Page 32: of Marine Technology Magazine (July 2007)

Ohmsett

Naval Weapons Station Earle, Waterfront

Route 36, Building R-26

Leonardo, NJ 07737

Tel: 732-866-7183; Fax: 732-866-7189 www.ohmsett.com

Email:[email protected]

CEO & Chairman: Mike Norcio

Program Manager: Bill Schmidt

Ohmsett, The National Oil Spill

Response Test Facility is located in

Leonardo, NJ, where full-scale oil spill response testing, research and training can be conducted with oil in a realistic simulated marine environ- ment under controlled conditions.

The facility consists of a large out- door above-ground concrete test tank measuring 667 feet long by 65 feet wide by 8 feet deep filled with 2.6 million gallons of clear salt water, conference rooms, maintenance/machine shop, chem- istry laboratory, and offices.

Ohmsett's mission is to increase oil spill response capabilities through independent and objective perform- ance testing of equipment, providing realistic training to response person- nel, and improving response tech- nologies through research and devel- opment The U.S Department of

Interior, Minerals Management

Service (MMS) has operated the

Ohmsett facility for 15 years as part of its mandated requirements to ensure that the best and safest tech- nologies are used in offshore oil and gas operations. The Ohmsett facility is maintained and operated by MAR,

Incorporated through a contract with

Minerals Management Service.

Technology Profile: Ohmsett has experienced a 150 percent increase in its use over the past five years. The continued safe and effective opera- tion of Ohmsett will be ensured through the completion of major repairs as well as replacement of nec- essary facility equipment and sys- tems. September 2007 will mark the end of a four-year, major refurbish- ment program that totaled $4 mil- lion. Ohmsett plays a critical role in developing effective response tech- nologies and represents a necessary intermediate step between small scale bench testing and open water testing of equipment. Many of today's com- mercially available oil spill cleanup products and services have been test- ed at Ohmsett either as off-the-shelf commercially available equipment, or as equipment or technology still under development.

Recent research projects includes testing concepts for new products not yet in production, innovative studies of oil emulsions, and the develop- ment of testing capabilities for disper- sants. Ohmsett is open and opera- tional year round and provides a con- trolled environment for cold water testing and training including the ability to simulate realistic broken ice conditions. The facility has the capa- bility to test and evaluate all types of oil spill response technologies that include: chemical treating agents and dispersants, fire-resistant contain- ment booms, remote sensing and detection instruments, sorbent mate- rials, temporary storage devices, vis- cous oil pumping units and oil water separators. In addition to developing and testing response technologies,

Ohmsett provides first responders, from state and federal government agencies, private industry and foreign countries, with the most realistic training available enabling a rapid and efficient response to an actual spill event. 32 MTR July 2007

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