IMCA Newsroom

Press Release 20/07

LARGEST-EVER IMCA SEMINAR

Records set by previous events in the series have been broken by the 15th Annual Seminar of the International Marine Contractors Association (IMCA), being held in Paris 6-7 November. This year, with a week to go before the Seminar is held, there are over 330 delegates from 25 countries and 16 exhibiting companies.

"We are delighted by the response this year - the numbers of delegates, countries and exhibitors certainly break all previous records," says Hugh Williams, Chief Executive of IMCA, the international trade association representing offshore, marine and underwater engineering companies with 420+ members in 48 countries working in a global market sector valued at $20 bn pa. "Our theme of 'New frontiers in marine contracting' is highly topical, enabling our speakers to address issues affecting work in ever deeper water, harsher environments and cutting edge technical developments - a perfect combination!"

The event has returned to Paris after eight years touring the world in locations as varied as Houston, Singapore and Abu Dhabi. Organisation has been by all four IMCA technical divisions - Diving, Marine, Offshore Survey and Remote Systems & ROV, with a programme reflecting the diverse range of operations carried out by the marine contracting industry and with common interest reflected in every included theme.

Following an introduction by Ian Stevenson of Technip, Chairman of the IMCA Europe & Africa Section, Knut Boe, IMCA President, also from Technip, BP's Tim Bass, Subhash Varma from Reliance Industries and Antoine Serceau of Total will set the scene on the first morning, each taking 'New frontiers in marine contracting - challenges and opportunities' as their topic. The seminar programme, which brings together engineers, managers and offshore personnel from contractors, clients, consultants, equipment manufacturers and others from around the global industry, then divides into two for parallel sessions on marine and diving, followed by parallel workshops reflecting some of the current key concerns of the industry.

The second day again sees an interesting mix of plenary sessions, parallel marine and diving sessions and parallel workshops. The detailed programme is at www.imca-int.com/events/seminar/programme.html

Networking is high on the IMCA seminar agenda with a 'welcome reception' on the evening of 5 November; the seminar dinner and cruise along the Seine on 6 November; and the 'seminar finale' in the form of drinks and a reception on 7 November.

• The countries from which delegates are coming: Argentina, Australia, Bahrain, Brazil, Denmark, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Iran, Italy, Norway, Poland, Qatar, Russian Federation; Singapore; South Africa; Sweden; Switzerland; Thailand; The Netherlands; Trinidad and Tobago; United Arab Emirates; United Kingdom; United States of America.
• The exhibitors: Abermed; C-MAR and The DP Centre; Converteam; Divex; Drass Galeazzi; Fugro Seastar; Hytech; Institut National de Plongée Professionnelle (INPP); Kongsberg Maritime; Marine Cybernetics; National Hyperbaric Centre; Noble Denton; Poseidon Maritime (PML); Serimax; Sonardyne; and Veripos.
• Looking ahead The 2008 IMCA Annual Seminar will be held in Kuala Lumpur on 5-6 November 2008.

Notes to Editors (common)

• IMCA is an international association with over 450 members in more than 50 countries, representing offshore, marine and underwater engineering companies. IMCA has four technical divisions, covering marine/specialist vessel operations, offshore diving, hydrographic survey and remote systems and ROVs, plus geographic sections for the Americas Deepwater, Asia-Pacific, Europe & Africa and Middle East & India regions, as well as a core focus on safety, the environment, competence and training. IMCA seeks to promote its members' common interests, to resolve industry-wide issues and to provide an authoritative voice for its members.
• IMCA publishes some 200 guidance notes and technical reports. These have been developed over the years and are widely distributed. They are a definition of what IMCA stands for, including widely recognised diving and ROV codes of practice, DP documentation, marine good practice guidance, the Common Marine Inspection Document, safety recommendation, outline training syllabi and the IMCA competence scheme guidance. In addition to the range of printed guidance documents, IMCA also produces safety promotional materials, circulates information notes and safety flashes.
• Judith Patten is here to help you if you want any additional information on IMCA; would like to discuss a feature article; want to organise interviews with key members of the IMCA team, etc.