San Diego-based Ocean technology, engineering and science event, Oceanology International Americas (OiA) is pleased to announce a Canada Pavilion in which businesses from the USA’s northern neighbour will showcase a thriving ocean technology sector.
Canadian companies are world leaders in fields such as hull design, system electronics, sonar technologies, and computer-aided manufacturing. Key competency areas include sonar systems, training and simulation products and services, combat systems integration, advanced surveillance and mapping systems, integrated logistics and support systems, and a variety of maintenance and fabrication capabilities in direct support of the Royal Canadian Navy fleet.
The Canadian ocean tech sector is composed of highly international companies with dual or multiple use technologies that they sell into various markets. The sector is part of the modern ocean economy and serves various wealth generating ocean industries including, Marine transportation; Defence and security; Coastal and ocean management; Fisheries and aquaculture; Offshore oil and gas exploration, development and production; Seabed mining & Ocean renewable energy.
Get your ticket for Oi Americas
Join the oceanology community in San Diego from 14–16 February 2023 and discover emerging marine science technology.
This year, OiA’s overarching conference theme is: ‘The New Blue Economy: Unlocking the Potential’, and Canada has long punched well above its weight in the New Blue Economy. “Canada has one of the world’s longest coastlines,” says Cathy Williams at Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA). “We are bordered by three oceans – the Pacific, the Arctic and the Atlantic – so much of our important place in the ocean economy comes naturally. We are building an international reputation for ocean observation, bringing designers, manufacturers, experts, and innovators to showcase their latest products and services in fields such as underwater acoustics and imaging, ocean communication and navigation, robotics, arctic technologies, and sensors. We also lead the world in the number of ocean-related supporting resources including research institutions, centres of excellence, universities, researchers, and facilities.
Our companies are doing incredible work to fight the issues of today and tomorrow. They are in the fight against climate change, supplying sustainable protein to feed the planet, marine shipping and electrification, green and blue energy, and more. Canadian companies are developing hundreds of new, made-in-Canada ocean products, processes, and services. These are all part of the reason why Canada is leading as an ocean nation, and particularly in the technology industries represented at OiA.”
Bridget Archibald, Export Development Executive at Invest Nova Scotia, who is set to manage the Canada Pavilion at OiA is excited to be able to showcase a range of Canadian companies and their ocean related capabilities: “We are delighted to be bringing our contingent of 20 exhibitors to San Diego in February, along with approximately 10 exciting newer companies that have joined the delegation and will be walking the show. In total, we are expecting a delegation of over 50 people to attend OiA with us, including our partners: Canadian Government and ocean eco-system organizations. The pavilion will cover 2,000 square feet of floor space, providing a real insight into the strength and depth of Canada’s ocean technology industries.
One ‘must visit’ exhibitor within the Canada Pavilion is The Launch, a hub for innovation, discovery and leadership at Memorial University of Newfoundland’s Fisheries and Marine Institute. The Launch’s Director Kelley Santos, who will be attending OI says: “Strategically located in Holyrood, NL, at the most southerly point of the Labrador Current, The Launch is adjacent to some of the coldest, most pristine waters in the world, offering access to deep water, cold ocean research and development, almost year-round. OiA provides us with a great opportunity to showcase to the US and wider markets the benefits of working in our safe, reliable, near-Arctic environment.
Get your ticket for Oi Americas
Join the oceanology community in San Diego from 14–16 February 2023 and discover emerging marine science technology.
We are excited to be able to introduce our facility’s huge range of ocean tech programs and services at OiA, including SmartBay Holyrood, our multi-purpose, cold ocean technology development and testing facility, and Holyrood Subsea Observatory, all supported by the Marine Institute’s Centre for Applied Ocean Technology and Offshore Safety and Survival Centre.”
Demonstrating the sheer variety of Canada’s marine leadership is fellow Canada Pavilion exhibitor eSonar Inc., which is improving access to subsea environmental data with advanced sonar and underwater acoustics knowledge. eSonar technologies help improve the fishing rate for targeted species, protect endangered marine mammals, save fuel, reduce time spent trawling, and monitor gear.
St. Johns, NL-headquartered eSonar recently in partnership with another Canadian company, Ashored Inc., played a key role in a Canadian Ocean Supercluster-supported Fishing System Project. This $1.4M project has been working to develop and commercialize ropeless or rope-on-command (ROC) fishing solutions to help address global problems including vertical line entanglements, plastic pollution, and ‘ghost fishing’ caused by abandoned, lost, and discarded fishing gear.
Canada has had very positive experiences with exhibiting at Oceanology International shows – the country most recently exhibited at Oi London in March, taking a similar trade pavilion approach, continues Bridget Archibald: “OiA gives us that same opportunity in North America, assisting companies to make new relationships in this market, again reaching an international audience, and deepening existing relationships. San Diego is an ocean city and has an amazing blue economy. It has thousands of companies and organizations doing work in the marine, ocean, subsea and blue tech sectors. San Diego has a major port, naval bases, world-renowned research institutions, and is a hot-spot for start-up culture, investors and incubators- a real hotbed for entrepreneurial activities.
The Canada Pavilion at OiA is set to feature companies from Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Quebec, and British Columbia. As Bridget Archibald explains, such national pavilions provide excellent opportunities for networking away from the typical working week: “It’s very powerful to have companies from all parts of our (large!) country exhibiting together. At OiA, our delegation gets to spend lots of time together, meeting, networking and collaborating. For younger companies it’s a great introduction, and in other cases, established companies have worked together many times before, know each other really well, and will happily make referrals to each other, connecting the right people, helping to build this very strong Canadian brand in ocean technology. There are many connections between Canadian companies and the San Diego area, and having this event in California provides one more way for those connections to grow and deepen.”
The Canada pavilion at OiA is well worth a visit, not least because visitors can speak to experts from over 20 companies in just a few minutes. To help get the ball rolling in networking activities, all OiA exhibitors and visitors are invited to a ‘meet and greet’ event at Canada Pavilion from 3pm-4:45pm on Tues Feb 14.
Get your ticket for Oi Americas
Join the oceanology community in San Diego from 14–16 February 2023 and discover emerging marine science technology.