Vision -  Understand, innovate and apply - creating technology for cultivation of the sea
Main objective:  Enhance the position of the Norwegian fish farming technology manufacturers as the leading suppliers of knowledge and equipment to the global aquaculture industry.

The Centre for Research-based innovation in Aquaculture Technology (CREATE) will carry out research and development to enable innovation of technology, products and solutions specifically to improve the grow-out phase of marine fish culture. This phase involves the largest problems and uncertainties concerning production, both financially and environmentally. Fish products are vital to the world’s supply of animal proteins and aquaculture will be increasingly important in meeting the growing gap between supply and demand for seafood products (Marra 2005). The FAO recognises that technological development will play a major role in future expansion of the industry (Subasinghe 2003). New technologies must improve the efficiency of production and operations, the safety of handling fish farming gear and the economics of production. They must also minimise social conflict with other users of the marine environment and reduce environmental impacts such as escapes, diseases and nutrient pollution. These requirements can be summarised in four key criteria for development; financial viability, environmental sustainability, fish welfare and human health and safety.
To develop new technological solutions that fulfil these requirements, a research platform that incorporates the complexity of modern industrial marine fish farming is needed.  CREATE will provide this platform by combining world-leading Norwegian companies that supply equipment and technology with prominent scientific research institutions into a centre with a common focus to develop and prepare the ground for commercialisation of new technology. CREATE will focus research and development within the following three main research pillars and integrate knowledge between them:
Equipment and constructions The physical equipment used to farm fish.
Operation and handling The process of executing and carrying out operations necessary to farm fish.
Farming intelligence Control of the total process of farming by understanding the integrated use of equipment and the process of operations and combining this with knowledge of biological issues and the physical environment.
Through this initiative and research philosophy, the aim is to elevate research and development of aquaculture technology to a new level, bringing the industry a major step forward.

 
Figure: Research pillars and requirements of CREATE

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