On April 10th, President SONG Yingdong of HEU met with Catriona Savage, President and Chairman of the Royal Institution of Naval Architects (RINA), and Jeom Kee Paik, Vice President and Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, at the VIP conference room on the eighth floor of the main building. Accompanying the meeting was HEU's Vice President Yu Zhiwen.

President SONG Yingdong provided a brief overview of the university, highlighting its commitment to openness as a key development strategy. He expressed gratitude to RINA for its steadfast support in the university's internationalization efforts. Emphasizing the significance of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signing, President SONG noted that it marks a milestone in the cooperation between the two institutions and sets a new trajectory for collaboration. He proposed the establishment of a Joint Center of Excellence for Talent with UK universities to foster educational and research partnerships between HEU, UK universities, RINA, and the Chinese Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers.

Catriona Savage commended HEU's extensive research in marine engineering, particularly in areas such as water flow and bubbles, which has yielded significant results. She expressed hope that the MoU signing would pave the way for deeper cooperation in maritime engineering and enhance professional skills and talent development for young students through global collaboration mechanisms.

During the meeting, President SONG Yingdong and Catriona Savage jointly signed the MoU.

Following the meeting, Vice President YAN Rujian engaged in cooperative discussions with Catriona Savage at the International Exchange Center conference room. They delved into topics such as engineer certification cooperation and discussed arrangements for organizing RINA conferences and other related matters.