As the location in Stroe last year was more than excellent, it was decided to hold the 2017 edition of the Kooy Symposium at General-Major Kootkazerne as well.

Visitors - military, KIVI members and press alike - were received in the main hall and, after registration, asked to make their way to the auditorium. Here, symposium chairman Ulrich Berrevoets held a brief introduction, after which he gave the floor to the very well-prepared Marcel Mulder. With great humour and lots of energy, he announced the various speakers, asked questions, made connections and kept a close eye on time.

Setting the scene

Traditionally, the first block of the symposium was set aside for 'setting the scene'. Here, the theme ('Sustainability - an operational advantage') was highlighted from both the defence and the technology angle with the basic question: Where are we now and where do we want to go - with what means and capabilities? Professor Adriaan Beukers kicked off with his lecture 'light, lighter, lightest: lightness as a thought process'. In it, he indicated that reducing weight - for example by applying composites or smart constructions - quickly leads to major energy savings and thus sustainability. Whether in the air, on the water or on the ground. Many examples showed how innovative 'we' used to be in terms of material selection, for example, and what possibilities have become available with modern technologies.

CDRE Richard Laurijssen, director of weapon systems and companies at DMO, then addressed sustainability in relation to the OES (Operational Energy Strategy). The aim of the OES is to increase the operational independence of the armed forces. By 2030, the armed forces must already use 20% less fossil fuels compared to 2010. 20 years later, that should drop to 70% and operational bases should preferably be fully self-sufficient. To achieve this, Laurijssen says, a lot still needs to be done; something that is not particularly easy given the current defence budget. In addition, defence will remain a major energy consumer - including of electrical energy for communication and ICT purposes - and is unlikely to use less energy in the future due to expected growth. Public-private partnerships could be part of the solution, combined with new technologies.

Kooy award ceremony

Also traditional is the presentation of the Kooy Prize. This time, the prize was presented by the chairman of the KIVI Defence & Security Department Jan Wind to Michiel van Tent Beking; former navy man now working for Thales. Through his research into the use of specific mathematical principles in radar processing, he demonstrated that it is possible to achieve the same detection reliability in radar with (much) fewer antenna elements as is currently the case. Elsewhere on the website is an extensive press release with more substantive details.

During the - more than excellent - lunch, visitors had ample opportunity to visit the various exhibition stands in the main hall. These were manned by various companies developing activities within the theme of sustainability. These included the composite doors by VABO composites, the Eco-runner (hydrogen-powered car) by TU Delft students, pallets made from old defence clothing by Dutch Awearness, Tablinum Tijmes which builds with natural materials such as flax and the NLR. The electric bicycle that Trefecta developed especially for defence for off-road use could be tried out in person on the outdoor area. For safety, the maximum speed of 70 to 80 km/h was limited to 45.

Policy and Vision

The Policy and Vision block featured five lectures, the last of which - originally intended for Tommaso Ghidini PhD , Head of Materials Technology section, European Space Agency - was now filled in by Mr Gramsma of KMWE. He spoke about the possibilities of 3D metal printing. The sustainability aspects here include the possibility of realising lightweight structures.

The other presentations in this block were also a succession of interesting visions. For instance, Ltkol Paul van der Heul, head of the Genie Knowledge Centre, cynically titled: Don't bother me with sustainability, I have yet to go to war. In it, he indicated that sustainability did matter to defence when it came to how a compound is built, for example. The more sustainable this is done, the better it is for both the environment there (when the mission is over, for example) and defence itself.

In his lecture 'A Sustainable Grand Strategy', KTZ mr Niels Woudstra emphasised, among other things, that the Netherlands lacks a sustainable strategy for security and defence, in the sense of a sustainable strategy focused on the long term. He even talks in his lecture about strategic poverty that the Netherlands seems to have suffered from for centuries - and still does. But not everywhere; for instance, we are able to link a long-term strategy to our water management. So why not in defence too? Woudstra suggests starting with an inventory of our security interests and linking multi-year budgets for the necessary resources to it. A detailed report can be found in the Naval Journal.

Following this, KTZ bd Jan Wind (director WISER Consultancy) gave an interesting view on how defence could finance its resources in his lecture 'Financial Sustainability - sustainable financing'. A solution could lie in a collaboration with industry in which both parties should benefit from the development of a specific solution. Sharing the development costs with more parties and applying the results more broadly than within defence alone would reduce the cost to defence.

Finally, René de Jongh, director of strategy at Thales Netherlands, addressed 'sustainable observation in the future'. This is all about being able to collect as much information as possible from the complex world. Data that, using advanced software and suitable algorithms, must be converted at lightning speed into usable information on the basis of which decisions can be taken.

Excellent technologies

The third block was followed by short presentations on technical developments within the field of sustainability. Very specifically linked to defence was the presentation by Lkol Rob van Arnhem, whose lecture 'Hidden Treasures' illustrated how far defence is in reusing and recycling clothing and other materials. Many operations are carried out by people with disabilities, which cuts both ways.

Extracting water from air is possible with a the 'Dutch Rainmaker' about which Dr Henk Miedema of Research Institute Wetsus told. An existing system that should work even better in the future by using special membranes that are currently being researched.

Next came the E-bike that many had tried during the break. Here, Arnold Vaandrager, of VABO Composites, explained how he developed an electric bike specifically tailored to the requirements and needs of defence. The lightweight but rock-solid hybrid vehicle has been tested in Mali, among other places.

As the only student in the speaker line-up, Paul Hulsman of TU Delft informed how he - together with his Dreamteam Eco-runner - has started working on the development of a hydrogen-powered car. With this, the team will participate in the annual Shell Eco-marathon where the goal is to drive 3500 km on an equivalent of 1 litre of petrol in London; off-track the target is 5000 km.

The block of excellent technologies was concluded by Dr Axel Homborg who is an Associate Professor at the NLDA researching corrosion. Central to this is the noise made by corrosion processes, which are characteristic of the type of corrosion, among other things. By recording these vibrations with advanced equipment, it is possible to identify corrosion at a very early stage so that maintenance can then be adjusted accordingly and worse can be prevented. A unique feature of this method is that the sound patterns also indicate the type of corrosion, allowing the right approach to be determined immediately and answering the question of whether it is a dangerous type of corrosion (that persists) or a type that only lasts for a short time and comes to a halt on its own. His research, findings and future possibilities will appear in article form in the maintenance trade journal TIM.

Strange engineer in the bite

The Kooy symposium was concluded in a special way by Agnes Dinkelman who - in her role as social engineer - gave her own perspective on sustainable safety. In doing so, the chairman of the day emphasised that she has probably completed more missions to remote areas than most soldiers in the room. She therefore spoke from broad experience about the link between the imbalance between civilians and leaders in areas around the Mediterranean and its consequences in drought, conflict and migration flows. She made suggestions for an approach that based on her analysis not only provided political and social direction but will also need technological support.

The excellently organised day ended with an Indian buffet that gave participants the opportunity to engage with speakers in person and discuss with each other the diverse topics around sustainability.

Already available presentations are on the right under downloadable documents.

Description

The topic of sustainability has many definitions. In most cases, it centres on 'meeting current needs in such a way that this will also be possible for future generations'. Technical developments around sustainability therefore often have to do with 'maintaining as long as possible' or with 'maximum savings on energy and materials'.

-----> But there is more!
Sustainability can also be approached from a social, financial or strategic perspective, for example.
The 2017 Kooy symposium links sustainability, more effective systems, lower costs and strategic benefits. Speakers such as Prof Adriaan Beukers, CDRE Richard Laurijssen, KTZ Niels Woudstra and Agnes Dinkelman will each present their own perspective on sustainability and its usefulness for the Armed Forces.

-----> Programme
Go to http://programma.kooysymposium.nl or follow the link below at contact details. The programme will be updated regularly. After registering, you will receive the final programme by email no later than 7 April.

-----> Participate? Legitimation in advance is mandatory!
Only a Defence Pass, Driving Licence, Passport or Dutch Identity Card will be accepted as identification. If you indicate that you have a Defence pass, there is no need to fill in a number (- is sufficient). Do you not have one of these proofs of identity? Please contact us as indicated below.

-----> Login
Fill in the fields below. Only provide a registration code if you have received such a code this year.Registration closes 4 April or as much earlier as the maximum number of participants has been reached.
You will receive the final programme and a parking ticket no later than 7 April

Location

Maj-Gen Koot Barracks

Wolweg 100, 3776LR Stroe

Organiser

Defence and Security

Name and contact details for information

KTZ bd Jan Wind, chairman Defence and Security

dv@kivi.nl

View and download the programme here

Documents