Dartmouth ocean tech company taps into $20M innovation project

A small Dartmouth, N.S.,ocean acousticscompany will be taking part in the first project approved by Canada's Ocean Supercluster, the jointgovernment-industry program focused on developing ocean innovation.

With annual sales nearing $2million,Turbulent Research is dwarfed by the big players in the project, but Chris Loadman, the president of Turbulent Research, saidthere's opportunity for firms like his own.

"I think that even the smallest of companies can get involved, even startups by partnering or becoming a vendor to some of these larger companies that get some of these bigger programs," Loadmansaid.

The six-person operation is based on the Dartmouth waterfront in the Centre for Ocean Ventures and Entrepreneurship (COVE).

The company makes passive listening devices used by the offshore oil and gas industry, governments and companies needing environmental monitoring.

Like other ocean technology companies in the Halifax area, many of the components that go into Turbulent Research'sproducts are supplied locally.

The company is acting as a supplier to Kraken Robotics, the St. John's-based company behind the $20-million Ocean Vision project.

First Ocean Supercluster project

Last week, dignitaries assembled at Kraken's MountPearlofficeoutside St. John's where it was announcedthe company woulddevelop high-resolution sea floor imaging and mapping as the inaugural Ocean Supercluster project.

Kraken is leading a consortium of companies to develop extremely detailed ocean floor imaging for oil and fishing companies.

Both industries have an interest in better understanding the bottom.

For example, oil companies want a closer look at their offshore installations and seafood companies are interested in habitat.

Ottawa is putting in $5.9 million, with matching money from Halifax-based Clearwater, Petroleum Research Newfoundland and Labrador, the Nunavut Fisheries Association and Ocean Choice International.

Turbulent Research will help make sense of the acoustic signals used in imaging the bottom.

"What we do is help them develop the best set of electronics, provide advice, engineering expertise on the electronics that goes into that, as well as the signal processing," said Loadman.

In February 2018, the Ocean Supercluster was one of five winning entrants in a national competition for innovation funding.

Kraken's Nova Scotia connection

Two other companies based at COVE are providing services to Kraken: vessel supplier Leeway Marine and cable company MacArtney Canada.

Kraken is also a neighbour at COVE.It opened a production facility at the former Canadian Coast Guard base.

"Kraken is a Newfoundland company.We're a small Nova Scotia companyand we're getting a benefit out of this larger project," saidLoadman.

"I think this is a really good opportunity for this ocean technology sector to collaborate to bring their knowledge together and from different bits and pieces at places and apply that to some new and unique technologies."