CEROS: National Defense Center of Excellence for Research in Ocean Sciences

Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 17, 2005

Contact: Jacquie Brewbaker, Program Manager for Outreach & Administration
National Defense Center of Excellence for Research in Ocean Sciences (CEROS) - (808) 327-4310

CEROS Awards over $6.2 Million to Ocean Technology Development Companies

(Kailua-Kona, HI) The National Defense Center of Excellence for Research in Ocean Sciences (CEROS), a project affiliated with the Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawaii Authority (NELHA), announced the selection of projects for its 2005 Core technology development program. Fourteen companies will receive over $6.2 million in FY05 funding.

With funding through the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the CEROS program solicits and supports innovative technology development for national maritime applications and sustained technology-based economic development in Hawaii. Since 1993, annual CEROS Programs have funded 174 projects for over $65.75 million. The CEROS program provides the state with an interface to Department of Defense programs with requirements for advanced maritime technology.

On October 8, 2004, CEROS initiated its 2005 program with an ocean science solicitation issued on the CEROS website and local newspapers. The 2005 Core projects were selected competitively from 68 project submissions that were received by mid-November. After review for technical merit, 25 projects were invited to submit full technical and cost proposals to CEROS in January. The full proposals were reviewed for technical quality, anticipated benefits, and costs as specified in the solicitation. Based upon evaluations and recommendations by technical experts and advisors to CEROS, the NELHA Board of Directors approved CEROS' request to negotiate contracts and fund eleven of the projects for $5.1 million. Four additional projects, which were recommended by the CEROS Research Advisory Board if sufficient funds were available, will be negotiated by the end of May. Finally, the Research Advisory Board recommended funding requested modifications to two FY05 contracts for $202,326. Retiring CEROS Technical Director William Friedl observed, "These projects offer good value to CEROS and indicate a remarkable capacity in Hawai'i for developing high-quality, advanced, commercially-based technology with good potential for military applications."

The companies which have completed negotiations under the 2005 CEROS Core technology development program and their project titles are:

BAE Systems Spectral Solutions LLC, Honolulu, HI, $341,044 "Single Camera Multispectral Imager Study"

Cellular Bioengineering, Inc., Honolulu, HI, $557,243 "Neural Matrix Chips for Chemical and Biological Weapons Detection"

Concurrent Analytical Inc., Waiamanalo, HI, $314,574 "Improved Virus Detection Capability Development"

Lidar Pacific Corporation, Waipahu HI, $401,218 "The Use of Texel 3D Imaging for Shallow Water Bathymetric Measurements"

Lockheed Martin Orincon Defense, Kailua, HI, $585,277 "Doppler-Compensated Interarray Broadband Cross-Correlation for Sonar Contact Geo-Localization"

Makai Ocean Engineering, Inc., Kailua, HI, $359,949 "Development of a Simplified ADS Deployment Approach"

Makai Ocean Engineering, Inc., Kailua, HI, $625,000 "A Deep Ocean Anti-Neutrino Detector near Hawaii"

Navatek Ltd., Honolulu, HI, $640,698 "Design and Testing of a High Efficiency, Lifting Body Integrated Propulsion Pod with Polymer Drag Reduction and Electric Drive"

Oceanit Laboratories, Inc., Honolulu, HI, $403,330 "Real-Time Tactical Bioluminescence Detector"

Oceanit Laboratories, Inc., Honolulu, HI, $427,630 "Portable Three-Dimensional Cloud Height Indicator and Visibility Sensor for Marine Application"

Science Applications International Corporation, McLean, VA, $445,796 "A Shallow Water Concept Demonstration for Signal Measurements"

For more information about CEROS, contact Ms. Jacquie Brewbaker, CEROS Program Manager for Outreach & Administration, (808) 327-4310 or consult the CEROS web page, www.ceros.org