CMRE and the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) have launched a project that will allow the Italian Navy to acquire a CMRE-developed capability.

The Italian Ministry of Defence, General Directorate of Naval Armaments, have a requirement for a deployable acoustic range to monitor the level of underwater sound of Italian Navy combatants. The requirement will be met through a collaboration between NATO STO CMRE and the NSPA.

When a ship or submarine is at sea, the on-board equipment and propulsion system emit noise and vibrations into the water. These sounds are known as an acoustic signature. The louder the acoustic signature, the more likely it is that the vessel can be detected, tracked and identified. The acoustic range system will measure the acoustic signatures of Italian Navy combatant ships and submarines to ensure they remains within design specification. If not, acoustic “grooming” may be required and the signature can be measured again.

The deployable acoustic range prototype will be a lightweight, high-performance system that will be managed by the Italian Naval Support and Experimentation Centre (CSSN). This project is the first collaboration between CMRE and NSPA and, thanks to the close technical cooperation with CSSN, it will allow the Italian Navy to exploit CMRE expertise to manage the acoustic signatures of its platforms.

Image Caption:
CMRE and NSPA staff stand with Italian Navy officers in front of CMRE during the project kick-off meeting.