Passports: British / German / South African.   

 

Languages: English; German; Afrikaans

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  Qualifications & Certification 

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  · Diesel Mechanic Trade – Land Rover Cape Town October 2003

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  · Approved Engine Course (AEC) – Professional Yachtmaster Training February 2012

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  · STCW95 – Valid until February 2023

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  · International Certificate of Competency (sailing) - RYA

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  · Powerboat 2 license – RYA

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  · Yacht and Small Craft Surveying Diploma with Distinction – Maritime Training Academy

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  · International Institute of Marine Surveyors Member - AssocIIMS #S1502

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Employment History

 

· Consulting Engineer – Bespoke Yacht Management  December 2019 – Present

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I consult and carry out engineering work for one of Bespoke Yacht Management’s yachts based in Gibraltar. I have been their eyes and ears on the ground during a yard refit period, as well as taking care of and advising on all aspects of the maintenance of this yacht since she was delivered from Scandinavia. I anticipate being involved with Bespoke for some time, as they are well positioned to grow after the pandemic restrictions and we have a very good working relationship. I also believe that my profession as a marine surveyor will stand me in good stead to provide them with further service.

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· Engineer – Starfish Voyager  May 2019 - August 2020

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I worked as part time as engineer on a 22m, 4 jet engine foiling catamaran moored in Gibraltar. The vessel was neglected for many years and not used, but was up for sale so I was tasked with repairing all inoperable systems and maintaining the yacht and bringing her to a level where she could be sold. When I got on board there were no operating heads; no hot water; no functioning air conditioning and one of the main engines was not running, amongst many other smaller issues. I also had to replace pistons on one of the generators due to salt water ingress. This was a very complicated vessel being built as a one off, and so parts were not easy to obtain and often systems and parts need stripping a lot further than usual in order to repair. I got all of the systems working to the point where it was a useable boat for the first time in years. I was also involved in several sea trials in an attempt to fine tune the four MAN V12 engines to obtain the high maximum speed rating. This boat was a major challenge, but also very interesting and unique. The vessel sold in August 2020.

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· Engineering Manager – International Yacht Services Portugal  October 2018 – April 2019

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I moved to Portugal in September 2018 and took on a position with IYS Portugal as their yard manager. The position included managing the 2 engineers and 1 trainee, as well as the fabrication department. This involved designating work, meeting with customers to quote on work and assisting in diagnosing difficult problems. We serviced all of Southern Portugal, but were agents for several large marine brands which sometimes took us further afield for installations or repairs.

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· Chief Engineer - 37m/122’ MY Dr.No  June 2017 – May 2018

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I joined Dr.No in Subic Bay, Philippines after the boat had been standing unused for several years. The new owner wanted to boat in Japan within 3 weeks, which was a challenge to test and service all of the equipment on board particularly since there was no engineer to receive a hand-over from. She had a single Yanmar ME220 1200hp main with CPP. There were two 99kw generators, plus a 95kw shaft generator fitted. Owing to the conversion specs, there were very sophisticated satellite communications on board, as well as state of the art navigation equipment. After the owner’s trip in Japan, we headed via South Korea to Phuket, Thailand. There was a major interior refit planned, as well as a lot of maintenance and modifications to be made in the engine room. I fitted a new digital radar and searchlight as new commissions. We then took the boat from Phuket to Barcelona. Being a single screw, we were more vulnerable than most, so I had to keep a very close control on the engine vitals at all times.

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· Chief Engineer - 40m/130’ SY Julie Marie  Feb 2017 – Jun 2017

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After spending 5 months living, working and sailing aboard, I gained extensive knowledge and experience on a sailing superyacht. I didn’t have the opportunity to get a handover from the previous engineer, so had to familiarise myself with all the systems and equipment on board. There was a lot of engineering work to be carried out when I joined, including replacing the main sail mandrel; diagnosing faults and repairing the entire forward hydraulic system; overhauling the waste treatment plant; repairing several faults on the navigation system; replacing one of the generator coolant pumps and several other jobs. I then did three, two week trips with the owner before preparing the boat to cross the Atlantic. Once arriving in Palma I spent a month preparing the boat for the summer season there. Some of this work included removing, repairing and refitting the bow thruster; replacing all captive winch sensors and re-wiring the controlling PLCs; replacing all boom hydraulic hoses and generally maintaining all other systems. She had 1 x MTU 6 cylinder main engine (441kw); 2 x MTU generators (51kw ea.) and one Northern Lights night generator.

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· Head Engineer – Sail Ionian Yacht Charters  Jun 2015 – Dec 2017

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I lead 4 other engineers maintaining  roughly 45 charter yachts in Greece. We took pride in maintaining our yachts to the highest standard, and adhered to a stringent standard of preventative maintenance. We commissioned new boats every year, including fitting the keels, static and running rigging, and all new electrical additions. Having such a large fleet to maintain, there were most perceivable problems to diagnose and repair. These ranged from D1-20 to D2-75 engines, with a Yanmar 4 cylinder in our 56’ yacht under my care. This engine, I had to replace in 2016 due to electrolysis corrosion. We offered a breakdown service to all of our clients, and often needed to be very creative in our solving of problems with limited resources. We were also a recognized Bavaria Dealer due to the number of new yachts purchased every year.

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· Fleet Maintenance Technician – A.W.Lymn Family Funeral Service  Sep 2013 – Jun 2015

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I was employed to maintain a fleet of Rolls Royce and Bentley limousines and hearses. In addition to these vehicles, I was responsible for the servicing and repairs of other commercial and fleet vehicles, totaling 68 in all. I was the sole employee in this department, responsible for arranging availability of the vehicles, ordering spares and carrying out repairs and general maintenance to the fleet, keeping strict records of costs and stock. Our fleet ranged from a 1929  Phantom 1, to twelve 2004-2005 Phantoms, as well as many other classic to current, and often bespoke, luxury vehicles.

 

 

 

· Chief Engineer - Indies Trader Marine Adventures  Feb 2012 – August 2013

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Being sole engineer on board, I was responsible for all maintenance. This included planned maintenance on the Mercedes V8 propulsion engines, and V6 generation engines. I was responsible for diagnosing and repairing any plumbing and electrical faults, maintenance of the reverse osmosis water makers and maintaining all timber decking and railings on board. All audio/visual concerns were also my responsibility, with Apple TV running throughout. I then joined another of the company’s boats in the Marshall Islands, preparing for a 6 month USAID mission to supply food and water to the outer atolls. I fitted new water makers, overhauling both generators, replacing the main engine, and carrying out all other preparatory work.

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· Factory Manager – Eagle and Marley Roofing  Feb 2006 – Jan 2012

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This position involved many aspects of management, as well as being a very practical,  hands-on role. I reported to the Managing Director, providing detailed daily and month-end reports pertaining to production efficiencies, breakages, raw material usage and stock levels. I also provided a detailed annual production budget. With a staff compliment of 50 personnel, I was responsible for all disciplining and mentoring. I was very involved with any breakdowns or planned maintenance, assisting the fitters and boiler makers with diagnosing and repairing faults, fabricating, and machining work. I also maintained and repaired the plant’s earthmoving equipment and forklifts. I worked extensively with hydraulics, pneumatics, conveyor systems, packing and strapping, heating systems, electrical hardwired control circuits and PLC run systems. I closely oversaw and commissioned the upgrading of the entire plant’s control system from hard-wired to PLC.

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· Leading Hand Technician – Land Rover Cape Town  Jan 2000 – Apr 2005

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Being the technician with consistently the highest efficiency and least amount of come-backs led me to be awarded the title of Leading Hand Technician. This was a ‘working foreman’ role, where I was to assist any other technicians with advice on difficult problems, and to deal with customers on a daily basis to answer any questions they may have or to go for test drives with them to diagnose any problems they had. I was also awarded the prestigious Employee Of The Year award at the end of 2003 and 2004.