Jeremy Vickers has gone from a 'teenage boy thinking tugs are pretty cool", to now being in charge of the entire Port Taranaki fleet.
The experienced marine engineer has recently become the port's marine technical manager, taking over from retired long-serving marine engineering manager Grant Squire.
Brought up in Moturoa, Jeremy lived within a stone's throw of the port, where his step-dad worked as a stevedore and his uncle worked on the tugs.
His interest piqued, he did a stint of work experience on tug Rupe while at high school and was inspired to become a marine engineer. With no jobs available at Port Taranaki, Jeremy got his training during eight years in the Navy, then went on to work on deep sea factory trawlers internationally, and spent 15 years in the offshore oil and gas industry in Taranaki, including as chief engineer on the support vessel Pacific Runner.
Things came full circle last year, when Jeremy returned to Rupe as a contract marine engineer. A fulltime role as port marine engineer coordinator followed, before his latest promotion.
Í did work ashore at one point as a maintenance engineer at Whittaker's Chocolate factory in Porirua, 'he says. 'But I missed ships and marine engineering so returned to sea as soon as I could".
What does your role involve?
I manage the maintenance and compliance of the marine services fleet ensuring vessels are appropriately resourced and fit for purpose. I also manage resourcing and staffing of the tug crews to ensure safe and effective operations.
What do you like about the role?
I enjoy the variety of work involved. While much of the role is a natural progression from what I've been doing for many years, there are some aspects that I'm not hugely familiar with, so there's the ability to grow and learn new skills and gain more knowledge. I've also got a young family, so it's great to be onshore and be able to spend more time with them.
What are the challenges?
The biggest challenge is filling Grant's shoes! Fortunately, he gave me excellent coaching and advice during my time as marine engineering coordinator, so I'm ready to make the role my own.
