Page 47: of Marine Technology Magazine (March 2006)

"Ocean Technology in Service to

Society" is the theme of this year's

Oceanology International Exhibition (OI 2006) set to convene at London's

ExCeL center from March 21-23, 2006. The bi-annual event will attract 600 companies from 25 countries to exhibit the latest technologies and products, as well as an expected 7,000 visitors. "This year's theme, Ocean

Technology in Service to Society, will examine the exciting integration and interplay between science, technolo- gy, policy, data management, and society," said Dr. Richard Spinrad, the OI 06 chairman. Under this theme, issues such as Ocean Resource

Management and Global

Stewardship, Natural Hazards,

Security and Safety, and Precision

Position and Navigation will be dis- cussed in various presentations and discussion panels.

Additional OI 2006 meetings on schedule are as follows: Engineering

Committee for Oceanic Resources

Symposium 2006 (ECOR); Inter-

Agency Committee on Marine

Science and Technology (IACMST);

UK Moorings Group Meeting, coor- dinated by FRS Marine Laboratory;

Global VSAT Forum; the GIS

Conference; the IIDC Conference; for Coastal Ocean Benthic

Observatory (COBO); Emerging technologies for monitoring the coastal zone, hosted by the Institution of Civil Engineers; Ships of

Opportunity, Ferry Systems and

Other Automated Observing

Systems: Systems, Sensors and

Applications for Oceanographic,

Chemical and Biological Monitoring; and the International Marine

Contractors Association (IMCA).

In addition to exhibits and meet- ings, OI 06 will also feature a "float- ing" exhibition. As ExCel is located at the London Docklands by the

Thames, it is feasible for OI 06 to accommodate company vessels to dock alongside the exhibition center.

As a result, event-goers will have the opportunity to examine and observe catamarans, survey boats, research vessels and ROVs up close. Thus far, 12 vessels are scheduled to partici- pate.

Lastly, new at this year's exhibition is the Spill International Exhibition and Interspill Conference. "We wel- come alongside OI a new event - the

Spill International exhibition and the

Interspill conference, which will increase the oil spill, pollution control & monitoring element of our audi- ence at OI," organizers said on the event website, www.OI06.com. With this new addition to the OI program, organizers aim to provide a forum in which spill technology and awareness can be discussed. Exhibitors will dis- play the latest technology and research regarding oil spills at sea or on shore. The conference will serve as a discussion forum where ideas regarding oil spill prevention and response can be exchanged. Both the

Spill International Exhibition and

Interspill Conference will be perma- nently added to future OI programs.

For more information, visit www.oi06.com www.seadiscovery.com Marine Technology Reporter 49

OI 2006 • March 21-23, 2006

OI Conference Committee • Dr. Richard Spinrad, Assistant Administrator & Conference Committee Chairman, NOAA, USA Dr. Keith Alverson, Director, Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO, France Mr. Richard Binks, Managing Director, iXSea, UK Mr. Ian Gallett, Executive Secretary, Society for Underwater Technology, UK Dr. John Wickenden, Technical Director Sea Systems Division, QinetiQ, UK Mr. Nick Langhorne, US/UK Collaboration, US Office of Naval Research, UK Dr. Steven Ramberg, Director, NATO Undersea Research Centre, Italy Dr. Ralph Rayner, Managing Director, Fugro GEOS, UK Dr. Martin Sayer, Director, UK National Facility for Scientific Diving, UK Ms. Nadia Sbeih, Communications Specialist, National Ocean Service, USA Mr. Christopher Shaw, Engineering Manager MetOcean, Shell International Exploration & Production BV, Netherlands Mr. Carl Tiltman, Leader UW Systems, dstl Winfrith, UK

Products & Systems on Display at Oceanology International 2006 in London

Oi06

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