Page 43: of Marine Technology Magazine (March 2012)

Atlantic Canada Supplementwww.seadiscovery.com Marine Technology Reporter 43Aerospace, the industry representative on the development of remote aerial vehicles for environmental monitoring of the ocean, to a collaboration with Rutter Inc., the industry representative on a seaß oor instrumentation project focused on developing geological imaging and earthquake detection capabilities via a network of wireless marine sensors. Virtual Marine Technology (VMT), a developer of simulators used to train operators of survival and fast- response craft, has collaborated with Memorial on three research projects over the past eight years. Simulation is used to develop competencies and skills that would otherwise be too difÞ cult or dangerous to introduce using on water training. It all started with an informal collaboration in 2003. After heading up research and development efforts for the Coast Guard, Captain Anthony Patterson, now president and CEO of VMT, was working at the Center for Marine Simulation at the Fisheries and Marine Institute of Memorial University (Marine Institute). He Þ gured that with all the engineering capability at the university, they should be building simulators to meet CanadaÕs unique requirements for operating in harsh environments. Dr. Brian Veitch, currently Associate Dean of Research and a professor in MemorialÕs Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science, was the Terra Nova Project Junior Chair in Ocean Environmental Risk Engineering at the time. He was looking into personnel safety issues in the offshore. He and Antonio Sim?es R?, a naval architect and senior research ofÞ cer at the NRCÑInstitute for Ocean Technology, had been conducting research on lifeboat performance to identify the performance limitations of lifeboat evacuation systems. Dr. Veitch and Capt. Patterson discussed the issues of lifeboat evacuation and, together with Sim?es R?, decided to collaborate on developing a simulator that could be used to safely train people to launch in emergency conditions. They secured project funding from Petroleum Research Atlantic Canada. Randy Billard, Dr. VeitchÕs student who had just started working on his MasterÕs degree in Ocean and Naval Architectural Engineering, started to work on the project. In 2004, the two of them co-founded Virtual Marine Technology. Capt. Patterson came onboard as CEO three years later. ÒSimulation technologies are advanced by Memorial to commercially viable prototypes,Ó Capt. Patterson explains. ÒAt that stage, VMT starts to work with the University to help bring the technologies to fruition.Ó The Þ rst project involved modeling and simulation of harsh environments, including rough seas. The second took the early-stage proof of concepts to commercially ready technologies, and the third, currently under way, is expanding VMTÕs suite of technologies to include emergency health and safety training programs for the offshore. Collaboration with MemorialÕs School of Human Kinetics and Recreation enables VMT to ensure the simulators are experientially realistic. VMT and Memorial both share the intellectual property, which is developed through a cross-licensing agreement. The licensing arrangement enables the university to use the technology for research. ÒWe get a really strong R&D ß ywheel moving, and the university gets a partner thatÕs bringing relevant applied research projects to the table,Ó says Capt. Patterson. ÒUltimately, the university derives beneÞ ts from the commercialization of the technology, but they donÕt have to take the risks of commercializing it.Ó In May 2010, VMT was the Þ rst company to receive international certiÞ cation for a lifeboat simulator from Det Norske Veritas. Provincial Aerospace and C-CORE collaborate on ice management services on the Grand Banks, offshore Newfoundland, and in Greenland. Photo credit: Provincial Aerospace MTR2 Canada Supplement 32-48.indd 43MTR2 Canada Supplement 32-48.indd 432/22/2012 3:11:55 PM2/22/2012 3:11:55 PM