Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Funds Advanced Ocean Engineering Research Facility at IIT Madras
Chennai:
Port Wings News Network:
Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) has launched a state-of-the-art Circulating Water Tunnel facility at ‘Discovery’, its satellite campus in Thaiyur near Chennai. Constructed with Rs. 4.5 crore in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funding from Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL), a Navratna Defence Public Sector Undertaking, the advanced ocean engineering research facility is now fully operational.
The hybrid wind and circulating water channel facility was inaugurated in the presence of Prof. V. Kamakoti, Director, IIT Madras, and Capt. Jagmohan, IN (Rtd), Chairman and Managing Director, Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders, alongside other senior officials and stakeholders from both organizations. The facility provides a stable, uniform-flow test section designed for advanced hydrodynamic investigations involving ship models, propellers, and bluff bodies. It will support experimental studies related to marine vehicles, offshore systems, underwater structures, and fluid dynamics, while significantly enhancing research and training capabilities in the Department of Ocean Engineering at IIT Madras.
Highlighting the partnership, Prof. Ashwin Mahalingam, Dean (Alumni and Corporate Relations), IIT Madras, stated that the facility will strengthen technology development in ocean engineering and create valuable research opportunities.
Capt. Jagmohan emphasized that such academic collaborations are vital for accelerating indigenous capabilities and advancing the vision of Aatmanirbhar Bharat in the maritime sector. Looking ahead, IIT Madras and Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders are exploring future collaborations, including the large-scale HYDRA Centre featuring a 500-metre towing tank, and research on indigenous high-efficiency subzero refrigeration systems for naval submarines.
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