Editorial

Across the multiple heavy industry and technology sectors we serve: subsea energy, subsea defense and subsea science, plus maritime, offshore energy, ports and logistics, challenges posed by the pandemic have been historic, to put it mildly, but onward we march.

Some trends that we’ve seen unfold over the past 24-months that will undoubtedly define our future in this sector include:

• Remote & Digital: While experiencing the power and challenges of working in, around and under the world’s oceans can never be replaced by anything other than physically ‘being there,’ remote technologies that help to gather, process and disseminate vast quantities of data to create valuable, actionable information are the future.
• Scale: This industry always has been and always will be the province of small, nimble innovators and start-ups. However, it will be those that have the vision and capability to deliver innovation at scale and increasingly lower costs that will flourish.
• Ocean Awareness: All industries associated with the oceans and world’s waterways have traditionally been ‘out-of-site, out-of-mind.’ The old days are over, as the health of the ocean has and will increasingly become central to conversation, study, technical innovation and policy making.

As the clock turns on 2021 and we stare down the opportunities and challenges that await in 2022 and beyond, I and the entire MTR team offer to you – our readers, our advertisers, our contributors, our colleagues and friends – a sincere ‘thank you’ for your continued interest and support.