Member News: MacArtney and NCPOR advance India’s Deep Ocean Mission with clean research technology

July 10, 2025
Member News: MacArtney and NCPOR advance India’s Deep Ocean Mission with clean research technology

In line with India’s growing focus on deep-sea science and infrastructure, the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR) has deployed a fully integrated clean lab, winch, and CTD system supplied by MacArtney. The solution enables high-precision data acquisition while preserving sample integrity to support marine science ambitions. 

Ensuring clean sampling conditions is essential for obtaining reliable water data that supports research into the seafloor, deep-ocean chemistry, and the dynamics of our marine environment. However, operating in deep-sea conditions presents inherent challenges, from extreme pressure to the risk of introducing trace contamination during collection and handling. 

MacArtney’s advanced all-in-one clean lab solution addresses these challenges by providing a controlled environment for handling and analysing water samples collected at depth, ensuring data integrity and enhancing the reliability of scientific findings. This capability aligns with India’s scientific and strategic ambitions under the Deep Ocean Mission while enhancing NCPOR’s ability to study the seafloor, setting a new benchmark for clean oceanographic research in the region. 

“We’re proud to support NCPOR in this important step toward advancing their deep-sea research capabilities,” said Steen Frejo, Sales Director at MacArtney. “It’s a privilege to contribute to a mission of this scale, and we look forward to building on this collaboration in the years ahead.” 

A scope ensuring data integrity
The solution’s core is a 20-foot clean lab container, purpose-built to maintain sample integrity during deep-sea research operations. The controlled environment eliminates metal contamination and environmental interference, which can compromise trace element analysis and sensitive chemical readings. 

Complementing the clean lab is a containerised MERMAC winch system with 8,000 metres of clean CTD cable and a Sea-Bird Scientific SBE 32 24-bottle carousel water sampler with high-precision CTD sensors (conductivity, temperature, depth). The cable is flushed with freshwater before re-spooling to prevent salt and metal contamination and is fitted with a TrustLink stress termination to ensure secure, reliable load transfer. Together, the system supports ultra-clean data acquisition and enables NCPOR to conduct full-depth CTD casts with confidence in the quality and consistency of their results. 

This also highlights MacArtney’s close cooperation with Sea-Bird Scientific and the ability to deliver tailored Sea-Bird systems to projects worldwide. 

Delivering customised solutions with local support
This first delivery to NCPOR was a turnkey package, with MacArtney overseeing all steps from design and engineering to on-site commissioning and training. 

The clean lab container was manufactured in cooperation with EMS, a long-standing MacArtney distributor in Spain. EMS is known for its expertise in customised systems and familiarity with Sea-Bird Scientific instrumentation. In India, MacArtney’s local distributor, Ms Deekay Marine Services, supports commissioning and service of the Sea-Bird Scientific equipment, ensuring responsive, on-site technical support throughout the system’s lifecycle. 

This project reflects MacArtney’s global expansion strategy, recognising India as a key region for long-term growth and collaboration in underwater technology. 

 

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