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80 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News standing of the impact of human activity on the ocean and seas on marine re- sources. Research groups will be en- gaged in areas including modelling the ecological population, the impact of in- dustrial pollutants, shipbuilding and ship- ping.

Transport research groups will develop research and innovation crucial to the fur- ther development of the high-technology industry. The Institute aims to help in- dustry develop safer, greener and more competitive marine transport systems.

In addition, researchers will investigate themes including food, aquaculture and fisheries; socio economic sciences and humanities; tourism and coastal zone de- velopment; and marine biotechnology. www.strath.ac.uk/marine

UAE Maritime Education:

Pushing Forward

Captain Jaafar bin Sidin, Director of

EIMA, with Professor Ehsan Mesbahi from Newcastle University.

Emirates International Maritime Acad- emy (EIMA) recently signed its first

Agreement of Collaboration with New- castle University, a world-class research- intensive university with a global reputation for academic excellence, sig- naling the beginning of the availability of high quality and specialized maritime studies and education in the UAE and the

MENA region at large.

Under the agreement an MSc in Marine

Technology will be the launch program.

The program enables graduate profes- sionals working in the marine industry to gain the necessary skills in advance ma- rine technologies, management, and busi- ness operations. The program is especially characterized by its dynamic set up and flexibility, both aim at re- sponding swiftly to the current and de- veloping challenges and demands of the global maritime sector.

MPS Launches New Maritime Blog

Maritime Protective Services (MPS) announced the launch of Maritime Trans- portation Security News and Views (www.mpsblog.org), a blog dedicated to delivering information that encompasses a broad spectrum of security issues that affect the maritime industry, while also delivering up-to-date information and ad- dressing concerns involving the Maritime

Transportation Security Act (MTSA), the

International Ship and Port Facility Se- curity (ISPS) Code, port security, mar- itime terrorism and sea piracy.

Crowley Scholarships for

Williams-Mystic Students

Four students from very diverse back- grounds each got a chance to attend the

Maritime Studies Program of Williams

College and Mystic Seaport, thanks in part to Thomas B. Crowley Sr. scholar- ships. Crowley Maritime Corporation awarded scholarships to Virginia Steiner,

Morgan Wilson, Hannah Holland and

Caroline Crowell during the 2009-2010 academic year. In the fall of 2009, Crow- ley expanded the scholarship program with the Maritime Studies Program of

Williams College and Mystic Seaport, in- creasing its donation from $10,000 to $20,000 a year for deserving and need- based students in the program. This has allowed four students, two in the fall and two in the spring semester, to take part in the program, instead of one student per semester.

ABS NS Secures Several Orders

ABS Nautical Systems signed 30 new orders in the first quarter of 2010 with companies including MISC, BG Group,

SMIT Rebras and Seaarland Shipman- agement (Hamburg) GmbH & CO., KG.

MISC will implement ABS Nautical

Systems’ Hull Inspection module and

Web-based Drawings management tool on eight existing tankers and four ABS- classed newbuilds that will receive the software for free as part of the ABS New- build Initiative. BG LNG Services, LLC, signed up for ABS Nautical System’s

Hull Inspection module, which will be used on 10 LNG vessels. SMIT Rebras, a joint venture between SMIT (Holland) and Rebras Rebocadores do Brasil, has acquired licenses for the Maintenance &

Repair module, Web-based Drawings management tool and the Quality &

Compliance module which will be im- plemented on 30 ABS-classed tug boats.

Seaarland Shipmanagement (Hamburg) will integrate ABS Nautical Systems’

Hull Inspection module and Web-based

Drawings management tool on 36 of its vessels.

ACE Winches Opens Norway Base

ACE Winches has formally created a new company in Norway. ACE Winches

Norge AS is focused upon maintaining and enhancing ACE's Scandinavian busi- ness activities. Operating from a base at

Dusavik, Stavanger, the division offers spooling and hire fleet services and will also be providing vessel bollard pull test- ing. It will also act as a local showcase, and comprises a 500 sqm workshop and 1,000 sqm yard facility.

NEWS PEOPLE & COMPANIES

Bludworth Cook,

Taisei Engineering

Sign ATB Pact

Taisei Engineering of Tokyo

Japan and Bludworth Cook Marine of Houston, Texas have partnered to provide sales, service and sup- port in the U.S. for the ATB sys- tems manufactured by Taisei

Engineering of Japan. Since 1972

Taisei Engineering has sold 245

ATB units worldwide. Their ATB systems are divided into two series – two-pin supporting articulate connection Articouple, similar to those manufactured in the U.S., and three-pin supporting rigid con- nection Triofix --- and, though the latter series Triofix is not found in the U.S. for the moment, this se- ries, combined with a special hull- design technique developed by

Yamaguchi of Taisei, can realize much higher speed with smaller engine power with less emission.

Articouple and Trioflex ATB sys- tems are now available with full service support in the USA by

Richard Bludworth and John Cook and their respective organizations

Bludworth Marine LLC and Blud- worth Cook Marine Inc.