MARIN’s unique Depressurised Wave Basin (DWB) was officially inaugurated on March 19 by Maxime Verhagen, the Dutch Minister of Economic Affairs, Agriculture and Innovation. Representing the combination of a depressurised towing tank with a wave maker, the DWB creates a world first.
The inauguration took place in the presence of representatives from various government ministries, the navy, maritime industry, reputed knowledge institutes and from “Topsector Water”, (a governmentbacked process which brings together experts from industry and research institutes to promote the vast water‐related knowledge and experience the Netherlands has).
The cooperation between government, knowledge institutes and the business community is at the heart of the DWB, symbolising the so‐called “golden triangle”. This is a unique collaboration: the government will contribute to research and knowledge development and MARIN will in turn, use the new facility to effectively develop this knowledge and then companies can use this knowledge for valuable input into their innovations.
The “golden triangle” results in a unique cooperation able to bring creative, innovative solutions to the industry.
When Minister Verhagen officially started up the new wave makers in the basin it was certainly an impressive sight. He commented: “ MARIN proves that even the most complex dreams can come true. What is happening here, is unique in the world. With the water basin, the waves and the ingenious vacuum technique, MARIN is working with and for companies carrying out top level research.”
This huge project (representing an investment of E17m) started in February 2010. Dubbed “the Cathedral” at MARIN, the sheer scale is astounding. The DWB contains 35 million litres of water and took an extraordinary two weeks to fill.
This unique facility is expected to strengthen MARIN’s leading position in the maritime world and will contribute to the competitiveness of the Dutch maritime cluster.
[mappress] Subsea World News Staff , March 26, 2012; Image: MARIN