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Brian Miles of Brookhaven was recognized as an M.V.P. presenter during the Sales Presentation/Engineering Presentation. Eight “stand-out” students were selected from fifty-seven teams and presented this award for their presentation skill and demeanor.
ST. JOHN’S, Newfoundland – Copiah-Lincoln Community College’s robotics team, the Seawolves, made history by finishing fourth place in the 14th Annual Marine Advanced Technology Education (MATE) International Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) Competition held in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Co-Lin students competed alongside qualified teams from around the globe finishingahead of four-year universities including The Ohio State University, Mississippi State University, Arizona State University, the University of New Hampshire, and the University of Washington.
This year’s winner was Jesuit High from Carmichael, California. Jesuit has a very active robotics program that allows their students to letter in robotics. Coming in second was Memorial University followed by Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.
The 2015 Competition centered on the utilization of ROVs for underwater research and performing work to maintain oil and gas fields, both in the Arctic environment.
The competition was hosted by Memorial University of Newfoundland, the Fisheries and Marine Institute (MI) and the National Research Council’s Ocean, Coastal, and River Engineering (NRC OCRE) facilities in St. John’s. The MI and NRC OCRE facilities in St. John’s are regularly used to test equipment in both the polar science and oil communities before said equipment is implemented in the real Arctic environment.
Competition tasks included counting and sampling organisms, deploying scientific instruments, gathering iceberg data, replacing corroded pipeline, testing oil platform grounding, and directing oil flow of a pipeline. Alongside ROV demonstrations, teams were required to organize vehicle technical documentation, prepare a sales presentation before a judging panel, and present a marketing display.
In 2012, SURE debuted the Seawolf I in 23rd place and as the first Mississippi team. Subsequent years found the Co-Lin team in the top ten at sixth and seventh places. Along with placing fourth, the highest in team history, the 2015 competition marked several firsts for the team. Co-Lin representatives were recognized twice on stage at the awards banquet, which followed the competition.
SURE was honored with the 2015 Martin Bowen Memorial Inspiration for Future Engineers Award. According to the competition website the award was established “in honor of Martin Bowen, underwater vehicle engineer and ROV pilot. Martin spent a good part of his career at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution(WHOI). He was the first to pilot an ROV down the grand staircase of the Titanic. Given to a team or an individual who demonstrates passion, creativeness, and ingenuity along with a sense of humor, professionalism, and kindness towards fellow competitors.”
Team member Brian Miles of Brookhaven was recognized as an M.V.P. presenter during the Sales Presentation/Engineering Presentation. Eight “stand-out” students were selected from fifty-seven teams and presented this award for their presentation skill and demeanor.
Dr. Kevin McKone, faculty advisor and chairperson of Co-Lin’s science division shared the team’s excitement about the outcome and gratefulness to supporters. “This was an exceptional year for the Co-Lin Seawolves,” said McKone. “The Seawolves team was an eclectic mix of highly motivated Co-Lin students. It was obvious early on that if we weren’t successful this year, we probably never would be. We also had such good support from the community, the school and local industry. All these pieces came together, allowing our team to place fourth in the world; an amazing year.”
Special thanks to the sponsors and friends of the 2015 SURE team: Brookhaven City Glass, Burt Cantrelle, Georgia – Pacific LLC, King’s Daughters Medical Center, Brookhaven Country Club, Billy Joe Boutwell (Lawrence County Supervisor, Brookhill on Natchez,Ashley’s Art, Outland Technologies, Jane Wilson, Henry Ballard, Steve Nall, SolidWorks, SeaTrepid, Copiah-Lincoln Community College, Copiah-Lincoln Community College Foundation, Co-Lin President Dr. Ronald E. Nettles, Vice President of Instructional Services Dr. Jane Hulon, Dean of Career, Technical and Workforce Education Jackie Martin, Dean of Academic Instruction Dr. Jill Logan and MATE ROV Society.
For more information about Seawolf Underwater Robotics Engineering (SURE), please contact Dr. Kevin McKone at 601.643.8450 or kevin.mckone@colin.edu. Follow SURE on Facebook (www.facebook.com/colinseawolves) or Twitter (@colinseawolves).
For more information about the MATE ROV competition, visit www.marinetech.org/rov-competition.
Pictured from left are S.U.R.E representatives, Timothy Jones of Florence; Blake Pryor of Laurel; Thomas Westrope, Lauren Brouillette-Westrope, and Josh Hart all of Wesson, and Brian Miles of Brookhaven, accept the 2015 Martin Bowen Memorial Inspiration for Future Engineers Award at the MATE International competition in St. John’s, Newfoundland. This recognition, which is presented to the team demonstrating pronounced character and a passion for ROV engineering.
