In 2019 the UKDSC advanced its Cross-Sector Innovation (CSI) initiative within the subsea domain, through extensive engagement and support from a number of industry and government bodies including MOD, Royal Navy, DASA, UKRI-Innovate UK, SUBSEA UK, NSRI, BP, OGTC, OGA and the Offshore Energy Sector (OES). Theses engagements have been successful and has led to the launch of the Cross Sector Innovation (CSI) – Subsea Autonomous Systems: Next Generation Technologies
The subsea autonomous systems CSI will address specific opportunities to deliver joint benefit to both the Defence and Offshore sectors by developing, jointly through their supply chains, a range of innovative emerging and enabling technology solutions. As a result, £6.1m of funding has been made available by the various interlocutors to initiate a specific Innovation competition. In summary, detailed dialogue between the major Offshore Energy companies and the Royal Navy (RN) have identified a shared appetite to deliver disruptive solutions around four distinctive enabling technology within the Subsea autonomous systems areas as follows:
- Power & Communications
- Sensors, Detection, Navigation, Processing and Data Fusion
- Deployment and Modularity
- Operations
COMPETITION SUMMARY: UK Research and Innovation’s (UKRI) Robots for a Safer World challenge, is working with The Royal Navy, the Oil & Gas Technology Centre, BP and the Oil & Gas Authority on a new £6 million competition for business-led projects. Successful applicants will gain a place on a 5-day collaborative workshop to develop their proposals, then submit their final innovative and commercially viable new ideas.
The competition details are as follows:
Expressions of interest Opens – 13 Jan 2020
- Competition Briefing Event 1 – 23 January, London Hallam Conference Centre, 44 Hallam Street, London, W1W 6JJ (Note this will also be a webinar session that will be posted to Innovate UK’s website)
- Competition Briefing Event 2 – 30 January, Scotland the studio…67 Hope Street, Glasgow, G2 6AE
Expressions of Interest Close – 12 Feb 2020
5 Day Residential Collaborative Workshop – 20th to 24th April 2020
Further information will be provided through the UKDSC COI Portal/Website and shall be signposted through the RN Website, DASA Website, OGTC’s Website and Subsea UK’s as well as being available on Innovate UK’s website.
Please feel free to distribute this information further within your organisations to ensure maximum awareness and participation of your members.