In 2019, the DIGITAL OCEAN CONVENTION celebrated a successful premiere with more than 200 participants. In 2020, the annual conference with accompanying exhibition had to be canceled due to the pandemic. In 2021, the organizers – the Subsea Monitoring Network e. V., the local economic development agency Rostock Business, and the Fraunhofer Society – are once again inviting participants to Rostock. This time, representatives from industry, science, and politics will discuss current developments, trends, and projects in underwater technologies over two days in the format of a lunch-to-lunch event. The event is held under the patronage of Manuela Schwesig, Minister President of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Live streams will enable digital participation for those unable to travel to Rostock. Tickets can be booked online at www.rostock-business.com/doc. An accompanying exhibition will present current products and developments in digital underwater technology.

The event is titled “Future Field: Digital Underwater Technology – What It Needs, What It Delivers, and Where It Is Used.” Following a keynote by Asgeir Johan Sørensen from NTNU, the German Federal Government’s Maritime Coordinator, Norbert Brackmann, will discuss the necessary political framework for forward-looking research with representatives of the state government of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and the European Commission.

A second panel discussion will focus on the opportunities offered by an interdisciplinary technology campus, such as the Ocean Technology Campus (OTC) Rostock currently under development. This panel brings together international expertise, including Sabina Fredin from the Blekinge Institute of Technology (Sweden), Gisle Nondal from GCE Ocean Technology (Norway), and Melanie Nadeau from the Centre for Ocean Ventures & Entrepreneurship (COVE, Canada). Another session will provide information on ongoing EU funding programs from Norway and report on the successful international cooperation between Norway’s Maritime Robotics AS and Germany’s EOMAP GmbH & Co. KG. The day’s closing keynote will be delivered by Dr. Mathias Jonas, Secretary-General of the International Hydrographic Organization. The evening reception at the Ocean Technology Campus Rostock in the Rostock fishing harbor promises a maritime setting for networking with new and familiar contacts.

Rostock’s Lord Mayor, Claus-Ruhe Madsen, will open the second day. This day will offer deeper insights into various fields of application – such as UXO, offshore maintenance, or digital twins – through parallel workshops and opportunities for professional exchange. Among others, David Shea of Kraken Robotics Systems Inc. (Canada), Dr. Simon Jirka of 52° North GmbH, and Prof. Andreas Birk of Jacobs University will provide impulses for the workshop sessions. The start-ups Framework Robotics, Deeeper Technology, and TrueOcean GmbH will present their business ideas in a dedicated workshop.

2nd DIGITAL OCEAN CONVENTION Rostock

August 25–26, 2021 • HanseMesse Rostock

Future Field: Digital Underwater Technology
What it needs, what it delivers, and where it is used