The Marine Institute is the national agency responsible for marine research, technology development and innovation. Its chief executive, Dr Peter Heffernan, says the SmartBay project, done in partnership with IBM and other technology companies, will enable the institute to pull in and make available large amounts of data for a huge range of projects, from environmental and weather monitoring to climate change analysis, research on animal populations, development of fishing and other maritime industries, and deep sea exploration in conjunction with international research partners.

“This is a perfect example of the marriage of a natural resource coupled with smart technology management,” he says. “Every business that operates on the ocean has a relationship with the environment, and anything that can smartly manage that is of huge value.” A network of wireless communications-enabled moored buoys in Galway Bay feed back a range of data that can be drawn upon not just by companies, local authorities and researchers but by the general public as well.

Though the project is a small pilot, Heffernan says the institute hopes for broader funding and is interested to see how sensors can be developed and used in Irish and international research.

As an island nation on the edge of a vast ocean that greatly influences climate and the environment, Ireland is well positioned for research. "Both IBM and the Marine Institute had identified this space and our strategies and vision overlapped. The opportunity for deep ocean monitoring will rely on these kinds of technologies and they will give Ireland a head start." – Karlin Lillington