Page 79: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (November 2011)
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surpass the security AUV market by 2015The arms race from the cold war is transforming to an all-domain un-manned systems race over the next two decadesThe mixed used of UMS for envi- ronmental remote sensing, security, and defense will continue to increase and present opportunities for small and low-cost platforms USVs will marginally be used for anti-piracy roles in the near term Oil & Gas stakeholders will be the first private users of USV for security and defense roles (or they will force governments to protect their private in- terests). Note that the oil & gas indus- try has been the largest user of UUVs for private and commercial purposes The main obstacle to the sales of USVs lies in the navies? realization of the capabilities of unmanned maritimesystems. Adoption of technology has been slow. Once the capabilities and potential are recognized, the hurdle is not technological but rests in operating the system: how to use the USV with existing equipment, effect functionallaunch and recovery, calculate the life costs and operational costs of usingUSVs, manpower required to operate USVs, developing funding for this new equipment at the expense of other, and an old acquisition process that does not suit asymmetric warfare pace. Future UMS Uses There are far too many UMS future uses to list in this article. I present here three representative future uses for UMSs. It is important to note that each use presents multiple business op- portunities for operators, innovators, components & parts manufacturers, systems integrators, private and gov- ernment contractors. Environmental Monitoring The BP Oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico had a dramatic impact on sev- eral economies, from fishing to energy. A number of countries will want to de-ploy long endurance UUV ?gliders? to constantly monitor the seas and exclu- sive economic zones. Data about the ocean will also increasingly be gathered in the Arctic, where climate changes are quite visible. Persistent operations are too costly to be performed by manned operations, and only unmanned equip-ment can perform them in a cost effec- tive manner. Extreme environments such as the poles, and access to remote and dangerous locations ?which often yield the more insightful data ? is much better suited to UMS. In addi- tion, there is significant interest from defense and security governments to gather environmental data and create models & make predictions. MARKET REPORT UNMANNED MARITIME SYSTEMS About the Report?Unmanned Maritime Systems -Defense & Security UUV & USV? Markets, Technologies & Op- portunities Outlook ? 2012-2020? includes 530-pages, 292Figures and 223 Tables. You can find more information and order the report at http://marketintelgroup.com/ unmanned-maritime-systems-umv-usv-uuv-defense-security-marketsNovember 2011www.marinelink.com 79MR Nov.11 # 10 (74-80):MR Template 11/4/2011 11:05 AM Page 79