New this year is a specialised project to map and work with solutions for plastic in the sea.

“We are pleased that so many talents are looking to KONGSBERG for a relevant summer job. The summer projects are a unique opportunity for the students to put theory into practice, as well as to try their hand at real work tasks. In addition, we at KONGSBERG get new minds that look at our projects from a different perspective, which is interesting and informative”, says President and CEO of KONGSBERG, Geir Håøy.

KONGSBERG has two main types of summer jobs for students; working on a specific project or a summer job in a technical department. The projects are most popular, with “Smart Ship”, “LocalHawk” and “Coastal Shark” being the most popular examples this year, attracting an average of 450 applicants each.

Of this year’s 123 summer students, 43 per cent are women.

“The calibre of the students who work with us is impressive. They come with fresh knowledge and new methods, and together with our experienced technologists they work on real technological challenges. We also continue to see an increase in female students, which is very positive for KONGSBERG and for the technology industries”, says Håøy.

PROJECTS SPAN SEVERAL YEARS
KONGSBERG coordinates a total of seven projects, several of which have been run over several years. One of the projects that has been running since the beginning is LocalHawk.

“LocalHawk is a project based on drones, and in previous years has been about building the drones mechanically, as well as creating software for autonomous landing and take-off. This year, new drones have been purchased so that students can focus on the development of software for an autonomous drone swarm — getting the drones to work together without manual interference”, says the student project manager for LocalHawk, Marie Pauline Kristiansen. 

FOCUS ON SUSTAINABLE MARINE TECHNOLOGY
This year brings two summer projects within marine technology. The projects “SmartShip” and “Marine Plastics” tackle two different issues related to sustainability in the sea.

“SmartShip is based on the development of the world’s first completely autonomous zero-emissions ship, the Yara Birkeland. We think it will be exciting for the students to get to work on such a current project, and we look forward to seeing what they achieve over the course of the summer”, says Håøy.

The students on the “Marine Plastics” project will work to determine the status and technological capacity for reducing plastic and microplastics in the sea. According to the students on the project, only 1 per cent of plastic is visible on the surface of the sea and 5 per cent is visible on beaches and shorelines. The remaining 94 per cent is found at the bottom of the sea and affects marine life. The aim of the project is for the students to find a way to collect and remove the plastic.

“Technology is essential to solving many of the challenges we face, and a key driver in developing new possibilities for transport, energy, food supply and other areas that are important for societal development. The interests for SmartShip and Marine Plastics shows how up to date the students are with new technology, as well as their interest in sustainable development. We think it is inspiring to see that the students are committed to current topics which KONGSBERG has set high on the agenda”, says Håøy.