A new laboratory at Newcastle University (www.ncl.ac.uk" target="_blank"> www.ncl.ac.uk), focused on the design and build of sub-sea drones, is helping to strengthen the region’s expertise in underwater engineering.

Supported by Hampshire-based engineering firm Sonardyne International Ltd, the new facility creates a focal point
for cross-disciplinary collaboration on marine robotics.

Housed in the university’s Armstrong Building, the Sonardyne Robotics and Auton-omous Systems Student Laboratory contains new equipment for building underwater drones, including a 3-D printer.

The space is already being used by undergraduate students to take their design ideas for sub-sea robotics and marine autonomous systems off the drawing board and into reality.

This includes designing and printing their own custom robotic parts to build remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) and — soon — autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs).

The university’s Engineering Projects Society has been active in sub-sea robotics projects over the last three years.

Most recently, its competitive arm — the NUROVers team — reached the finals of the Marine Advanced Technology Education competition in the USA, winning the Guts and Glory award.

One of the Engineering Projects Society’s next goals is building an AUV.