Research And Development Center News

For 15 years the Maritime Risk Symposium (MRS), an annual three-day event, has brought together government and maritime industry leaders, port representatives, international and domestic researchers and solution providers to examine current and emerging threats to maritime security. World events highlight that maritime security is increasingly at risk during the current period of great-power competition and ongoing conflicts. The active competition between nations who are not…

2024 marks another year for development of a biennial WRDA bill—Water Resources Development Act, critical legislation for the Nation’s waterways, ports and harbors. WRDA encompasses a range of issues, from environmental regs to energy use to agriculture and, of course, a focus on projects critical for economic growth.Because these are dynamic and timely issues, Congress and the maritime sector like to keep WRDA on a two-year reauthorization timeline. Indeed, the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, December and January, held three WRDA information hearings.

The Coast Guard Research and Development Center (RDC), under the command of Capt. Michael Chien, has won the Commodore Viggo C. Bertelsen Jr. and Vice Admiral John P. Currier Auxiliary Integration Award in the category of Applied Innovation. The award was presented by Commander Steven Koch, who leads the Auxiliary (AUX) in New England, at a command all hands. The Auxiliary is the 25,000-member volunteer organization supporting the Coast Guard across 11 missions.Regional Auxiliary Commodore Michael West noted…

The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries have released a final joint strategy to protect and promote the recovery of endangered North Atlantic right whales while responsibly developing offshore wind energy.The strategy builds on existing mitigation measures to protect North Atlantic right whales from the potential impacts of offshore wind development and was developed to support the Biden-Harris administration's goal of deploying 30GW of offshore wind by 2030.North Atlantic right whales are approaching extinction.

Rolls-Royce Power Systems Division has opened a new Remanufacturing and Overhaul Center on its mtu Aiken campus in South Carolina.First announced in 2021 and representing a low double-digit million dollar investment, the new 69,000-sq.ft. (6,400 sqm) facility is connected to the existing manufacturing operations, bringing formerly outsourced workshop and warehouse operations in-house and expands them to provide remanufacturing and overhaul of mtu Series 2000, Series 4000 and Detroit Diesel 2-Cycle engines and components, plus internal and external rework services.

John F. Kennedy’s famous locution, “Ask not what your country can do for you, but you can do for your country” remains the rallying call for civic action and public leadership. The message remains foundational to the success of the United States, particularly as we head into an election year that once again appears to be filled with divisiveness and vitriol. That said, before we flip the calendar, it is important to set JFK’s message aside for a moment and reflect upon what our political leadership in Washington…

As maritime faces transcendent changes in terms of decarbonization and automation, Juha Kytölä, Director of R&D and Engineering, Wärtsilä, discusses how this Finnish maritime technology powerhouse is investing in the technologies and facilities that will drive the maritime industry for the coming generation, including insights on its unique arrangement for a future fuel engine testbed onboard Wasaline’s MS Aurora Botnia.To start off, can you give a scope of the Wärtsilä R&D investment?We invest heavily in research and development, about 4.1% of our annual turnover.

The U.S. Department of Transportation's Maritime Administration (MARAD) announced it has selected the Center for Naval Analyses (CNA) to conduct a study that will help the agency create its new national maritime strategy.CNA is an independent, nonprofit Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC) sponsored by the Department of the Navy with expertise in researching sealift needs for national security.MARAD is required under the National Defense Authorization Act of 2023 to select an FFRDC to identify the key elements and objectives it needs to develop a U.S.

During a seven-week Arctic transit aboard the U.S. Coast Guard icebreaker USCGC Healy (WAGB 20), researchers from the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) will study the impact of the extreme environment on crew performance and potential mitigations, as well as advanced Additive Manufacturing (AM) technologies in adverse sea conditions.The studies, which commenced with Healy’s departure from Kodiak, Alaska on Aug. 26, will be led by principal investigator Dr. Nita Shattuck, a professor in the NPS Operations Research (OR) department.

The 2023 Maritime Risk Symposium (MRS) will be held Nov. 14-16, 2023, as an in-person event, hosted by Maritime College, State University of New York (SUNY) at the Maritime Academic Center. The theme of the 14th annual event is “Managing Impacts of Supply Chain Disruptors, Renewable Energy, Emerging Technology on the Maritime Transportation System (MTS)” with a focus on offshore infrastructure risk and disruptors. Founded in 1874, Maritime College is the oldest maritime college in the United States, providing mariner training for 150 years.

The U.S. Coast Guard Research and Development Center (RDC) held a Change of Command on June 16, 2023, at 10 a.m. at Fort Trumbull in New London. Current RDC Commanding Officer, Capt. Dan Keane, was relieved by Capt. Michael Chien. Capt. Keane held command since May 1, 2020. He retires with 24 years of service.During Capt. Keane’s tenure, the command operated seamlessly during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Research continued and the approved portfolio was executed. Highlights included the command celebrating its 50th anniversary…

“Not only does the top of the river move, but the bottom of the river also moves.” - James Bodron, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mississippi Valley Division, Regional Business Director.Dredging was the Herculean act that allowed much of the U.S. economy to keep chugging along as usual, at least for Midwest and Central states, as drought conditions threatened to shut down river traffic on the Mississippi River and its tributaries, during fall and winter 2022 and early 2023.The full scope of these U.S.

The U.S. Coast Guard Research and Development Center (RDC) on Monday celebrated its 50th anniversary during an open house event at the center’s campus next to Fort Trumbull in New London, Conn.The event, designed to showcase RDC history and ongoing work, and provide an opportunity to speak with its researchers, focused on several key themes, such as the impact past and current researchers have had on the service as well as appreciation for Southeastern Connecticut, including the City of New London, for its support to the Coast Guard and its resident RDC.On Sept.

The United States' Coast Guard and Space Force are teaming up to share information resources and identify opportunities for applied research and advanced technology development.A memorandum of understanding (MOU) inked by the U.S. Space Force Science, Technology, and Research Directorate and U.S. Coast Guard Research and Development Center on January 19 will expand Space Force access to USCG Research and Development Center facilities, infrastructure and personnel.USSF Dr. Joel Mozer, USSF science, technology and research director, signed the MOU alongside Capt.

United States Coast Guard service is a family legacy for Dan Keane, who today serves as the Commanding Officer of the U.S. Coast Guard Research and Development Center in New London, CT."My dad was in the Coast Guard (for nearly 37 years), so this is a way of life for me,” said Keane in explaining that a Coast Guard career “was just something I always knew I wanted to do … it’s a family tradition for me.”The Coast Guard R&D center in New London is “relatively small with just over 80 people here at the RDC” said Keane…

Inland waterways, sometimes called ‘nature’s superhighways’ provide a strategic advantage related to security, economics, and trade for any nation whose geography, topography, and climate enable this natural infrastructure. Economic benefits are realized in small rural areas through large urban communities that utilize the system for efficient transportation and improved markets. However, deliberate operational, resource, and policy efforts, along with broad stakeholder integration, are required to maintain and operate such a system.

Paints and coatings company AkzoNobel announced it has opened a new £10 million global research and development center at its Slough site in the U.K.The facility, which joins a growing list of similar facilities opened by AkzoNobel globally to further advance the company’s product development, is home to 120 specialists and will act as a major hub within the company’s worldwide R&D network and help to further advance AkzoNobel’s innovation capabilities.“The inauguration of this…

Boston-based maritime autonomy and perception systems company Sea Machines Robotics, Inc, announced it has installed its new AI-ris computer vision product onboard a U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) 270-foot Famous-class Medium Endurance Cutter ahead of the vessel’s upcoming deployment.AI-ris uses artificial intelligence to identify and track visual targets of interest.This installation aboard the USCGC Campbell (WMEC-909) was made possible under an ongoing Cooperative Research and Development…

The U.S. Coast Guard Research and Development Center (RDC) in New London, Conn. is planning to celebrate its 50th anniversary with a multi-faceted community event.On September 1st, 1972, the Coast Guard Commandant established the RDC as an interim facility at the University of Connecticut’s Avery Point campus in Groton pending construction of a permanent facility. In 2009, the RDC moved to the “Coast Guard City” of New London near Fort Trumbull.For 50 years, the RDC has developed…

As shipowners ponder future fuels, MAN Energy Solutions is sailing full speed ahead optimizing dual fuel marine powerplants while preparing to start testing ammonia fueled engines in early 2023. Bjarne Foldager, Senior Vice President, head of two stroke business at MAN ES hosted Maritime Reporter & Engineering News in Copenhagen for a look behind the scenes at a cornerstone of its mandate to ‘Move big things to Zero.’Just 10 years ago, in December 2012, word came that General Dynamics NASSCO finalized a contract with TOTE…

The 11th Annual Maritime Risk Symposium: A Virtual Event Exploring All Too Real RisksThe past year has been as impactful for the world’s maritime transportation xystem as it has been for the rest of society. From the Suez Canal to the Arctic and beyond, human, technology and environmental events disrupted maritime activity. And the pandemic highlighted supply chain vulnerabilities in many ways, from mariners quarantined aboard vessels to port congestion due to COVID-driven surges in e-commerce.

The integrity of the marine transportation system as a key plank in a country's economic prosperity is in heightened focus today, with logistics snarls contributing to fast rising inflation. Maintaining the integrity of the vast U.S. inland waterway system - with more than 12,000 miles of inland and intracoastal waterways including 218 lock chambers at 176 sites - is the focus of the Maritime Risk Symposium 2022, a 2.5-day conference scheduled for November 15-17, hostd by Argonne National Laboraty's TCS Conference Center.On Wednesday, November 16, 2022, James P.

Researchers from the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) Environmental Laboratory and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Great Lakes Districts — Buffalo, Detroit and Chicago — recently released a technical report providing guidance for evaluating the environmental suitability of dredged material in the Great Lakes region.The “Environmental Evaluation and Management of Dredged Material for Beneficial Use: A Regional Beneficial Use Testing Manual for…