The Dalhousie University Faculty of Engineering Speaker Series Committee in conjunction with the Atlantic Association for Research in the Mathematical Sciences (AARMS) wish to invite you to the following lecture event.

Abstract:

For generations, Norway has been a major maritime power, not least due to our dependence on the sea, combined with long-term thinking and a high level of knowledge and expertise in marine technology. MARINTEK and Norwegian University of Science and Technology have been essential for developing knowledge to keep Norway as a world leader in marine technology. It is by no means given that we can retain this position in the future.

The Norwegian Government has in a series of white papers stated that there is a need for significant upgrades and new investments in research infrastructure to maintain our strong position in the maritime fields. This lies at the very core of the Ocean Space Centre, which is aimed at providing possibilities for the study of central problems related to the sea; problems of great importance for climate and the environment, for the balanced utilization of marine resources, for access to energy and for the development of the Arctic region. The pilot study of the Ocean Space Centre outlines the concept, and describes the gap between current laboratory facilities and future needs, in combination with numerical modelling.

The lecture will give an introduction to the rationale behind this initiative, present the status of the project and also inform about the further process for successful realisation. Examples of the combination of physical testing and numerical modelling will be given.

About the Speaker:

Dr. Atle Minsaas obtained his MSc within marine systems design from the Norwegian Institute of Science and Technology (NTNU), formerly NTH: Norwegian Institute of Technology (NTH) in 1977. He also holds a PhD from NTNU within the same field from 1990. Dr. Minsaas has been with MARINTEK since he graduated (Norwegian Marine Technology Research Institute; a research company within the SINTEF Group). MARINTEK is a versatile research company specializing in R&D in central areas of the maritime and offshore fields. He has been instrumental in building up logistics R&D as an important area of the MARINTEK services. He was also appointed the programme manager of the first 4 years national waterborne R&D programme funded by the Research Council of Norway.

Dr Minsaas has more than 25 years experience working with logistics related R&D projects for the shipping and offshore industries, in Norway and abroad. Since 1995 he has also been heavily involved in many European Union (EU)-funded projects, also as a coordinator. Dr. Minsaas has held different positions in MARINTEK. He has been a vice president with responsibility of the Division of Logistics and Technical Operations, but is now a special adviser in the staff. In December 2008 he was appointed as a project manager for the development of the next generation marine technology knowledge centre “The third Wave” in Norway, a truly visionary knowledge centre for all things maritime and most things marine, equipped with research facilities with content and a size capable of delivering state-of-the-art research and development well beyond 2050. The third Wave hints at the first wave, which was the initiation of the first ship model tank in 1939 and the second wave, which was the Marine Technology Centre including the ocean basin, opened in 1979.

More information on the Dalhousie University Faculty of Engineering Speaker Series can be found at http://speakerseries.engineering.dal.ca/ and more information about AARMS can be found at http://www.aarms.math.ca/