Unrivalled hands-on demo opportunities at Ocean Business 2023

With less than three months until Ocean Business 2023, more details can be revealed about the Training and Demonstration programme, one of the main attractions of the global technology and science exhibition for marine industries.

The three-day show, which runs from April 18-20 at the National Oceanography Centre in Southampton, is open to all visitors for free by registering online at www.oceanbusiness.com.

This year’s Training and Demonstration programme marks a year of exciting progress and development in the ocean environment.

Visitors will have the opportunity to observe cutting edge technology close up and meet the top innovators in the sector, with 130-plus hours of demonstrations on the dockside, on board vessels, in the test tank, and in the classroom.

A major draw will be the latest in autonomous vehicles, with a number of ROVs, USVs and AUVs in action, from Singapore, the US, Norway, Spain, Ireland and the UK.

Highlights include first time OB exhibitor Aquatic Drones, demonstrating how cost efficient its zero emission Autonomous Surface Vessel (ASV) is for surveys focusing on inland waterways, hydro dams, ports, coastlines and offshore wind projects.

Advances in AUV technology will be the focus of Singapore’s BeeX, with a vehicle that can autonomously inspect platform structures using a positioning system from UK company Sonardyne.

And EvoLogics will demonstrate excellence in underwater search and reconnaissance, deploying a combination of USVs, AUVs, sensor stations, object recognition technology, and underwater data and positioning networks.

Meanwhile, on board Callista, the National Oceanography Centre’s purpose-built research vessel, Chelsea Technologies will present its next generation instrumentation, LabSTAF, to measure phytoplankton primary productivity.

Also on the dockside – which will be fitted with a 33m floating pontoon to accommodate the mobilisation of autonomous vehicles – Maritime Robotics will stage demonstrations of its fleet of Otter Pros, with both the Norbit and Kongsberg multibeam systems, the ultimate in unmanned survey platforms.

Test tank and classroom training and demonstration sessions will cover everything from Teledyne’s marine interconnect technology advancements to EdgeTech’s 3D sub-seabed imaging sonar, eBOSS.

Ocean Business 2023 provides unrivalled access to today’s transformational ocean technology – from the most sophisticated collision avoidance systems, to sustainable environmental monitoring, to breakthroughs in robotic and lean crewed fleets.

With more than 300 manufacturers and service providers already booked for the sold-out exhibition, this year’s event promises to attract record crowds from around the world, offering unbeatable networking opportunities.

Terry Sloane, Managing Director of Planet Ocean and ecoSUB Robotics, said: ‘Planet Ocean and ecoSUB love being at Ocean Business.  As one of the original companies involved in the stakeholder discussions when Ocean Business was just an idea, we are delighted that it has become a ‘must attend’ on the international ocean show calendar. 

‘As a company that partners with more than 20 overseas manufacturers, it’s a great opportunity to connect with them without burning huge amounts of carbon, as well as meeting with our customers, old, new and future. When you add in the training and demonstration opportunities, Ocean Business clearly comes out top.’

Cheri Arvonio, Event Director at show organiser Diversified Communications, said: ‘Our Training and Demonstration programme this year is packed with innovation and ideas to future-proof your business.

We’re expecting some exciting product launches and can’t wait to welcome a line-up of sector leading ocean people, sharing their wealth of scientific, technological and engineering expertise.’

All training and demonstration sessions are free to attend and visitors can book in on a first come first served basis at the show, or in advance by contacting the company hosting the session. 

To see the full Training and Demonstration programme, please visit: www.oceanbusiness.com.