Start-Up Yard at COVE

Start-Up Yard is the incubation facility at COVE, helping early stage ocean technology companies commercialize their products and services and succeed in the global marketplace. It offers programs, incubation space and services, funding, shared equipment, expertise and mentoring.

Start-Up Yard is more than infrastructure and other resources. It is a community – an environment with a strong innovation culture that lets start-ups engage with like-minded entrepreneurs and organizations that can help them start and grow. It also partners with post-secondary institutions to help drive commercialization of ocean technologies.

Start-Up Yard includes open concept desk space, meeting space and shared workshop and testing facilities. Open to all COVE members, it offers prototype design and fabrication equipment and services.

You can contact the Start-Up Yard team at any point, whether you’re at the idea, proof-of-concept, prototype, or go-to-market stage. We are happy to discuss your ideas, progress and future direction and how we can help.

Membership at COVE is exclusive of participation in the Start-Up Yard. Special leasing rates are available for those who qualify for the incubation program.

Contact Kyle Burton or Shelley Hessian from Start-Up Yard:
902.424.8670 x 1406
startupyard@innovacorp.ca

Ocean Connector

Ocean Connectors are monthly networking events that connect people and organizations in the ocean industry to generate innovative ideas and activity in the region. The two-hour event is held on the third Thursday of the month and features a 20-minute presentation from a member of the ocean industry. There are no entrance fees to attend Ocean Connectors. To receive your invitation to our Ocean Connector events, sign up to our mailing list here.

DeepSense

Canadian industry struggles to capture its global share of the ocean opportunity without data-driven insight to integrate and leverage new technologies. Delivered by partners with a global reputation and proven track record in the sector, DeepSense supports industry in seizing sustainable growth opportunities in the global ocean economy.

DeepSense is an applied partnership between COVE, Dalhousie University, IBM, the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, the Ocean Frontier Institute, and the Province of Nova Scotia. The partnership is headquartered at Dalhousie's Faculty of Computer Science.

DeepSense is:

A platform for industry to do applied R&D in analytics and the ocean economy with university experts, graduate students, postdocs and applied research scientists, and professional software engineers.
An innovation environment that brings together industry with data and ocean scientists to develop commercially-useful predictive models, analytical prototypes, and applications for use in the blue economy.
An engine to help accelerate the development of a new industry sector focused on the creation of ocean data products, computational models, and analytical applications.

DeepSense programs will bring industry and academia together to develop analytical applications and models, and solve challenges faced by the oceans sector. Programs will provide industry partners with access to the DeepSense platform, a High Performance Computing (HPC) environment and Highly Qualified Personnel (HQP).

DeepSense project themes focus on:

Fisheries & Aquaculture
Seaport and Logistics
Security and Defense
Marine Risk, Finance and Insurance
Offshore Energy
Ship Building
Policy and Government
Ocean Data Sensors
Ocean Data Products, Computational Models, and Analytical Applications

UMass Dartmouth Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship

The Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE) is a technology incubator located at UMass Dartmouth in Fall River, Massachusetts. CIE provides a full range of services to its Tech Venture Companies and offers many of the resources necessary to assist marine technology companies to start-up and grow. CIE has state of the art research labs, prototype development capabilities and a dedicated staff of experts to assist with the hands-on application of academics to develop real world solutions.

The partnership between CIE and COVE allows members of each center to take advantage of the other’s network, events, and resources. COVE members will have access to CIE workstations as well as CIE’s mechanical and rapid prototyping labs and equipment at a discounted rate. CIE and COVE will work to share relevant commercial opportunities with one another and their members, as well as facilitating events to develop relationships amongst member companies. The partnership will also work to facilitate student work term exchanges and industry-based engineering capstone projects between the two regions.

For more information on the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and the opportunities for COVE members visit their website at: www.umassd.edu/innovate/. COVE members interested in partnering or taking advantage of CIE’s offerings should contact COVE staff.

SmartAtlantic

The SmartAtlantic Alliance supports operational efficiency, situational awareness and safety in the marine environment and provides an unprecedented level of support to the country's coastal and ocean management efforts. SmartAtlantic Alliance buoy data, weather forecasts and value-added information products are freely available at www.SmartAtlantic.ca.

IORE, under the guidance of the Canadian Marine Pilots' Association (Atlantic region), is leading the deployment and operation of meteorological/oceanographic buoys off Herring Cove at the mouth of Halifax harbour in Nova Scotia and off the Port of Saint John, New Brunswick.

The SmartATLANTIC Herring Cove Buoy is a joint initiative of:

Atlantic Pilotage Authority
Halifax Port Authority
Canadian Coast Guard
Canadian Marine Pilots’ Association
Institute for Ocean Research Enterprise

The SmartATLANTIC Saint John Buoy is a joint initiative of:

Atlantic Pilotage Authority
Port of Saint John
Irving Oil
Canaport LNG
Canadian Coast Guard
Canadian Marine Pilots’ Association
Institute for Ocean Research Enterprise

The SmartAtlantic Alliance is an initiative of IORE and the Marine Institute of Memorial University. The Marine Institute leads the SmartBay initiative applied ocean observation system on Newfoundland's south coast.

Recognizing the operational efficiencies and potential collaboration and expansion opportunities presented, IORE and the Marine Institute have partnered to unite the SmartBay, Halifax, and Saint John initiatives under the "SmartAtlantic Alliance" banner; creating the nucleus of a cooperative Atlantic Canada applied ocean observation capacity.

Marine People Partnership (MPP)

The Marine People Partnership (MPP) was formed with support from Irving Shipbuilding as part of their value proposition commitment to strengthen the Canadian marine industry under the National Shipbuilding Strategy. MPP has a national mandate to explore and address workforce development issues and to help develop and establish an innovative, sustainable and globally competitive marine industry.

Primary research has included both national and regional studies that have benchmarked the current needs and gaps for strategic workforce development and have provided rich data and key insights into the perceptions and intentions of regional youth regarding marine careers. MPP now hosts an annual National Forum on Workforce Development in the Marine Industry which draws together key stakeholders from across the country, and across the ocean sectors, to participate in an evidence-based dialogue about issues and opportunities in talent management across this industry. Additionally, MPP develops and hosts professional development (PD) workshops for teachers to integrate ocean topics into their current curriculum, and ocean literacy and career literacy programs for youth. Other publications include White Papers, text-book contributions, and most recently, a proposal to the G7 on Women in Ocean Industries.

As we head into our 5th year, MPP will focus on initiatives to engage Indigenous workers and youth in the marine industry, and will launch a pilot project aimed at increasing the opportunities for post-secondary students to complete work-integrated learning within the industry.