Fisheries and Marine Institute of Memorial University of Newfoundland

More than 350 students and mentors from high schools, junior high schools and an elementary school across Newfoundland and Labrador participated in the 12th Annual Marine Advanced Technology Education (MATE) Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) NL Regional Competition May 4-5.

Thirty-three teams from 30 schools competed at the Marine Institute’s flume tank in the Ranger class (high school) and Scout class (junior high).

Ranger teams also vied for the opportunity to participate in the 2018 MATE International ROV Competition in Seattle, WA., June 21-23.‌

Ranger competition

O’Donel High School of Mount Pearl placed first overall in the Ranger class and Heritage Collegiate of Lethbridge placed second – and as the top two teams they were invited to participate in the international competition in Seattle. Placing third overall was Holy Trinity High of Torbay. 

Memorial University’s Eastern Edge Robotics team will also take part in the international competition in the Explorer class.

Fourteen high schools participated in the Ranger class: Ascension Collegiate, Corner Brook Regional High, Gonzaga High School, Heritage Collegiate, Holy Spirit High School, Holy Trinity High, Leo Burke Academy, Mount Pearl Senior High, Pasadena Academy, Phoenix Academy, Queen Elizabeth Regional High School, O’Donel High School and St. Kevin’s High School.

Scout Competition

In the Scout class competition, Eric G. Lambert School of Churchill Falls placed first overall, Lewisporte Intermediate came in second and Villanova Junior High of C.B.S. placed third.

Taking part for the first time in the Scout competition was a team of Grade 6 students, the Riverside Elementary Engineering Club, from Clarenville.

Nineteen teams from 16 schools participated in the Scout class: Brookside Intermediate, Clarenville Middle School, Eric G. Lambert School, Fatima Academy, Frank Roberts Junior High, Hillview Academy, Immaculate Heart of Mary School, Leo Burke Academy, Lewisporte Intermediate, Macdonald Drive Junior High, Mobile Central High School, Pasadena Academy, Riverside Elementary, Villanova Junior High, St. Mark’s School and Templeton Academy.‌

Awards

The Steve Brown MATE ROV Leadership Award was presented to Katherine Ledwell of Holy Trinity High.

Teams were also recognized for their marketing displays, engineering presentations and ROV product demonstration.

Corner Brook Regional High place first for their marketing display, while O’Donel High School came in second and Mount Pearl Senior High placed third.

For their engineering presentation O’Donel High School placed first, Heritage Collegiate came in second and Mount Pearl Senior received third place.

In product demonstration category, first place went to O’Donel High, Heritage Collegiate and Holy Trinity High tied for second place, and third place went to Gonzaga High.‌

Mission and support

The theme for this year’s ROV missions is “Jet City: Aircraft, Earthquakes and Energy” – highlighting the role ROVs play in supporting underwater archeology, seismology and renewable energy activities in the Pacific Northwest where the international competition takes place.

Each team designed, built and piloted their ROVs – tackling missions modelled on scenarios in ocean industries. Missions included: locating the wreckage of a vintage airplane and recovering its engine; installing or recovering a seismometer; and determining the best location to install a tidal turbine, installing environmental monitoring equipment, and eelgrass habitat monitoring and restoration.

The 2018 regional competition was supported by Hibernia Management and Development Company, Statoil, Husky Energy, Subsea7, SubC Imaging, Crosbie Group Ltd. & Member Companies, Fugro GeoSurveys, Kraken Robotic Systems Ltd., the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and the Fisheries and Marine Institute of Memorial University of Newfoundland.