Smart Ocean Awarded SFI-status
We are very happy to announce that Smart Ocean has been awarded SFI-status by the Research Council of Norway. The centre is planned for eight years with a total budget of close to 300 million NOK.
SFI Smart Ocean vision is realisation of a generic autonomous and flexible wireless multi-parameter marine observation system for reliable management of a productive and healthy ocean. The main application is environment, structure and marine life.
- We are very happy that Smart Ocean has been awarded SFI-status. This will create a strong joint innovation platform to develop the next generation of ocean technology. We would like to commend all the actors in the consortium, but especially the University of Bergen (UiB) for a great collaboration which resulted in this SFI, says Owe Hagesæther CEO of GCE Ocean Technology.
Read UiB article about the SFI Award.
Long Term Cluster Effort
GCE Ocean Technology have focused on the area of Integrated Environmental Monitoring since 2006. Integrated monitoring was set forward as the key technology focus area when we were granted Global Centres of Expertise (GCE) status in 2015.
The cluster has since been working actively to establish a centre for research-based innovation (SFI). This work evolved into the Smart Ocean concept, which has now been granted funding.
– I recall a great discussion we had during our Subsea Innovation Day in 2017, says Hagesæther. – We had a strong industry engagement and received positive feedback about our outline for a joint initiative. Following this, there has been several seminars and workshops to mature the concept and focus.
– We will actively collaborate with SFI Smart Ocean and contribute in joint working groups, workshops and seminars. We will support the Centre with establishing joint spin-off activities and RDI projects. Moreover, we will also contribute with our expertise within commercialisation, and make available business development and scale-up programmes, Hagesæther.
Increased Ocean Technology Collaboration
The Smart Ocean concept consist of 20 world leading partners from across the entire value chain. This includes operators, service and technology providers, universities, research institutes and public entities.
The Centre is hosted by the University of Bergen (UiB) and builds upon their strategic focus on ocean technology.
The cluster was very active in establishing Norway’s first subsea bachelor education at Western Norway University of Applied Sciences (HVL). As the cluster has evolved so has the study programme which is now an ocean technology study.
An integrated Master of Ocean Technology was established in 2017 by UiB, HVL and the Royal Norwegian Naval Academy. Smart Ocean represents a unique possibility to strengthening the education of the next generation of employees and to demonstrate the many possibilities that lies in our oceans.
Smart Ocean will utilise national research infrastructure in the Norwegian Ocean Laboratory and the Ocean Innovation Norwegian Catapult Centre.
Contact Information
SFI
An SFI is a research centre supported by the Research Council of Norway.
The overall objective is to enhance the ability of the business sector to innovate and create value through a greater focus on long-term research.
Learn more about the SFI programme.
Calls for new SFI-centres has only been announced every four to six years. 100 sketches for centres were submitted last year and 70 of these submitted a full application.
Now, 22 of the best applications have been awarded SFI-status in the fourth SFI-generation.
See all list of all application being granted.
Learn more about SFI Smart Ocean.
