Published: 23/10/2020
Over the coming days, Maritime UK will be profiling each of the finalists in this year’s Maritime UK Awards. Winners will be announced on 12 November in an event live streamed from Plymouth. Registration is open.
The UK Ship Register are proud to be the sponsors of the Innovation Award for the second time at the 2020 Maritime UK Awards.
The Maritime UK Awards are open to businesses, charities and organisations of any size, and the Innovation Award will be awarded to a candidate that can demonstrate a true commitment to innovation, and that will be able to evidence how their innovation is used to solve particular challenges, or to create new products or services.
The winner of the Innovation Award will be announced at a virtual event broadcast from Plymouth, Britain’s Ocean City on 12 November from 5pm.
The UK Ship Register is a part of the Maritime & Coastguard Agency, an executive agency of the UK Department for Transport. The UK Ship Register manages one of the best performing flags in the major Port State Control regimes and maintain the highest international standards.
Dan Vivan Commercial Director of the UK Ship Register said:
“We are delighted to be sponsoring the Innovation Award at the Maritime UK Awards this autumn, for the second year running. It’s important for us to recognise and support new approaches and technologies through awards such as these.
The IMO and UK Government have set ambitious decarbonisation challenges for the sector to meet and we are working to ensure UK registered vessels are given the right guidance and flexibility to meet the vision for 2050.
We are working closely with our dedicated Maritime Future Technologies team at the MCA and as an agency we’re committed to working with innovators throughout industry and academia to provide support and guidance to these innovative approaches and opportunities that will see the UK lead maritime innovation.”
Highly respected experts from a variety of businesses and government departments were involved in the judging panel for this year’s Maritime UK Awards, which celebrate the achievements of the UK’s maritime sector, which adds £46.1bn to the UK economy every year, and supports 1.1 million jobs.
Three strong entries have been shortlisted for this year’s Innovation Award, from Hinkley Point, Tanki, and SEA.
Hinkley Point C is the first new nuclear power station to be built in the UK in over 20 years and will provide low-carbon electricity for around 6 million homes and make a significant contribution to reducing the UK’s carbon emissions. As part of development, Hinkley Point have constructed a temporary jetty to deliver materials to the construction site. The jetty is making use of new innovation such as a hydraulically operated, telescopic and swivelling aluminium gangway, designed to withstand wind speeds of 20m/s, far above the limit for a ship berthed alongside the jetty.
Tanki is the world’s only distributer of toilet paper legally compliant to discharge at sea under current maritime law. Created to solve an engineering problem, Tanki’s product is manufactured without the use of plastic and will not block any non-conventional sewage treatment facility such from ship-board processing tanks, providing an environmental solution to the discharge of waste.
Systems Engineering & Assessment, SEA delivers maritime mission systems to the defence market with expertise in surface and sub-surface communications and training systems. While integral to naval defence, underwater acoustic sensing traditionally involves heavy and expensive sensor equipment only suitable for larger vessels. SEA’s KraitArray has reduced the volume by the sensors by 90% whilst retaining and improving sensor capability, creating opportunities for much smaller vessels to make use of this technology.
Harry Theochari, Chair of Maritime UK, said:
“We’re thrilled to announce the finalists for the second annual Maritime UK Awards 2020. Across all fourteen categories we can see some genuinely world-beating products, services, and operators. These awards help do just that. The quality of entries this year is testament to the strength and commitment of our maritime sector to be world-class despite the most challenging of circumstances.”
Ben Murray, Director of Maritime UK, said:
“We were determined that these awards would go ahead, and in an ideal world would have been one of the first occasions at which colleagues from across the sector could come back together following COVID-19. With that not being possible due to new restrictions, we think it’s really important to celebrate the remarkable work that has been going on – in responding to COVID-19, and in spite of it – which sends a message of resilience and ambition.”
The 2020 Maritime UK Awards are hosted by Maritime UK South West and delivered by Plymouth City Council. Diamond Sponsors are the MLA College and the University of Plymouth.
Tickets to the live-streamed event are free and open to everyone. To register visit the official website.