Oregon State University
The Oregon Coast Blue Economy Marine Technologies Rapid-Prototyping and Ecosystem Development Project
Corvallis, OR
Industry Challenge
Federal Share: $599,934
Local Match: $601,359
This partnership between Oregon State University (OSU)’s Hatfield Marine Science Center (HMSC) and Oregon RAIN will develop blue economy (BE) tools and technologies to promote a sustainable future contributing to ecological health, thriving communities, and economic growth in the developing Oregon Coast Blue Economy (OCBE) sector.
HMSC’s new Innovation Lab (Hatfield iLab) will serve as a hub for accelerating growth of BE tools and technologies along Oregon’s 362-mile coastline by:
- Supporting commercialization of BE related marine tools and technologies, including deep-sea acoustic technologies and platforms, ocean energy, environmental sensors, and acoustic control systems.
- Increasing connectivity and collaboration between existing blue technology innovation hubs for private, government, and research stakeholders by leveraging OSU’s network of innovation laboratories (e.g., marine tech, autonomous vehicles, ocean energy, environmental sensors, robotics, design thinking, engineering), and Oregon RAIN’s entrepreneurial ecosystem partners to enhance the overall innovation capacity and resiliency of the Oregon Coast.
- Improving the competitiveness of relevant startups and companies by scaling a sustainable marine-focused research and development program at Hatfield iLab that includes an Innovation Catalyst.
- Accelerating commercialization of the BE tools and technology coming out of the Hatfield iLab, building a strong ecosystem of stakeholders to enable sustainability.