It will support research, testing, and rapid prototyping in acoustic sensing, acoustic communications, unmanned underwater vehicles, maritime autonomy, and climate science research and development. Holding roughly 575,000 gallons of water, the lab’s test tank will be the longest and one of the largest freshwater tanks available in the region. This newest investment by MITRE will supplement the current and planned facilities at URI, WHOI, and NUWC helping to ensure Southern New England remains the Silicon Valley of the undersea technology world. The Coalition will help close gaps in regional capabilities, facilities, and equipment among the partners, investing in complementary assets that either provide new capabilities or add necessary capacity.
Areas of interest include renewable energy and climate sciences, manned and unmanned undersea technology, protection and resilience of critical national infrastructure and supply chains, and defending the nation and its assets from attack in the physical and digital domains.
URI faculty and staff will collaborate in areas where the partners have strengths and where collaboration creates greater opportunity to accelerate advances in maritime technology. “This collaborative effort fits well with the University’s broader ambitions to advance blue economy innovation and research and align strategic investments to be complementary, as we work together to make New England the country’s leading region on ocean science and technology.” security and competitiveness,” said President Parlange. “This partnership presents a great opportunity to develop high-impact regional joint and multi-party efforts that will accelerate maritime innovation and enhance U.S.
Parlange said, “URI is well positioned to train and educate the next generation workforce, and drive the creation of ‘blue jobs’ in this dynamic, emerging industry. “Maritime technology is deeply engrained in many of the key challenges facing our nation and the world, including climate, national security and clean energy,” said Douglas Robbins, vice president, engineering and prototyping, MITRE Labs. “The MITRE BlueTech Lab will accelerate and provide a foundation for underwater research and innovation for positive impact and help make New England a global nexus of maritime research.”Īs the only founding academic partner in the Coalition, URI President Marc B. The Northeast BlueSEA Coalition, composed of leading academic, government and not-for-profit maritime technology organizations will work together to accelerate solutions to complex maritime challenges by combining complementary skills, assets, resources, equipment, and infrastructure.
At a groundbreaking ceremony today, the founding members of the Northeast BlueSEA Coalition announced their commitment to collaborate to advance maritime innovation and to conduct research at the new MITRE BlueTech Lab. The MITRE BlueTech Lab will be a state-of-the-art, all-weather maritime test facility and a national resource for advancing undersea testing, innovation, and collaboration. URI also joins the Northeast BlueTech Science and Engineering Acceleration (BlueSEA) Coalition as a founding member, along with MITRE, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, MassChallenge, and the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, Division Newport. The University of Rhode Island joined MITRE today in its announcement of the new MITRE BlueTech Lab, a national resource for advancing undersea testing, innovation, and collaboration.