IEEE Oceanic Engineering Society

The IEEE Oceanic Engineering Society (OES) is a society of the IEEE, dealing with the field of oceanic engineering.^[1][2] In the hierarchy of IEEE, the OES is one of close to 40 technical societies and councils organized under the IEEE's Technical Activities Board (TAB).

Its four part mission as defined on its webpage is:^[3]

• (a) Vision – to promote the objectives of the society around the world through networking, conferences and publications with a focus on the future through extensive support of our student and young professional member
• (b) Objectives – The Society’s objectives are scientific, literary, and educational in character. The Society strives for the advancement of the theory and practice of electrotechnology, allied branches of engineering, and related arts and sciences, applied to all bodies of water, and the maintenance of high professional and ethical standards among its members and affiliates
• (c) Purpose – to promotes close cooperation and exchange of technical information among its members through publications and meetings. The Society fosters the technical and professional growth of its members
• (d) Field of Interest – includes all aspects of science, engineering, and technology that address research, development, and operations pertaining to all bodies of water. This includes the creation of new capabilities and technologies from concept design through prototypes, testing, and operational systems to sense, explore, understand, develop, use, and responsibly manage natural resources.

Activities[]

The IEEE OES is actively pursuing its objectives in its local chapters as well as in the international arena. It hosts workshops, symposiums, and conferences on both the regional and international level. Its publications reach out to its membership and others in related fields. The OES also reaches out to the future through its scholarship program and student poster competitions. Activities of the OES are divided into the following ten groups:

1. Publications,
2. Conferences
3. Workshops, and Symposia,
4. Awards,
5. Chapters,
6. Technology Committees,
7. Standing Committee on Standards,
8. Distinguished Lecturers Program,
9. Social Media and Outreach,
10. Women in Engineering, and
11. Young Professionals.

Publications[]

The Oceanic Engineering Society oversees the publication of one scholarly journal, the IEEE Journal of Oceanic Engineering (IEEE-JOE), plus publishes the OES Beacon Newsletter, plus contributes to the publication of the IEEE Earthzine electronic magazine.^[4]

• (a) IEEE Journal of Oceanic Engineering:^[5] A quarterly journal published by OES whose field of interest includes all aspects of science, engineering and technology that address research, development, and operations pertaining to all bodies of water. This includes the creation of new capabilities and technologies from concept design through prototypes, testing and operational systems to sense, explore, analyze, understand, develop, use and responsibly manage natural resources.
• (b) OES Beacon Newsletter:^[6] This newsletter is published four times a year as the society’s primary promotional product and provides articles on the latest society conferences, activities, members, etc., along with advertisements and promotional information on upcoming events. All OES members, unless they opt out, receive a print version of the Beacon, which is also available on the OES website in PDF and HTML formats. The ongoing work/activities of the OES President, Vice Presidents (VPs), Committees and Chapters are reported regularly.
• (c) IEEE OES Earthzine: An online publication operating under the auspices of OES. It provides up-to-date information on science, technology, Earth/Ocean observation and information utilization and those participating and contributing to its advancement. Earthzine is run by volunteers of the OES. Earthzine publishes materials that are inspirational to new and future Earth/Ocean observers and that promote greater awareness of the Earth through its observation. Earthzine encourages interaction of an on-line community of Earth observers. It is updated regularly with news spanning:

1. Earth and Oceans and their observation,
2. Environmental policy,
3. Education,
4. Career and Mentorship,
5. Oceanic Engineering society events.

Conferences, Workshops, and Symposia[]

The OCEANS conferences are co-sponsored by OES and the Marine Technology Society (MTS).^[7] Each has an extensive schedule of technical presentations, vendor displays and a Student Poster Competition. The IEEE OES also sponsors a number of workshops and symposia each year. The calendar listing all Conferences, Workshops and Symposia is found at the OCEANS conference calendar.

Awards[]

The IEEE OES confers several different kinds of awards.^[8] They include:

1. The IEEE OES Distinguished Service Award, which is presented to honor an individual IEEE member for outstanding contributions towards furthering the objectives of the Oceanic Engineering Society,
2. The IEEE OES Distinguished Technical Achievement Award, which is presented to honor an outstanding technical contribution to oceanic engineering in either the fundamental or applied areas,
3. The IEEE OES Presidential Award, which is presented to an OES member giving volunteer time on a regular basis,
4. The IEEE OES Emeritus Award, which is presented to an OES member having been particularly important for the Society and who is no longer in any position of Society governance, and
5. The IEEE OES Company/Institution Award, which is presented to a corporation or institution that has significantly supported the activity and goals of OES through such areas as conference participation, patronage, technical innovation and technical or administrative participation.

Chapters[]

The IEEE OES Chapters are an integral part of the Society and allow OES members an opportunity to meet for scientific, educational, and networking purposes with fellow engineers in the Oceanic Technology field.^[9] Chapters are a part of the local IEEE Section and work with the Section to promote the aims of IEEE. A Chapter can be organized with a minimum of 12 OES members. A list of OES chapters is populated on the OES homepage.

The IEEE OES also has a Student Branch Chapter (SBC) support program.^[10] This program is designed to provide financial support to the SBC chairs or representative to attend the OCEANS conferences where they will be involved in supporting the society, the conference and promoting student activities and participation. A list of OES Student Branch Chapters is available on the OES homepage.

Technology Committees[]

The technical scope of the Oceanic Engineering Society is very broad, encompassing the many specialties within electronic & electrical engineering that are applied in the ocean environment. To provide a focus for these within the OES, technology committees have been formed. The underlying philosophy is that technology committees should each have a clearly defined area of technology as their basis, and then have a scope that includes development of the technology and its applications, and expresses some idea about how their technology benefits humanity.

The function of an OES Technology Committee, as specified in the OES Bylaws, is to promote activities in its field under the overall supervision and administration of the OES Administrative Committee and to provide the expert knowledge and assistance to

1. Organize and operate sessions at meetings of IEEE at all levels and at meetings of other organizations with which the OES Society is desirous of cooperating. They may organize technical symposia and conferences in the area of their technical coverage
2. Arrange through the Publication Committee and appropriate editors for publishing pertinent papers in IEEE publications
3. Encourage, generate and review papers within their scope in cooperation with the Journal Editor.

There are currently eleven TCs that comprise the IEEE OES:^[11]

1. Autonomous Maritime Systems (AMS),
2. Current, Wave, Turbulence Measurement and Applications,
3. Data Analytics, Integration and Modeling,
4. Ocean Observation Systems and Environmental Sustainability,
5. Ocean Remote Sensing,
6. Ocean Sustainable Energy Systems,
7. Polar Oceans,
8. Subsea Optics and Vision,
9. Underwater Acoustics,
10. Underwater Cables and Connectors, and
11. Underwater Communication, Navigation and Positioning.

Standing Committee on Standards[]

The OES Standing Committee on Standards aims at promoting the development and widespread use of standards and interoperability of collected data in the domain of ocean science and technology.^[12] By that, ocean observations can be assigned agreed upon quality levels and ensure more efficient and sustainable use of ocean data and information. With OES having strong links to manufacturers of ocean instruments, the competitive advantages of products following accepted standards will be discussed and adequate future strategies developed. The involvement of students into standard activities will be ensured by organizing dedicated workshops and symposia. The OES coordinates standardization activities with the IEEE Standards Association.

Distinguished Lecturers Program[]

All OES Chapters and Committees are encouraged to take advantage of the OES Distinguished Lecturers Program for their regular or special meetings that allows them to select from an outstanding list of truly distinguished speakers who are experts in the technical fields of the society.^[13]

Social Media and Outreach[]

The IEEE OES Social Media and Outreach effort consists of the following goals:^[14]

1. Increase visibility of IEEE OES through various social media outreach,
2. Increase membership and retain membership of existing members, students and young professionals,
3. Generate new membership leads,
4. Increase member intimacy,
5. Improve member satisfaction,
6. Increase brand awareness (OCEANS conferences),
7. Increase media coverage,
8. Continued conversation before/after major events, and
9. Build community.

The initiative is broadly classified into two areas: (a) IEEE OES sponsored events coverage, and (b) general social media content creation toward the goals stated above. This is done through IEEE OES volunteer members creating relevant social media content in the form of posts (textual), graphics (photos, banners), audio and video (testimonials, podcasts etc.).

Social Media content is broadly classified into OES sponsored events coverage, and general social media content creation towards the goals stated above. OES member volunteers create relevant social media content in the form of posts (textual), graphics (photos, banners), audio and video (testimonials, podcasts etc.). OES maintains the following social media handles:

1. Facebook
2. Twitter
3. Instagram
4. LinkedIn Group
5. YouTube

Women in Engineering[]

IEEE Women in Engineering (WIE) is a global network of IEEE members and volunteers dedicated to promoting women engineers and scientists, and inspiring girls around the world to follow their academic interests in a career in engineering and science.^[15] It is an organization within the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers to facilitate the global recruitment and retention of women in technical disciplines.

The OES has a designated WIE liaison who participates in IEEE WIE promotions, conference calls and activities. The liaison coordinates with the OCEANS conference committees to hold a WIE reception and activities at each conference. Attendance at an annual WIE conference (International Leadership Conference and/or regional meeting) is encouraged. If possible, the WIE liaison should become a member of their local WIE affinity group (or start one).

Young Professionals[]

IEEE Young Professionals (YP) is the group of IEEE members and volunteers who have graduated from their first professional degree within the past 15 years. It is an international community, whose members are interested in elevating their professional image, expanding their global network, connecting with peers locally and giving back to their community. Since it encompasses all members from recent university graduates to experienced professionals and entrepreneurs, the group is highly diverse. IEEE membership is required in order to join the IEEE Young Professionals community.

The OES has a designated a YP liaison who works with the OES YP membership to encourage them to become active within OES and to organize and support activities to increase the OES YP membership. OES YP meetings are held at each OCEANS conference. The YP representative also works with the Student Activities Chair to support new graduates, encourage them to participate in the society and help promote OES student activities at applicable universities and institutions.

The OES Young Professionals branch invites YP members to participate in the leadership of the society by attending the meetings, by being involved in the diverse committees, and by helping with different aspects of the OCEANS conferences .

The OES “YP-BOOST” program is an award program that began in 2018 to encourage its YP members.^[16] The program recruits two new YPs every year, starting on January 1 of the year following the selection, for a total of four YPs for a given year when in permanent regime. Candidates chosen each year will attend and participate in OCEANS contingent on available funding and Covid restrictions. The duration of this program for each selected candidate is two years, corresponding to four OCEANS conferences. The selected candidates to this program develop their relationship with the other professional and student attendees, representing a positive point for their professional career. The application process opens each fall and candidates are chosen for the following year.

See also[]

• IEEE Oceanic Engineering Society (OES) website
• Constitution of the IEEE Oceanic Engineering Society (Effective January 24, 2018)
• Bylaws of the IEEE Oceanic Engineering Society (Effective January 24, 2018)
• History of the IEEE Oceanic Engineering Society
• Acoustical Society of America
• Marine Technology Society
• IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society
• IEEE Signal Processing Society
• Global Earth Observation System of Systems

References[]

External links[]

• The Oceanic Engineering Society's Website