“Coming into Dartmouth was definitely the highlight!”

Rob Pomeroy is a Chief Engineer working on motor yachts, taking him all over the world. Yet his working visit to his home town of Dartmouth was a very special time in his career.

“I grew up in Dartmouth so coming into the harbour on the boat I work on was a decent box to tick!” he said. “Most of my family hadn’t really seen what I do, so it was great to be able to show them the boat.”

Rob’s route into the superyacht industry started off in a more unusual way – via the automotive industry.

“I left school not really knowing what I wanted to do and ended up training to be a car mechanic. I worked in that industry for about eight or nine years before moving onto another engineering job looking after heavy plant machinery but the 24-hour call-out was tough.

“One lunch time I was reading a yachting magazine and wanted to find out how to work on these amazing looking boats!”

That was inspiration enough for Rob to kick-start a new career path.

“I took out a bank loan and signed up for the Yachtmasters qualification. I also completed the STCW basic safety training, both of which gave me a foot in the door.

“I then started my first job on a big sailing boat as a mate engineer and progressed over the last 20 years up to my current role as Chief Engineer on a 65m motor yacht.”

 

 

Rob has travelled far and wide in his career and appreciates all the different experiences: “I spent a fair amount of time in Asia on my previous boat, which was nice. I also like the Mediterranean, Alaska, Scandinavia and the Baltics. Everywhere is different.

“I also spent some time in the Pacific at the Marshall Islands – the coral reef Bikini Atoll is in the middle of nowhere and very special. It’s definitely somewhere you don’t get to see every day.”

Rob is keen to highlight the benefits of working on superyachts although it’s not all about the amazing scenery and travel perks!

“My favourite aspect of the job is that the machinery on board is top quality, is always clean and tidy and is a joy to work on. You certainly have to think on your feet and work around any issues when at sea as you’re not near a convenient chandlery or workshop.

“Marine engineering is a great career to get into – the machinery is well looked after and it’s all your responsibility, so you can run it how you want to.

“I have been on my current boat for nine years – when you find a boat you really enjoy working on, there’s no reason to leave.

“I do a rotation with another engineer so I work 8-10 weeks then receive the same amount of time off, which is a working pattern offered to higher-ranking engineers and crew.”

As with many industries, there are moves to make the sector more sustainable and Rob understands how that will have an impact on future engineers: “The movement towards alternative fuels is an emerging technology and will involve specialist training and further qualifications for engineers to move towards different fuels such as methanol.

“We are already being more environmentally conscious on board – when guests are not on board our boat, we have a checklist to work through, considering sustainable actions, such as turning the air conditioning up by a couple of degrees, which saves a huge amount of energy consumption.”

Whilst Rob thoroughly enjoys his varied career, he is also making plans for his future: “I am looking to start an engineering company back here in Dartmouth, offering complete marine engineering services to visiting yachts, using my experience and knowledge.

“My wife runs the Banquet Boat on the river so in my time off I’m skipper for her, so I would also do more of that.”

Rob is clearly a strong advocate of everything Dartmouth has to offer and can see the draw of bringing yachts and guests into the harbour: “There are four or five major yacht builders in Germany and the Netherlands and so Dartmouth is on the route down. It’s especially useful if the crew is looking for shelter from the weather as it’s a safe harbour.

“Dartmouth also has a lot to offer crew members when they get off board – the yacht taxi is great to transport the crew into town and back – it’s so convenient.”

Rob will never forget bringing his ship into Dartmouth and recommends the visit to any yacht, owners, guests and crew: “As I know the area I was able to give the crew an insight into the things to do around the town and the incredible history of the area. There is so much to do here, from the vibrant town to wonderful coastal hikes.

“The entrance to Dartmouth is so picturesque – when you come in between the two castles it’s hard to beat!

“Sailing into Dartmouth was definitely a career highlight!”

 

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