Marine Technology Reporter, March, 2011

<BODY> <div> www.seadiscovery.com NEW YORK 118 E. 25th St., New York, NY 10010 Tel: (212) 477-6700; Fax: (212) 254-6271 FLORIDA 215 NW 3rd St., Boynton Beach, FL 33435 Tel: (561) 732-4368; Fax: (561) 732-6984 PUBLISHER John C. O'Malley jomalley@ marinelink.com Associate Publisher & Editor Gregory R. Trauthwein trauthwein@ marinelink.com Contributing Editors Capt. Edward Lundquist, USN (Ret.) • Steve Withrow Claudio Paschoa • Andrew Safer Production Manager Irina Tabakina tabakina@ marinelink.com Sales Administration & Office Manager Rhoda Morgan morgan@ marinelink.com Sales & Event Coordinator Michelle Howard mhoward@ marinelink.com Manager, Accounting Services Rhoda Morgan morgan@ marinelink.com Manager, Public Relations Mark O’Malley momalley@ marinelink.com Manager, Marketing Jocelyn Redfern jredfern@ marinelink.com Manager, Information Technology Services Vladimir Bibik bibik@ marinelink.com CIRCULATION Kathleen Hickey mtrcirc@ marinelink.com ADVERTISING Vice President, Sales and Marketing Rob Howard howard@ marinelink.com Tel: (561) 732-4368 • Fax: (561) 732-6984 Advertising Sales Manager Lucia M. Annunziata annunziata@ marinelink.com Tel: (212) 477-6700 • Fax: (212) 254-6271 Mike Kozlowski kozlowski@ marinelink.com Tel: (561) 733-2477 • Fax: (561) 732-9670 Japan Katsuhiro Ishii • amskatsu@ dream.com Tel: +81 3 5691 3335 • Fax: + 81 3 5691 3336 T his being our Annual Subsea Vehicles edition, we sought insights and opinions from several leaders on the frontlines of unmanned underwater system technology, courtesy of a virtual “roundtable”, starting on page 22. The technology to put machines in places that humans can’t — or shouldn’t — go is maturing rapidly, driv- en by operation mandates from military, commercial and scientific sectors. But while the technology has certainly come a long way, there is still much work to be done to real- ize the full efficiency and cost-effective benefits. Power: Almost universally leaders in the field admit that improved power density and reliability is the number one challenge in tapping the full potential of unmanned underwater systems and bringing them faster into mainstream operations. Bob Anderson, President & Co-Founder of OceanServer, positions this succinctly: “One recurring technical challenge that affects all types of AUVs in most applications is the desire for higher density battery power to enable longer duration missions. Rechargeable Li-Ion provides the best and safest all round solution, and has made grad- ual improvements over the past 10 years. No replacement technology is on the near-term horizon, but several emerging technologies, primarily driven by military requirements, should eventually enable commercial subsea vehicles to achieve increased mission dura- tions at acceptable costs.” Through this and other challenges, unmanned vehicles are increasingly finding their way into the commercial sector. This month Claudo Paschoa, our correspon- dent in Brazil, discusses with Marie-Laure Charles, the MD of ECA America Latina, her company’s penetration into the lucrative but challenging Brazilian offshore ener- gy and gas market. (see story page 38). In addition, Alex Bynum of Saft discusses his company’s effort to improve battery performance for UUV use. (see story page 44). All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of the pub- lishers. Marine Technology Reporter ISSN 1559-7415 is published monthly except for February, August, and December by New Wave Media, 118 E. 25th St., New York, NY 10010- 2915. Periodicals Postage at New York, NY and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to MARINE TECHNOLOGY REPORTER, 118 E. 25th St., New York, NY 10010-2915. Postmaster send notification (Form 3579) regarding undeliverable magazines to Marine Technology Reporter, 118 East 25th Street, New York, NY 10010. Publishers are not responsible for the safekeeping or return of editorial material. ©2011 New Wave Media. 118 East 25th Street, New York, NY 10010 tel: (212) 477-6700; fax: (212) 254-6271 Vol. 54 No. 2 ISSN 1559-7415 USPS# 023-276 www.seadiscovery.com Member Gregory R. Trauthwein • trauthwein@ marinelink.com • tel: 212-477-6700 Subscription: To subscribe please visit www.seadiscovery.com/subscribe editorial (Photo Cr edit: Kongsber g/Hydr oid) 6 MTR March 2011 </div> <span id="lblContents"></span> <br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.digitalwavepublishing.com/" title="Digital Magazine">Digital Wave Publishing</a> </BODY>