Massachusetts Maritime Academy Hosts Offshore Wind Networking Event

[By: Massachusetts Maritime Academy]

The Maritime Center for Responsible Energy (MCRE) at Massachusetts Maritime Academy (MMA), a leader in offshore wind training, recently brought together approximately 200 leaders and members from the offshore wind industry and related fields for a networking and collaboration event.

MMA was the first in the nation to offer the Global Wind Organisation (GWO)’s Offshore Wind Training.  Since 2019, more than 400 successful course participants have gone through the course. 

Captain Michael Burns, director of the MCRE, addressed the crowd, acknowledging how far the wind industry has come and continues to grow.  This growth in the offshore wind industry has been identified as a significant potential source of renewable energy to meet the needs of communities along America’s coastlines, in addition to the economic prospects it offers to southeastern Massachusetts and the Cape and Islands.

Pointing to the growth of the industry are the increasing number of offshore wind-related companies represented at the MMA Spring Career Fair, including Vineyard Wind, Eversource, National Grid, Siemens Energy, Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, and Edison Chouest.

In parallel, the opportunities for students within the industry have increased rapidly, as evidenced by the numerous MMA cadets who have in the past or are currently working co-op or full-time at companies such as Vineyard Wind, Orsted, Guice Offshore, LLC, and Crowley Maritime Corporation. 

Co-hosts for the event included HDR, Business Network for Offshore Wind (BNOW), Crowley Maritime Shipping, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), Iron Workers, McAllister Towing, Millwrights/NASRCC, Moran Shipping, National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) of Rhode Island/Massachusetts, Norton Lilly, RelyOn Nutec, Self-Reliance Corporation, SouthCoast Wind, UBC MW/PD – United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners, and WISTA USA – New England Chapter. 

“It was a pleasure to ‘talk offshore wind’ in an informal atmosphere,” said Rear Admiral Francis X. McDonald, USMS, president of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy. “This burgeoning field will not only provide clean, domestic renewable energy, it also opens the doors for a wide range of employment opportunities.”

Contact MCRE to register or to view the full suite of offshore wind-related training.