2025 : Year of the Sea and Research at ENSM !
At a time when the United Nations Conference on the Oceans is mobilising the international community to protect the marine environment, the École Nationale Supérieure Maritime is reaffirming its ambition to develop, strengthen and raise the profile of its research activities. Closely linked to the sector’s ecological, digital and technological transitions, research at ENSM is positioned at the heart of major contemporary maritime issues. The themes addressed cover a wide range of subjects that are essential for training qualified and competent professionals: cybersecurity, ship physics, law and practices, decarbonisation and energy transition, health and safety at sea, offshore maritime operations, particularly those dedicated to marine renewable energies, and finally the human factor and cognitive ergonomics.
To carry out these studies, the various ENSM sites participate in international, European, national and regional collaborative projects with academic and industrial partners.
Positioned to meet the needs of the sector
For a number of years, research at ENSM has been driven by a dynamic of innovation applied to navigation, particularly in terms of digital technology. The school is committed to developing targeted research projects in two main areas: maritime safety on the one hand, and the energy and environmental transition of ships on the other.
These projects are being carried out in partnership with engineering schools, academic laboratories and the maritime industry. This development positions ENSM in a collaborative research approach that is relevant to the sector’s uses and developments, in conjunction with the innovation networks to which the school belongs, in particular the Pôle Mer Bretagne Atlantique, the Pôle Mer Méditerranée, Atlanpole, Meet2050, IngéBlue, etc.
Current projects
A dynamic that meets the ambitions of the Contract of Objectives and Performance (COP)
Research at ENSM is now the subject of a clear strategic commitment in the School’s Contract of Objectives and Performance. It sets out an ambitious roadmap: to structure a long-term doctoral programme, strengthen scientific supervision, encourage publications and include the school in academic networks.
These commitments are already being put into practice :
- 10 teachers spending on average more than 25% of their time on research projects;
- 3 research engineers recruited on project contracts in 2024 and 2 recruitments in progress;
- 7 PhD students currently co-supervised by ENSM teachers;
- 2 post-doctoral students working at ENSM;
- 1 thesis supervised directly by an ENSM lecturer, in partnership with ENSTA, since May 2025;
- An increase in the number of lecturers obtaining the Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches (HDR);
- An intensification of cooperation with partner institutions and a clear desire to increase the internationalisation of research projects.
Growing investment
The dedicated research budget for 2025 is in excess of €700,000, plus up to €100,000 in specific salaries depending on the project.
This budgetary commitment supports the gradual structuring of a “laboratory” policy, in line with the prospect of integration into the Conférence des Grandes Écoles and in line with the Commission des titres d’ingénieur.
“Research at the École is the story of a long journey. Although the practice of research was not originally part of Hydro’s culture, it has become a necessity at ENSM over the last few years.
Thanks to passionate teachers and students, in an exciting maritime world, and in an environment that unleashes passions from digital to energy transition to risk, we can be proud of the fact that research exists today at the School. We’re not just trumpeting ‘Stand up for Hydro’, but we have been able to develop research in the public interest by working together on thesis topics that will have a major impact on the future, and on research initiatives that will enable us to work more and better with public and private partners.” – François Lambert
A word from our stakeholders
“Over the last two years, it has been essential to restructure the ENSM’s research activities around two main areas: maritime risk and the energy transition of ships, to improve visibility both internally and with our partners.
The current challenges of the research policy and its development, as set out in the school’s 2023-27 Objectives and Performance Contract, are, on the one hand, to increase in-house skills: preparation of PhDs and HDRs (Habilitations à diriger des recherches), co-supervision of theses, identification and visibility of publications, etc. and, on the other hand, to develop cooperation with academic bodies and industry, at national and international level.
Meeting these challenges is at the heart of ENSM’s mission to increase the school’s research dynamic and strengthen its scientific reputation.”
“As Chair of the Research Committee since May 2022, I’m delighted with the research momentum at ENSM. Structured around ambitious projects and focusing on two main areas – maritime safety and energy transitions – research at ENSM fully meets the scientific, technological and societal challenges of our time.
The research activities carried out by ENSM’s teaching staff, research engineers, doctoral students and post-doctoral fellows, in close collaboration with their partners, strengthen the synergies between science, innovation and training. This work promises major spin-offs for the sector as a whole, and plays an active role in raising ENSM’s profile nationally and internationally.”