the highly portable, micro-sized and fully autonomous JaiaBot-PAM for acoustic monitoring, with co-founder Jason Webster and Product Manager Michael Rock presenting to attendees. The JaiaBot-HYDRO is also in operation each day in in-water demos on the dockside.
WaterLinked CEO Oliver Skisland said the company has been at Oi many times and considers it a “key event”. He continued: “We are using it to launch two new products, a 3D Sonar and underwater navigation systems, because it is the best arena. The quality of discussions is high. They are real conversations with high-quality visitors. We are very fond of Oi.”
Tethys Robotics presented an autonomous underwater vehicle that has been specially developed for use in challenging and dangerous environments like turbid channels and rivers. Equipped with acoustic sensors and cameras, the robot can search large areas underwater completely autonomously and quickly localize objects or people.
MacArtney’s Head of Marketing Joan Gravengaard has been attending Oi for 18 years and said the company had already gathered over 300 leads before the end of the morning on day two. She added: “We are meeting the right people and customers here at Oi. We have also launched the small form factor Nano which has created a lot of activity. Oi is also an opportunity for the group to meet up, coming from the US, Denmark, UK, Italy. We have the same booth, so our customers know where to come.”
The strong contingent of companies from Canada created a lively, bustling atmosphere at the country’s pavilion, with Cathy Williams, International Business Development Officer, commenting that the show so far had been “tremendous, with customers lining up to see all their exhibitors from show start until 6pm”. She added: “There has been an amazing energy and buzz which really gives an impression of how well the sector has bounced back. The world is here at Oi and we are proud to be representing Canada for the ocean tech industry.”
Oi24 elevated the networking activity on the middle day with support from Innovate UK EDGE, the national innovation agency’s business growth service. Free for attendees of Oi24, an international business-to-business matchmaking event took place in a dedicated networking area, with participants from a range of sectors, including blue economy, ocean science, energy transition, vehicles and vessels, ocean observation, site navigation and ocean ICT, taking part.
EOOS (European Ocean Observing System) Technology Forum 2024 focused on catching the momentum in ocean observing technology: optimizing value and data provision. Bringing together technology developers, manufacturers and users to exchange knowledge on platforms and sensors, the forum aims to enhance accessibility of ocean observations and explore the technologies and systems transforming the ongoing operations of critical marine observing infrastructure and initiatives.
Among the visitors to the show was Faith Leonard, sales engineer, who said: “It is the place to be to learn everything about ocean technology. There is a lot to experience.”
David de Vries, a student from the Netherlands, was full of enthusiasm on his first visit to Oi, describing it as “great” and “very interesting”. “I have had some appointments and found the conferences very beneficial. You can meet and talk to a lot of people and find topics to suit your interests.”
Oi24 is set to end on a high tomorrow (Thursday, 14th March) with the premium conference, Catch the Next Wave, focusing on Innovation at the Ocean-Climate Nexus, with additional registration required. A high-profile and inspirational list of industry-leading specialists from within and outside of the ocean community will take to the stage to tackle the issues and explore the solutions and options arising from the climate and biodiversity crisis.
Among the highlights is an opening keynote, ‘Rising to the Challenge’, by Sir David King, Emeritus Professor of Chemistry, University of Cambridge, a former chief scientific adviser to the UK government, and the founder and chair of the Climate Crisis Advisory Group (CCAG), an independent panel of leading international climate experts.
Additional speakers include: Brad Ack (Chief Executive Officer, Ocean Visions); Benj Sykes, the newly installed President of the SUT; Elizabeth White (Executive Producer, BBC Studios Natural History Unit); Jyotika Virmani, from Schmidt Ocean Institute; Professor Mike Wooldridge (Oxford University); and Kelly Wanser Executive Director, SilverLining.
There is also another packed day of exhibitor launches, presentations, demonstrations and networking events on the agenda. These include an introduction and demonstration by Dynautics’ Senior Project Engineer, Dr Alison Little, of the company’s marine simulator tools, while the Canada Pavilion will host a ‘Coffee with Canada’ session to learn about the latest news in the country’s ocean industries.
At the Ocean Futures Theatre, the Society for Underwater Technology (SUT) is holding its Ocean Careers panel which will include some of the best-known companies in the ocean-working world as well as specialist consultants in subsea services.
