The Offshore Survey Committee revealed what it is calling one of the most impressive programs yet for its fifth conference which takes place from April 15-16, 2015, alongside Ocean Business at the National Oceanography Centre in Southampton, U.K.

After an overwhelming response to the call for papers, the technical committee has developed a program which covers timely issues for the offshore industry. With 20 papers to be presented over the two days, there will be something for everyone in the five sessions covering: Hydrographic and Seabed Survey; Data Processing and Visualization; Industry and Professional Issues; Subsea Positioning and Survey Operations.

Conference Chairman, Ed Danson, explained, “Once again we are thrilled to have attracted some of the industry's leading presenters. Over 70 abstracts were submitted and the quality was so high that it was an extremely challenging task for the technical committee to whittle down to just 20 papers, as a result I'm delighted to announce we have a balanced, relevant and exciting program to present in April.”

The conference will be opening to an keynote presentation from Rafael Ponce, Global Maritime Business Development Manager at Esri, who will be talking about the future of GIS and how this could transform the offshore industry. Covering Big Data, ‘Internet of Things’ and web GIS, Ponce will show how these can become the nervous system of the world to measure and understand more about the way we do business in the Oceans.

Other sessions include up-to-the-minute information about the AUV search operations for the missing Malaysia Airlines jet MH370. Presented by Chris Moore, AUV Program Manager of Phoenix International, the talk will focus on Phoenix’s underwater search which covered over 860 square kilometers of seafloor, working at depths of up to 5,005 meters while diving for periods of over 27 hours. This will be followed by talks which further demonstrate the technological breakthroughs that the industry has made in the past 12 months; from imaging and data to positioning and navigation, as well as professional issues. Offshore Survey will continue its reputation for providing a unique mix of global technology and business from all corners of the industry.

Offshore Survey runs alongside the Ocean Business exhibition, which provides a mix of technology and business for the delegates. As in previous years, the show will include a full three-day program of hands-on training and demonstration sessions, enabling buyers to actually test drive equipment before purchasing. Ocean Careers will also run over the three days to provide advice on career opportunities within the ocean technology, marine science and offshore industries. As always, the combined events bring a social program, culminating in a gala dinner, held at the O2 Guildhall Southampton on Wednesday, April 15.