New York City may very well become a nexus for new ideas in shipping, if one driven individual's dream comes true.

For the past 17 months, SUNY Maritime College professor Christopher Clott has been on a mission to get the New York Maritime Innovation Center (NYMIC) off the ground in downtown Manhattan.

"The mission is to elevate the marine industry as an engine for innovation and technology," he says from his office in the city's Bronx borough.