Subsea Europe Services has appointed a new boss to head up its expanded R&D facility at the Rostock Ocean Technology Campus.
Under the leadership of Dr Frank Niemeyer, who was appointed as head of research and development in January 2023, Subsea Europe Services plans to grow the department further with new data science, mechatronics, software development and platform management roles.
“I’m excited to apply my R&D experience in the pursuit of achieving true autonomy for marine surveying as well as supporting the development of the entirely new business models it will enable,” said Niemeyer.
Leading research
Offshore Technology Campus Rostock is widely regarded as one of Europe’s leading marine technology and research clusters, making it the perfect location for Subsea Europe Services’ next phase of expansion.
The new R&D facility measures 100m2 and will be used for developing the company’s autonomous platform capabilities for marine survey with the Autonomous Surveyor Autonomous Surface Vesseland underwater inspection, with the A.IKANBILIS Hovering Autonomous Underwater Vehicle.
The R&D team will also focus on creating new application-specific AI-powered autonomous control systems and unlocking the potential of swarm surveys featuring multiple autonomous vehicles with crewed or uncrewed motherships capable of managing the entire operation.
These cutting-edge marine survey technologies and methodologies contribute to a unique and disruptive strategy that can positively transform marine survey and underwater inspection for all stakeholders.
Niemeyer joins Subsea Europe Services from his previous role as a scientific research associate at the Fraunhofer Institute for Large Structures in Production Engineering, where he has been on secondment at the Rostock branch office of the “Smart Ocean Technology” research group, working on diverse technical R&D projects.
He has previously worked as research associate at the University of Rostock and chair of Geodesy and Geoinformatics.
