Image: L-R John Sharp; Andy Hill (L) presents award to Philippe Jeanjean; Jonas Wüst
The well-attended recent SUT AGM of saw the announcement of newly appointed SUT Officers for the Learned Society; notification of elected Fellows from the UK, Australia, and the USA; and awards presented both in the year under review and the prestigious President’s Award announced at the AGM. The meeting was followed by a stimulating talk on ‘The Crown Estate Marine Delivery Routemap’ by Alex Thompson, Strategic Delivery Senior Manager at The Crown Estate.
SUT’s Chief Executive, Cheryl Burgess, explained: “With Benj Sykes, Country Manager of Ørsted, now in his second year as President, Mike Fearn of Bluefield Geoservices Limited becomes Chair; the Honorary Secretary is Dave Brookes of St Jules; and Gehrig Schulz of EPI is now the SUT’s Honorary Treasurer.
“The SUT’s new Fellows are Karen Seath, Decommissioning and Salvage SIG (UK); Paul Upjohn, Perth Branch (Australia); and three Members from the Houston, Texas Branch: Colin Johnston, Luz Zarate, and Patricia Varela. Having both completed terms on Council after serving as President, Judith Patten and Ralph Rayner are now Honorary Fellows.”
The winner of the President’s Award, announced at the AGM, is Professor John Sharp. Unable to attend the meeting, Professor Sharp said: “I was honoured to receive the 2024 SUT President’s Award for my work with the SUT Marine Renewable Energies Committee as its chairman, a role I have held for a number of years.
“The Committee has continued to thrive with regular presentations and has recently expanded its scope to include floating wind and, more recently, floating solar, as both have common technologies with offshore renewables such as wave and tidal energy. I have particularly welcomed the opportunity to support the newly formed SUT marine renewable energy committees in the USA and Perth, Australia. As a Visiting Professor at Cranfield University, I have been able to contribute to training young students who have gone on to careers in the marine renewable energy industry.”
AGM attendees were reminded of SUT Award winners during the year under review:
- Professor Peter Girguis won the Captain Don Walsh Award for Exploration, a joint award with MTS.
- Professor Deborah Greaves, University of Plymouth and SuperGen, won the Lennard-Senior Prize.
- Dr Philippe Jeanjean, BP, won the Mick Cook Award for Significant Contribution to Marine Site Investigation and Characterisation.
- Jonas Wüst of Tethys Robotics was the winner of the Gwyn Griffiths Underwater Robotics Award.
Comments from some of the 2023-24 Award Winners
Mick Cook Award for Significant Contribution to Marine Site Investigation and Characterisation
Dr Philippe Jeanjean, Senior Advisor, Geotechnical Engineering at BP, said “What a great surprise and privilege! This is a great and truly unexpected honour. Thank you very much to the committee for selecting me.”
A distinguished expert with over 30 years at BP/Amoco, Philippe has significantly advanced offshore foundations and geotechnical engineering through leadership in professional organisations and over 60 technical publications.
Gwyn Griffiths Underwater Robotics Award Winner
Jonas Wüst of Tethys Robotics said “Thank you so much – this truly honours me and reflects what we as a team have achieved over the past few years (and we’re just getting started!).”
Terry Sloane, Managing Director of Planet Ocean and ecoSUB Robotics, commented “Anyone who can get an AUV to navigate in a river deserves an award!”
Gwyn Griffiths added “Jonas and Tethys Robotics – what audacity! Not content with facing and overcoming challenges in underwater robotics for fast-flowing rivers, their innovations in autonomous navigation and real-time mapping also allow operation in minimal visibility. I commend Jonas and Tethys on their exemplary originality and strategic vision so early in their underwater vehicle venture.”