This is a new venture so please send constructive criticism to John Howes at [email protected] so he will know how to improve.
Please send information or releases that you may wish to feature in future issues also.
Please pass the email on to colleagues that may be interested. I can then look at numbers and decide if it is an avenue to pursue.
Dear Members and Friends of the Society for Underwater Technology. While our Australian & Brazilian members bake in the summer heat it’s that time of year where we pale northerners scrape the ice off the car in the morning, but for most of the SUT family Christmas and other seasonal festivals are fast approaching and we look forward to time with family and friends.
SUT Houston Students
Since I last wrote to you all I’ve covered a lot of miles visiting Branches, giving lectures, meeting members and learning ever-more about the richness and diversity of our Society. September finished with a brief visit to Houston where I attended the launch of the new Rice University Student Chapter, and also visited Texas A&M at College Station and the University of Houston. The quality of the students at these institutions impresses me hugely, and I was ably looked after by our SUT-US team – many of whom had suffered damage to their homes and property in the aftermath of Houston’s floods. John Allen once again acted as my guide around the universities, Dr Zenon Medina-Cetina showed the visionary leadership that is helping SUT rebound strongly in the USA, and Dr Fathi Ghorbel and his students at the new Rice Chapter will teach us all wonderful new things about robotics in coming years. I was impressed by Natalie Zielinski, who was working part-time for the branch but she’s since been snapped up by Sea-Bird Scientific in Seattle, starting on 2 January. SUT’s loss is a great gain for that excellent company and I’m sure we’ll continue to interact with Natalie well into the future.
As an aside, a childhood dream was accomplished in that the only available hire car (apart from a Hyundai for the same price…) at Houston airport following a late-night arrival was a 5.0 litre Ford Mustang GT – as my regular UK transport is a nice sensible, and economical Toyota Prius hybrid I thoroughly enjoyed the drive to College Station in such an iconic, if rather thirsty, machine.
Steve Hall presenting Tony Laing with his SUT Fellowship certificate
October was a very busy month, starting with a very productive week at the Marine Alliance for Science & Technology Scotland (MASTS – see www.masts.ac.uk) annual science meeting in Glasgow’s Technology & Innovation Centre where SUT’s International Salvage and Decommissioning committee hosted a very well attended decommissioning and wreck removal workshop, bringing together experts from a broad range of stakeholders who learned a great deal from one another. Well done to Karen Seath, Moya Crawford, Donald Orr and their colleagues, and to David Paterson and the MASTS team. With such an active presence in Scotland, SUT has started to build a very strong relationship with MASTS, and we will be working together on a number of marine policy, technology and science areas in coming years. I’ve joined their international advisory board, and Tony Laing from Aberdeen is developing very good links with the MASTS staff. Whilst in Glasgow I also visited Strathclyde University, hosted by Professor Chengi Kuo, a long-standing friend of SUT. One of the points he raised that I take very seriously is why don’t we have ‘SUT -Scotland’ branding north of the border? I’m personally inclined to agree with him, and have opened the topic in discussion with our Aberdeen branch, who would need to give a re-naming their blessing. Prof Kuo isn’t the only person to raise this – Scottish Enterprise have also been asking me if SUT would consider renaming our Scottish operations in a way that broadens our appeal and potential membership.
Delegates at the EMSEA 2017 conference in Malta
The morning after I returned from Glasgow it was back on board a flight to Valletta, Malta, where I was one of the speakers at the annual meeting of the European Marine Science Educators Association. I spoke on how autonomous vehicles will one day enable us to explore the oceans beneath the ice of Jupiter’s moon Europa and Saturn’s moon Enceladus – and thanks to links to NASA from our Houston members I had some beautiful images of the Titan Submarine 2047 concept – a vehicle to explore an ethane ocean. Inspirational stuff for the audience and for me alike. Our publications officer Emily Boddy had her abstract accepted for the Poster Session too so was able to attend and talk about the creation of our book for children, ‘Can a Lobster be an Archaeologist?’. The Malta visit greatly raised the profile of SUT with an international audience mostly from Europe but also the USA, Canada and Taiwan. The 2018 meeting will take place in October in Newcastle Upon Tyne UK, so plenty of scope to engage the educators with our Northern England branch.
YES! Perth
After Malta it was a flight to Perth for my first visit to our very active Australian Branch. Chair Chris Saunders and branch manager Jennifer Maninin had put together a very good itinerary to help me get the know the local branch, and I was delighted to be met at the airport and introduced to the city by Ray Farrier. My wife Anne came along for the visit as it was our 30 wedding anniversary (not paid for by SUT I hasten to add!) and she was also made to feel very welcome by our Perth SUT family – and by the quokkas (a small version of the kangaroo) of Rottnest Island. I talked on the subject of combined surface and subsurface marine autonomous systems operations at the AUT Conference on 18 August, which also opened the doorway for ongoing discussions about future collaboration with the Royal Australian Navy. I was also able to renew acquaintance with Dr Nick D’Adamo of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission Perth Office, and discuss how SUT in Australia, Singapore, Malaysia and China can contribute to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 14 on Oceans, and to the proposed international decade of ocean science.
Steve Hall presenting at AUT Perth 2017
On return to UK I had my first meeting with Dr Frank Lim who is the new chair of SUT China, based at the Petroleum University of Beijing, but with strong family ties to the UK where he has lived for many years. Under Frank’s leadership it should be possible for us to find ways to grow SUT in China and see a financial return to the Society.
Next up was attendance at the UK government’s Marine Science Coordination Committee ‘Marine Industry Liaison Group’ where SUT champions as best we can the needs of our members, usually in close cooperation with our friends in IMarEST. I used to sit on the ‘other side of the table’ when I worked for government, so good to be gamekeeper turned poacher, so to speak. One of the follow ups from this meeting has been increased interaction with the Marine Management Organisation (www.gov.uk/government/organisations/marine-management-organisation), & on 12 December I met with their Head of Strategic Marine Licensing to see how we can help alleviate the concerns of some of our members, such as diving contractors, by liaising with the MMO, offering industry placements for junior MMO marine planners, and contributing to a review of licensing in 2018. More on this in the New Year.
As we moved into November our good friends from Reed Exhibitions covered SUT’s expenses to fly me to Qingdao, China, to attend Oceanology International China and Chair two of the conference sessions, one on marine autonomous systems and another on survey & navigation. I was able to engage with the city’s political leadership too, and meet with SUT’s long term Qingdao collaborator Mr Yunxing Hao to discuss how SUT might be able to plant deeper roots into the Chinese marine sector in the future. Sadly, I was not able to take up Mr Hao’s offer to speak at another Qingdao meeting in December – too many other things to be done, and to make these international trips it really does help our coffers if a host is able to contribute to the costs, as Reed had done.
Our Aberdeen Branch ran a successful Subsea Awareness Course in the second week of November, which was very welcome news as we’ve fallen a long way short of our aspirations for running these courses. We’re putting together a two-day version of the course that should appeal to a wide range of non-traditional customers such as government agencies, legal and insurance companies. I attended the annual pub quiz of the London and Southern England branch on the 7 November, a very enjoyable evening. I was invited to give a keynote talk at the ‘COMPASS’ project launch hosted by the AgriFood & Biosciences Institute of Northern Ireland on the 14 November, in the context of how private sector suppliers of ocean data can be of huge value to public sector science programmes. Again, my hosts covered the travel costs. After Belfast I flew over to Newcastle to attend the North-East England branch’s AGM, where it was a pleasure to award Dr Jerry Baker a token of thanks for his unstinting service to SUT and the establishment of the NE England branch. The branch is in excellent health, and safe hands under the guidance of Michael Williams and his colleagues, with a rising student membership in a region where marine renewables are growing fast. After Newcastle the following week started in Southampton, where I called at my old workplace the National Oceanography Centre as part of SUT’s ‘BRIDGES’ deep ocean glider Horizon 2020 contract commitment, then down to Falmouth to discuss SUT engagement with the National Maritime Museum Cornwall on a new deep-ocean exploration exhibit – more news on that one as we firm up the plans.
November finished back in Scotland, with SUT attendance, display stand, and a speaking slot for me, at the Decom North Sea conference in Saint Andrews. During the week we launched our ‘strategic partnership’ announcement with Decom North Sea, an agreement to work together on matters of common interest. One local press article misinterpreted it as an announcement of some sort of merger, but fortunately we were able to correct that very quickly!
Members of the SUT Diving and Manned Submersibles Committee visit the underwater stage at Pinewood Studios
The last day of November was particularly fascinating, starting off with a visit to Pinewood Studies by our Diving and Manned Submersibles Committee hosted by Dave Shaw. We saw the amazing facilities that have been constructed over the last 30 years to deliver the world’s best underwater sound stage facilities. It’s a multi-million dollar business that has contributed to the glamour of James Bond, the magic of Harry Potter, and the thrills of Star Wars. Makes me proud that we have such expertise within our SUT membership. I had to leave early to get down to Exeter as we were holding our first meeting of the new South West chapter of the London & Southern England Branch at the Met Office. Brian Green and the Met Office’s Caroline Acton & Ed Steele had worked to deliver a first-rate evening, and I’m confident that the new group with thrive.
With all that travelling in November it wasn’t possible to accept an invitation to attend ADIPEC in Abu Dhabi in November as well, but I hope to be able to work with Adrian Phillips and others from SUT to grow our presence in the Middle East in coming years – absence there is a big gap in our global presence.
With the arrival of December a chance to catch up on paperwork, spend more time with my staff, and of course my first Annual General Meeting as CEO, which feels quite daunting but turned out to be an enjoyable evening in the pleasant surroundings of Trinity House. It was a pleasure to see new Fellow David Saul and Honorary Fellow Professor Ralph Rayner receive their certificates, and for Pinewood’s Dave Shaw to receive the Houlder Cup. Sonardyne’s founder John Partridge received the President’s Award from outgoing President Dr David Kirkley, and it was accepted on behalf of John by our incoming President, Ralph Rayner. I attempted to video-stream parts of the AGM onto social media such as Gary Momber’s excellent presentation on exploration of ship wrecks, but it didn’t quite work – will rehearse properly next time! Before the main AGM we held the London and Southern England Branch AGM, presenting retiring Chair Brian Jones with a framed and engraved print and welcoming (in his absence) Richard Binks to the helm. Two days later it was Aberdeen’s turn for an AGM and I was given a hearty welcome, and somehow didn’t get lynched after my after-dinner speech on ‘SUT a decade from now’. It was an honour to present Fellow Certificates to Paul Benstead, who has done so much for his Branch, and to Tony Laing who has done sterling work helping build SUT’s relationship with MASTS, Decom North Sea, NSRI and Scottish Enterprise (who have joined as corporate members, shortly after the Met Office did). My final Scottish visit of 2017 was also spent visiting Decom North Sea HQ and taking part in a meeting with my fellow CEOs of Subsea UK and IMCA to look at how we work in a joined-up manner where appropriate. I’ll be back for the Business Breakfast in Aberdeen on 25 January.
So, a busy few weeks, and I very much look forward to working with you all, and attracting new members, developing new ideas, finding ways to grow our income during 2018. I’m working with members based in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland to launch our first Canada Branch, and will return to Houston in the first Quarter of 2018 to attend the launch of the SUT-US Underwater Robotics Committee. We’re also exploring with our African members if it might be possible to re-launch the Lagos branch, subject to satisfactory and transparent governance arrangements.
Lots to look forward to as we grow our Society, make new alliances, and drive forward better ocean science, education, technology, engineering and policy. Thank you all for your contribution, a special thanks to my hard-working HQ team of Cheryl, Emily, Emma, Jacqui and Jane, and once again, Merry Christmas!
Dear readers, it’s been several weeks since my last update and much has happened at the SUT. On 1st August we moved from 1 Fetter Lane to offices at Quality Court, off Chancery Lane in London. The new accommodation is suitably quirky (I’m reminded of Diagon Alley from the Harry Potter novels when approaching the place), and saves the Society over £20k per year compared with our previous home. We look forward to welcoming members who happen to be passing by but do please let one of the team know first so we can make sure you gain access, as security in London is at a heightened level after recent incidents.
Whilst on the subject of incidents I must first mention our members and friends in Houston, Texas, who weathered extraordinary storms and floods in August. Their resilience and ‘can-do’ attitude has been an example to us all as companies and individuals knuckle down to restore service as usual, and learn the lessons needed to avoid a repeat. Climate science tells us in no uncertain terms that a warmer world, especially a warming ocean, inevitably leads to an increase in the power of storms, higher average rainfall, and more frequent flooding events. These challenges are by no means restricted to developing countries, all of us must prepare for a wilder future, whilst doing what we can collectively to mitigate the factors that drive climate change. In this respect offshore gas in particularly has a valuable role to play, helping nations to transition quickly off burning coal for energy production with something like a 40% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. Gas buys us valuable time to adapt to the new green technologies – many of which have a subsea component – that will underpin the future of many of our energy-sector member companies.
James McCallum, our after dinner speaker at the OSIG Conference dinner
The BIG event that has tied up so much staff effort, and that of our volunteer supporters in recent months has been the OSIG Conference ‘Smarter Solutions for Future Offshore Developments’ that took place at the Royal Geographical Society 12-14th September, including an amazing conference dinner venue at the Natural History Museum. With almost 400 delegates from over 30 countries, the OSIG conference was truly a world-class event that confirmed SUT’s value as a clearing house for exchanging state-of-the-art knowledge, bringing together experts to share, discuss and enthuse about the extraordinary ocean world where our members work, research and explore. The proceedings for the Conference filled two large hardbound volumes, and will shortly go online at www.ingentaconnect.com.
Dinner at the Natural History Museum sat underneath Hope the blue whale
The keynote Bramlette McClelland lecture was given by Alan Young, who inspired delegates with his rich knowledge and Texan delivery. Overall the feedback from attendees has been excellent, we’ve all learned a great deal and we look forward to playing our role as hosts in five years’ time. Special thanks go to Chair of the organising committee, Toby Powell of Subsea 7, and to the HQ staff who worked tirelessly to deliver the conference, especially Jacqui Adams who on joining SUT in January found herself immersed into OSIG and to Emily Boddy for her work on the published proceedings – but they’ve all done a fabulous job.
SUT stand at Offshore Europe
SUT had a strong presence at Offshore Europe in Aberdeen at the start of September, hosting two afternoon sessions at the ‘Decommissioning Zone’ on 6 & 7th September. Our international line-up speakers came from industry, academia, governance and even architecture, reflecting the breadth of our membership. I was honoured to act as chair of the sessions, and attended a series of networking events and dinners at Offshore Europe to help build SUT’s links with the industry. I returned to Aberdeen on 20th September to act as host for Aberdeen Branch’s ‘Question Time’ event, where an expert panel answered a variety of questions concerning the future of the oil and gas sector the changing policy, legal and financial framework, and the emerging technologies that will drive the industry in future years.
In another development that I hope will be of value to our members, I’ve been invited to join the international advisory board of the Marine Alliance for Science and Technology Scotland (MASTS) and will attend their annual science meeting in Glasgow in October, where SUT will also be conducting an offshore decommissioning workshop.
Another highlight for me was that we have just gained our 150th corporate member, appropriately enough on the 150th anniversary of the Shipping Forecast – the UK Met Office, based in Exeter. Our new friends at the Met Office are very keen to help grow SUT in the South West of England and South Wales, and I am putting them in touch with our other members in the region in anticipation of a whole new series of events, and perhaps in time the founding of a fully-fledged branch. Initially activities will be coordinated with the London and Southern England branch, who have held a number of events throughout the UK summer months, and are now settling into their autumn programme.
North East England branch continue to grow in strength and influence, and I’m looking forward to visiting them soon. Things have been quieter in our Norway, Rio, Malaysia and Singapore Branches and I have actions from Council to explore what’s happening and see what we can do at HQ to help reinvigorate activities. I’m also working with other territories to help deliver growth in SUT, and hope to have news on developments in Atlantic Canada and Africa by the time of my next newsletter.
Perth is one of our strongest Branches and continues to deliver impressive results, with a comprehensive programme of events and a very well-run admin team. I’m very much looking forward to visiting Perth in mid October where I’ll be speaking at the AUT Conference on the lessons learned from combined autonomous surface vehicle and underwater vehicle operations in the UK, and an opportunity to make my first acquaintance with our Western Australian members, students and supporters in the southern Spring weather.
Steve being interviewed about ocean stewardship by BBC Radio Wales
In November I’m due to be at Oceanology International China in the beautiful city of Qingdao, a regular haunt in my previous job. I’ll be chairing the session on autonomy and am honoured to be supported by our very good friends at Reed Exhibitions in order to be able to be there. China Branch also have a new Chair, Professor Frank Lim, and I’m sure he is going to do an excellent job in helping to increase our membership and influence in this very important country for future SUT growth.
Also in November we will support the one day conference ‘Oceans of Knowledge’ at the prestigious surroundings of the Royal Institution in London, hosted by our friends at IMarEST. See https://sut.org/event/oceans-of-knowledge/
Finally a plug for our education activities. The Education & Training Committee met in July under the new Chair Sue John, and for the first time with international engagement via Skype and telephone. SUT will be represented at the European Marine Science Educator’s Association in Malta in November, with talks from me about using robots to explore the oceans of the moons of Jupiter and Saturn, and our publications officer Emily Boddy presenting our book ‘Can a Lobster be an Archaeologist?’ I’d encourage any members looking for Christmas presents to consider buying a copy or two for their younger relatives – contact Emily for details.
More from me in a few weeks’ time – I’m writing from the train en route to catch a plane to Houston where we’ll be launching our new Student Chapter at Rice University on Tuesday 26th September, in the company of student representatives from the existing chapters in the region. Our future as a Society depends on growing our membership base, and drawing in new income from a wider range of underwater technology users than we have in the past. The young people in the Student Chapters are a key part of that work, and I encourage all of our members to encourage, nurture and mentor the next generation.
Steve Hall, 25th September 2017 [email protected]
Dear members & friends of SUT, since joining SUT as Chief Executive three months ago I’ve been very impressed by the commitment and energy of the volunteer members of our various branches, committees and special interest groups. I’ve now had a chance to visit branches in Houston, Aberdeen and London, attended committee meetings and taken part in the social events that are part of the tradition of SUT and play an important role in building friendships, networks and knowledge transfer across sectors and across generations. I’m heading off to Crete for a fortnight’s summer vacation with the family on 8th July so will miss London & Southern England branch’s summer barbecue on 20th July onboard HQS Wellington but it promises to be an excellent night – do contact [email protected] if you’d like a ticket. I see that Houston will be hosting their annual scholarship fundraising clay and skeet shoot on 18th August, email Araceli Lopez [email protected] for more info and on 12th July our Perth branch, for whom it is of course winter rather than summer are having an informal casual catch up at The Cheeky Sparrow – to gauge numbers please register at www.trybooking.com/QHKF
L-R Steve Hall, Cheryl Ince, Jen Maninin, Emily Boddy, Jane Hinton enjoying lunch at the Old Bank of England
Whilst on the subject of Perth, staff member and branch manager Jennifer Maninin visited our London office on July 5th, taking a day off her vacation in Europe. Jennifer spent much of the day with our publications officer Emily Boddy going through our websites, exchanging ideas and learning from one another – it was really good to see the enthusiasm from each of them for improving what we do. I’m encouraging the SUT staff in all the branches to think of us as a single global family, and where resources permit, I hope to see staff exchange opportunities arise over the next couple of years so that we can further develop as a joined-up organisation.
In my last engagement as vice chair of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission during June I was able to showcase SUT’s role as an international, multidisciplinary voice for education, industry, technology and science. Our friends from the Marine Technology Society were also present for part of the meeting and it helped impress upon delegates of 148 countries that in the ocean, private sector operators are often the key actors, especially in areas beyond national jurisdiction. My term as an Officer at UNESCO is now over (my successor is Dr Monika Breuch-Moritz of the Federal Maritime & Hydrographic service of Germany) but I’ve been asked to ‘stay in the loop’ to keep UNESCO IOC informed about developments in underwater technology and help feed into international ocean policy – an important role for SUT. As a consequence of the UNESCO work I’ve also had requests from representatives of governments about how SUT might be able to assist in education and policy development – watch this space for further news.
The Big Event currently dominating the lives of the London and Aberdeen secretariat and a hard working committee of volunteers is the 8th International Conference of the Offshore Site Investigation and Geotechnics Committee “Smarter Solutions for Future Offshore Developments” on 12-14th September 2017 at the Royal Geographical Society, Kensington, London. The conference is attracting plenty of interest and promises to be a prestigious and fascinating event. To find and more and book your place see www.sutconnects.com
SUT will be hosting two half-day sessions in the Decommissioning Zone at Offshore Europe in September, including talks on the use of autonomous underwater vehicles in decommissioning, the biodiverse habitat underneath a platform and even on repurposing offshore structures for leisure and recreation – see www.offshore-europe.co.uk/Decommissioning-Zone/ for more.
Also in September the Aberdeen branch will host a ‘Question Time’ style event of Wednesday 20th, where I will play the role of compere. Looking forward to the event – more information coming soon.
October promises to be a busy month with an SUT presence at the European Marine Science Educators Association meeting in Valetta (Newcastle next year so an opportunity to involve the North East England Branch) and plenty happening in Perth Australia, more on that in the next newsletter. November we’ll be hosting the Autonomous Vehicles session at Oceanology International China then supporting the ‘Oceans of Knowledge’ event at the Royal Institution of Great Britain with our friends from IMarEST, so plenty to look forward to as the year moves forward,
A couple more dates for your diaries – the SUT Annual General Meeting date is now confirmed as Monday 11th December at Trinity House, London. Two days later on 13th December our Aberdeen branch will have theirs, at which I am looking forward to being one of the speakers. I promise not to go on too long!
Finally – we’re moving! Part of my remit is to ensure long term financial health for SUT, so on 1st August we will move the headquarters to serviced office premises at 1 Quality Court, Chancery Lane, London WC2A 1HR
This will save approximately £25k per year on what we have been paying at Fetter Lane, whilst remaining in the heart of London and not requiring any relocation for our staff. By the time of my next newsletter we should have settled, so I’ll add some photos of the new office.
Dear Members and friends of the Society for Underwater Technology. It’s now 8 weeks since I started as Chief Executive, and I’d like to give you an update on what I’ve been doing, and have planned for the next few weeks as we approach the northern hemisphere summer.
My first week at SUT coincided with our attendance at Ocean Business 17 which was held at the UK’s National Oceanography Centre. It provided an excellent opportunity to be introduced to our member companies exhibiting there, and individual members visiting the show. I attended the meeting of the joint SUT – ECOR (engineering committee on ocean resources) Panel on Underwater Robotics, chaired by Neil Bose from the Australian Maritime College in Tasmania, and look forward to being able to contribute my knowledge on marine policy and legal aspects of autonomous vehicle operations to the Panel in future.
On the Friday of that first week I was invited to the Diving Museum, Gosport to attend the unveiling of their exhibit of the world’s oldest diving helmet by John Deane, on loan from the Science Museum of London. SUT have been enthusiastic supporters of the work of the Diving Museum, and I very much recommend calling by to say hello if you are visiting the south coast of England. The museum houses a unique collection of equipment, from the earliest days of ‘barrel diving’ (for salvage operations) through to modern sport diving, hard-hat diving, military operations and diving in support of the offshore energy sector. Housed in a Victorian gun battery, it’s a short drive from the Submarine Museum at HMS Dolphin, which also features a collection of deep diving equipment such as a diving bell and submarine rescue vehicle.
Back at the office for my second week saw my first chance to get to know our London-based staff Jane, Cheryl and Emily better, learn the office systems, and engage with the committee that’s putting together the Offshore Site Investigation and Geotechnics (OSIG) 8th international conference in 12-14th September “Smarter Solutions for Future Offshore Developments”. There’s a first-rate programme coming together and it promises to an excellent event that SUT is proud to be supporting. SUT’s Council also met in my second week in the new role, it’s a very different experience as the Chief Executive rather than as a Council Member!
The Houston team of Zenon, Patsy, Araceli and Anna at Patsy’s home
In the third week I attended the London and South East England branch evening meeting ‘Recent developments in the technology of subsea valves for critical applications’ and met the branch members. Next up was my first overseas visit since joining SUT, to attend the Offshore Technology Conference 2017 in Houston. This was suggested by our Chair of Council as a good way to ensure a SUT presence at OTC and an opportunity to meet the Houston Branch. It was a delight to meet up with the SUT Houston core staff Patsy, Anna and Araceli and Chair Professor Zenon Medina-Cetina, and branch member John Allen was an excellent local guide at the enormous OTC complex. Whilst there I was able to hold meetings on decommissioning with Roger Esson of Decom North Sea, discuss US energy policy with a senior staff member of the US Department of Energy, and meet representatives of SUT corporate members including Jukes Group, Wood Group and Castrol. Evening meetings took place with members of the Houston branch committee, and with the local staff. I felt very welcomed and look forward to a long and productive time working with our US colleagues.
Steve with John Allen at Rice University Houston, with the owl mascot
I was particularly impressed by the connections our US members have built up with the universities to encourage the next generation, and was honoured to meet Professor Fathi Ghorbel at Rice University, and with student Marissa Malinoski who takes a lead with the Galveston section of our Texas A&M university student chapter. The Galveston visit was also an opportunity to see the superb outreach and education facility of the Ocean Star Offshore Drilling Rig Museum and Education Center – it would be wonderful to have such a facility open to the public in the UK too! Overall I learned a great deal from visiting the Houston Branch and look forward to rolling out best practise observed at all of our branches across the SUT family.
Tim Cornelius receiving the Lennard-Senior award for outstanding contribution to tidal energy at All-Energy Glasgow
Upon my return from Houston it was straight to Glasgow to attend ‘All-Energy’ where SUT is the Learned Society Patron. Again an opportunity to meet our staff, this time Jacqui and Emma from the Aberdeen Office, as well as a number of our Scotland-based members. I was invited to attend the prestigious energy leader’s dinner at the City Chambers, met many of the leading lights of the renewable energy sector, and the highlight was to present the SUT’s Lennard-Senior Award to Tim Cornelius, CEO of Atlantis Resources Ltd, in recognition of his outstanding contribution to promoting tidal energy. It was good to meet up with SUT’s friend and great supporter Judith Patten MBE during All-Energy, and I look forward to a continued relationship with the growing world of offshore renewables.
John Bevan chairing Diving & Manned Submersibles Committee meeting on board HQS Wellington 17/5/17
Back to London and an enjoyable meeting with our friends at Reed Exhibitions to discuss SUT’s continued involvement with the Oceanology International series of events. We’ll be playing a key role in the conference sessions at OI China in Qingdao in November 2017 and London in the New Year. I also attended the Diving and Manned Submersibles Committee meeting on board HQS Wellington on 17th May, and the London & South East England branch ‘Lunch at Learn’ about underwriting offshore renewables risks kindly hosted at Charles Taylor PLC on the 19th.
In the next weeks I’ll continue to ‘learn the ropes’ about how the Society works, continue meeting branch members, and promote SUT on social media (follow SUT on Facebook , LinkedIn & Twitter @SUT_news, or my own feed @saltwatersteve) and at meetings and conferences. As a follow-up from a new contact met at ‘All-Energy’ I’ve been invited to speak on deep sea mining, marine genetic resources and rising technologies at the ‘Blue Economy’ conference in Marseilles 30-31 May with SUT’s costs covered by the organisers.
I’m visiting Aberdeen branch at the start of June to attend their monthly branch meeting and get to learn more about the sector there. Later in June I’ll be attending the Assembly and Executive Council of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, where I’ll come to the end of my two year term as Vice Chair, a role I was elected to when I was Head of the UK’s delegation. Although SUT is not a country and so has no vote at a UN body, we are an Observer Member of UNESCO-IOC in recognition of our strong education and outreach role, and I’m sure we’ll continue to play an active part in the global ‘ocean literacy’ movement. In particular the Member States value our role as a rare voice for industry in the international ocean science, governance and policy world so SUT is helping to ensure that the needs of our members and supporters are fed-in to development of global ocean stewardship, sustainable development under the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, and wealth creation from ocean resources.
Lots more goes on of course than I’ve highlighted here, and I’d like to say thank you to my staff who have adjusted admirably to having to put up with a new CEO while they are very busy in their day to day roles running the society. I’d like to pay tribute too to the amazing effort put in by our volunteers in the various committees and branches. SUT’s greatest strength are the talented women & men who make it run and adapt to a rapidly changing world. More news from me towards the end of June.
Thank you for your continuing support. Steve Hall, 22nd May 2017 [email protected]
Dear members & friends of SUT, allow me to introduce myself, Steve Hall. I started as the new CEO of the Society for Underwater Technology at the start of April after Dr Bob Allwood’s retirement, and following a first week attending the Ocean Business trade show in Southampton am now settling in at the London office. As some of you will know I’ve been a member (eventually Fellow) of SUT since the 1990s, mainly supporting our education activities, presenting at the Christmas lectures, and serving as a member of Council, including stints as Chair and Hon Secretary. It will be quite a different kind of role as Chief Executive, I’m very happy indeed to have been appointed, and am looking forward to working with the global SUT family to help deliver a modern, international Learned Society that promotes the further understanding of the underwater environment and encourages the sharing of ideas, best practice, research, techniques and tools to explore the ocean and harvest resources in a responsible manner.
My own background is in ocean science, technology and policy. I worked for the UK’s Natural Environment Research Council for over 26 years, ending up as head of the International & Strategic Partnerships Office at the National Oceanography Centre, where I was also head of the UK’s delegation to UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, where I was elected vice-chair in 2015. Over the last decade I’ve helped the UK, EU and UN system develop policy on marine autonomous systems, marine spatial planning, decommissioning, tsunami warning systems, fisheries reform, oil spill response, data management and many other areas of ocean governance & policy. Before that my career included time as programme manager for ‘Autosub’ AUV science missions, conducting tracer chemistry analysis at sea as part of the World Ocean Circulation Experiment, acting as the schools and colleges liaison officer, interaction with Learned Societies and Professional Bodies and an early phase of my career in a small private sector survey company and as a hydrocarbons specialist for HM Customs and Excise.
SUT enables me to bring all of this broad experience to the service of our members, as we face a rapidly changing world where the ocean will be increasingly where humankind looks for living space, energy, food resources, minerals and security. It’s a wonderful time to be working with the global ocean science, engineering, education and policy community and I look forward to engaging with you all in the coming years. Email me at [email protected] , follow me on Twitter as @saltwatersteve and at @sut_news
Below is a transcript of the letter written by our Chairman of Council, Peter Metcalf, to our members, announcing the succession of the CEO. We would like to congratulate Steve Hall on his new role as the CEO of the SUT. We look forward to working with Mr Hall and to seeing what the future brings for the Society.
To All SUT Members
Dear Member,
Succession of CEO
As you will be aware, last year Bob Allwood announced he would be retiring in April this year and therefore standing down as CEO of the SUT after over 7 years in post. We instigated a search and ended with a short list of four excellent candidates. After some considerable discussion we decided on Mr Steve Hall and I am delighted to say that he has accepted the position and will be starting on 1 April.
Steve is well known to many of the SUT Members, having chaired the Education and Training Committee for seven years and as a Member of Council for two years. Since starting his career in 1986 in a small private sector engineering survey company, he has over 30 years of experience in the marine science, technology, energy, policy and education sector, and is currently Head of the International and Strategic Partnerships Office at the UK’s National Oceanography Centre. Steve is Chair of the Marine Science Coordination Committee’s International Working Group and Head of the UK delegation and ad-hominem Vice-Chair at UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission.
I am sure that all Members will give Steve the support that Bob has enjoyed over the last seven years.
Yours sincerely,
Peter Metcalf, Chairman of Council.
The Society for Underwater Technology (SUT) is launching a new course for engineers to form a greater understanding of the deployment of new technology within offshore developments.
The one-day course, in association with Astrimar, is aimed at engineers at all levels who are involved in the deployment of new offshore technology or who need to accommodate existing technology in more challenging applications. It is also suitable for operators, contractors, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and technology developers.
The course, which takes place on June 9 at London’s Imperial College, will provide an overview of industry best practice for the qualification of technology and how to select and design appropriate testing regimes to demonstrate functionality, reliability and durability.
The programme will be split into a combination of presentations, discussions and group break-out sessions, including:
Dr Bob Allwood, CEO of SUT said: “As the subsea industry moves into deeper waters and more difficult operation environments, additional technical risk and uncertain reliability performance is introduced. A defined qualification process is required to manage the risk associated with the first or early deployment of the technology and this course will demonstrate this in a dynamic and interactive way, which will be of interest to all engineers working in the industry.”
The course will run from 9am to 5pm in the Billiard Room, 58 Prince’s Gate, Imperial College, London and costs for £430 members and £530 for non-members. For further information, please contact [email protected] or 01224 823637.
– More than 200 abstracts already submitted for 2017 event –
The Society for Underwater Technology’s (SUT’s) eighth Offshore Site Investigation & Geotechnics (OSIG) International Conference has received substantial support from Fugro, with the company becoming the principal sponsor for the 2017 event.
The conference titled ‘Smarter Solutions for Future Offshore Developments’, takes place from 12-14 September 2017 at the historic Royal Geographical Society in London. The event is attracting a lot of interest with more than 200 abstracts already submitted from potential speakers.
The conference offers an opportunity for geotechnical engineers, geoscientists and academics specialising in offshore topics to share their knowledge and experience. The 2017 conference will focus on new research and developments in site investigation data acquisition, evaluation and integration, geotechnical analysis and design as well as field operational experience.
Tim Dunne, Global Business Line Director for Marine Site Characterisation at Fugro said: “As a leading global supplier of marine geotechnical site characterisation services, Fugro is delighted to continue its support of OSIG. This major conference event provides an unparalleled platform to exchange knowledge and experience with other experts and we are very pleased to be principal sponsor in 2017.”
Dr Bob Allwood, CEO of SUT added: “We enjoy a strong relationship with Fugro and I’d like to express my sincere thanks for their support. Delegates will hear from a range of high profile speakers on new research findings and innovative ideas as to how we can improve efficiency, develop more collaborative approaches and offer innovation towards ‘Smarter Solutions for Future Offshore Developments’.”
OSIG 2017 will look into the challenges currently faced by the offshore oil and gas industry and call for innovative approaches to improve efficiency and rigour in practice. The event will also discuss what the offshore renewable energy industry has identified and addressed, through major research programmes, on key technical issues that must be solved to support its growing strength.
The conference will host the fourth Bramlette McClelland Lecture and a special issue of the EAGE Near Surface Geophysics journal will be published preceding the conference with selected papers to be presented in a dedicated session. A conference dinner will also be held at the Natural History Museum.
A number of sponsorship opportunities remain available. For further information, please contact [email protected] or 01224 823637. More details can also be found at: https://sut.org/event/osig2017/
– ‘Can a Lobster be an Archaeologist’ aims to ignite interest in underwater career opportunities-
The Society for Underwater Technology (SUT) has launched a campaign to get its illustrated children’s book into primary schools with the support of Subsea 7.
Subsea 7 has provided an Aberdeen school with copies of SUT’s educational book, ‘Can a Lobster be an Archaeologist – Quirky Questions and Fascinating Facts about the Underwater World’ which is aimed at growing interest in the exciting variety of careers on offer under the waves.
Primary 5 pupils at Hazlehead Primary School, who recently studied sea life as a topic, were each given a copy of the book thanks to a corporate donation from Subsea 7. SUT is calling on support from other companies to help them roll the book out in schools across the city.
The book, aimed at 10-14 year-olds, takes its name from a true story about Larry the lobster who helped divers discover a missing 8,000-year-old Stone Age civilisation near the Isle of Wight. The 150-page book has been drafted by SUT members who are marine scientists, divers, subsea engineers, academics and from the merchant navy.
It covers topics such as:
Dr Bob Allwood, CEO of SUT and one of the authors said: “It’s a challenging time for many sectors at the moment, but it’s important that we continue to inspire school pupils and show them all of the possibilities that are open to them in a way that brings to life all of the wonders of working underwater. I would like to thank Subsea 7 for the generous contribution in providing these books to the children and we would welcome support from other organisations to help roll this out to as many schools as we can.”
Subsea 7’s Stuart Inglis, who is also a member of SUT+, added: “This is a great initiative for both Subsea 7 and SUT to be involved with as it is important we all inspire young pupils to learn more about the oceans. It has been really encouraging to hear the pupils talk about what they have already studied in class and hopefully, with these quirky stories, they will continue to learn about what goes on under the water.”
Companies interested in getting involved with the campaign can find out more information by contacting: [email protected]. The book has been funded by SUT, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. All proceeds from the book go towards SUT’s Educational Support Fund, set up to help young people pursue learning and development opportunities. ‘Can a Lobster be an Archaeologist?’ retails at £12.99 and can be purchased from Amazon and www.sut.org.
SUT is also hosting its annual Christmas Lectures at the end of the year for primary and secondary school pupils. Teachers interested in attending should contact: [email protected]
