Marsel-XL, a collection of companies forming the world's only "marine software engineering cluster of excellence", set up in Malta last year, has just been joined by Sunseeker, one of the world's leading manufacturers of luxury motor yachts.
Marsec-XL, made up of "the big players in the field", researches, innovates and develops state-of-the-art technology for yachts, focusing on marine systems and software engineering.
It is also working on education packages with the university and Mcast to train students and open up opportunities in the field.
Marsec-XL is aiming to train about 30 students by next year, said CEO Geir Fagerhus and managing director Krystyna Wojnarowic.
Currently, marine systems and software engineers do not exist anywhere and the combination of marine and ICT studies is a totally new domain, they said.
Between 2008 and 2011, Marsec-XL would have a complete portfolio of educational courses, ranging from a Master's degree in marine systems and software engineering at the university and courses for marine technicians at Mcast.
The government has provided funding to develop the education programme and the required infrastructure, they said, adding that the request from the industry has been high.
Marsec-XL chose Malta for a variety of reasons - after months looking for the "perfect" location - including the fact that it was in the middle of the market, the Mediterranean, on neutral ground, civilised and stable. A language that is understood and a government that understands this kind of initiative, were also a plus, Mr Fagerhus said.
Local businessmen were open to new ideas, compared to other countries. They had a healthy suspicion, but no prejudices. Although Malta was not fully exploiting its yachting potential, it had started to recognise it and was heading in the right direction, he said.
Marsec-XL has identified an offshore test track in south-west Gozo for its techno demonstrator, a Sunseeker, which should be available by September and on which new solutions, systems and engines would be fitted.
Despite being in the heart of the Mediterranean, the test track was far enough from hubs like Monaco for experimentation to be carried out without any spying, Mr Fagerhus said.
In terms of research and development, the cluster of excellence is focusing on emissions control, which has become a major topic in view of the current oil price, as well as navigational aids and ease of operation, Mr Fagerhus said.
His dream is to develop a system that allows a boat to "park" as has been created for cars, as well as a means to break and stop.
In the future, marinas could also have services and systems that are connected to yachts, for example, indicating free berths, he said.
By 2011, the Malta-based cluster of excellence is expected to include 20 companies from three, with 250 employees, an estimated revenue of €30 million and 20 patents and innovations, attracting some 250 visitors to the island.