Singapore Opens Marine Robotics Lab at Waterfront Campus

Testing underwater drones just got a lot easier in Singapore, and that's good news for solving real-world challenges from infrastructure inspection to climate protection.

The Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) has partnered with autonomous underwater robotics company BeeX to open the Autonomous Marine Foundry at SIT's Punggol waterfront campus. The facility gives researchers, companies, and government agencies a convenient place to test and deploy maritime robotics and autonomous underwater systems.

The location makes all the difference. Instead of traveling to remote testing sites, teams can run underwater demos right on campus. "This saves us a lot of time and we can go through the product development cycle very quickly," said Yan-Zhi Tan, technical programs manager at BeeX.

BeeX specializes in autonomous underwater drones that handle tasks like inspecting offshore oil rigs, monitoring defense assets, and checking underwater infrastructure. Their robots use artificial intelligence throughout the entire system, from navigation to path planning. "Today this is completely absent from our industry," said BeeX Chief Technology Officer Goh Eng Wei. "This is where we are really infusing autonomy into the entire stack."

The team plans to build scaled-down structures at the facility like mock offshore platforms and defense targets. That way, companies can test industry applications without traveling to different sites every time they need a demo.

The facility will support Singapore's Coastal Protection and Flood Management Research Program. BeeX's underwater drones will serve as sensor platforms for automated monitoring of coastal protection structures, helping the nation tackle climate challenges.

The Ripple Effect

This partnership reaches beyond technology innovation. SIT students will work alongside BeeX engineers through capstone projects, internships, and mentorship programs. The collaboration will create workshops, hackathons, and hands-on learning opportunities to build Singapore's talent pipeline in robotics and engineering.

"This collaboration creates rich opportunities for SIT students and staff to participate in," said Professor Susanna Leong, SIT's deputy president and provost. The goal is turning students into industry-ready engineers who can tackle real-world challenges.

Companies across oil and gas, defense, and infrastructure inspection industries can now visit the facility to see how autonomous underwater systems might solve their specific operational challenges. Many have ambitious goals, like deploying multiple drones simultaneously to cover wide search areas quickly.

This is how academic partnerships accelerate progress: by meeting innovation where it needs to happen, right at the water's edge.