The Association for Shipbuilding and Marine Technology (VSM) intends to expand and further institutionalise its cooperation with the German Navy. According to VSM Chief Executive Reinhard Lüken, a memorandum of understanding between the association and the Navy is due to be signed this week.
The industry is committed to investing in research, development and innovation, and to supplying the German Navy and allied partners with the best possible equipment. At the same time, Lüken emphasises the industry’s role in contributing to a safer world.
This comes against a backdrop of growing momentum in the maritime industry: alongside merchant shipping, offshore and specialist sectors, naval shipbuilding has also gained significantly in importance in the face of strong demand and new technological requirements.
According to the VSM, geopolitical tensions, risks at strategic straits, the Russian shadow fleet and attacks on critical maritime infrastructure underscore the strategic importance of the maritime domain.
For the German shipbuilding and marine technology industry, this means that the long-standing interdependence of technology development, procurement, industrial capacity and operational requirements is coming into sharper focus.
The SMM, together with the MS&D Conference in Hamburg in September, is intended to provide a central platform for this.
