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EUROFLEETS 2 - kick off meeting on the 19th - 21st of March 2013

EUROFLEETS2 - "New operational steps towards an alliance of European research fleets", is an FP7 project funded under Infrastructures initiave, coordinated by Ifremer that brings together a significant group of key marine research actors (in particular research vessel operators) in Europe covering all eco-regions - 31 marine institutes, universities, foundations and SMEs from 20 European and Associated countries.

EUROFLEETS2 is positioned as the enhancement of EUROFLEETS1 with the principal aim to consolidate the construction of a pan-European distributed research fleet infrastructure with common strategic vision and coordinated access to European marine research vessels and equipment. EUROFLEETS2 will enhance integration through specific actions aimed at consolidating the organization, methodology and tools initiated during EUROFLEETS1 and through operational experimental tests towards more integrated, interoperable and cost effective European fleets for the benefit of academic, industrial and operational marine research.

More specifically the objectives of EUROFLEETS2 can be summarised as following:

  • Promoting a larger integration of European Global/Ocean and Regional RVs as these two types should be addressed separately for most of the strategic and programming issues. In fact in EUROFLEETS2 a higher participation of RVs is expected: 8 Ocean/Global with 4 new ones; 14 regional RVs with 6 new ones and 6 mobile equipments normally not made accessible on their usual national support vessel;
  • Integrating a common polar vision in the strategic vision of the European marine research fleets;
  • Promoting exchanges of movable equipment on board European RVs and in doing so fostering high operational interoperability within Europe;
  • Further integrating the European RVs by coordinating multi-vessels experiments (super-integration) for larger and ambitious marine research missions;
  • Initiating operational experimental tests demonstrating the higher interoperability of European fleets;
  • Enhancing the impact of research infrastructures on innovation by fostering the involvement of industry with specific activities, both as a user (e.g. development and testing of new equipment or deep-sea exploration for new energy or mineral resources) and as a supplier of such facilities. The Club of Interest structured in EUROFLEEST1 will be reinforced and multi-activities will be promoted;
  • Making an important step towards a long term sustainable European Marine RVs Infrastructures network and prepare a possible insertion into the ESFRI roadmap.