Building a base at sea

Institute for Ocean and Systems Engineering has been awarded a $2m grant by the US 

(ONR) to research building naval bases at sea.

The concept of seabasing will support operations up to the size of a Navy unit or larger, a substantial expansion of today’s amphibious operations capabilities. The US Navy’s plans up to 2015 include using mobile, scalable, offshore facilities to support shore-based Navy, Marine, Army and Air Force operations. These will be central to war operations, and will eliminate the need for a land base when conducting military operations.

Dr. Frederick Driscoll, principal investigator and assistant professor of FAU’s Department of Ocean Engineering, heads this two-year project. Driscoll will lead a team of researchers from FAU, two Navy laboratories and industry partners, Oceaneering International and Marine Applied Physics Corporation.

‘The necessary science and technology for operating such sea bases poses both significant ocean engineering challenges and the need for innovation in ship design, cargo transfer, sea-keeping and hydrodynamic performance,’ said Dr. Manhar Dhanak, director of SeaTech. ‘Development of various ocean technologies is integral to enabling these mobile bases.’