Directors
Captain Mark G Capon. Master Mariner, LLB - Managing Director
Mark served 16 years at sea on a wide variety of ships culminating in 6 years as a Captain in the North Sea oil and gas industry.
Following his seagoing career, he qualified as a solicitor, spent 2 years with a London Shipping Law firm, and is an expert in Merchant Shipping Law and Port legislation.
Mark was subsequently employed by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) for over 6 years as a Surveyor of Ships, a Port State Control Inspector and an Examiner of Master and Mates. He formed the first Enforcement Unit and was involved in many investigations and high profile cases.
He now concentrates on assisting ports around the UK with all aspects of compliance with the Port Marine Safety Code. He audits compliance with the Code and acts as DP for several ports. He conducts casualty investigations on behalf of a major Flag and ports and will manage enforcement issues. Harbour Authorities have instructed Mark to assist with Governance and internal issues and he assists planning authorities with marine matters.
Mark provides the strategic management for Regs4ships. A keen cyclist who has cycled "End to End" and up some Alps.
Nick Gladwell. C.Eng, EUR Ing, BSc.(Hons), FIMarEST, MEI - Consultancy Director
Nick progressed from a seagoing Chief Engineer to Superintendent of a fleet of Chemical tankers, then Superintendent for Red Funnel Ferries & Tugs. He then became a Surveyor for the MCA and Cayman Islands Shipping Registry during a career spanning 38 years.
He was at the MCA for 9 years as a Surveyor and Engineer Examiner, was Manager in charge of the Falmouth MCA office; and the UK MCA expert in Dangerous Goods and MARPOL. He sat on, several IMO sub-committees and is a qualified auditor and conducted many ISM, ISPS, ISO and flag state audits.
Nick joined the Cayman Islands Shipping Registry as Chief Surveyor and then was made Director of Survey and Safety based in the Cayman Islands. He led the growth of the CISR for 7 years, particularly into super yachts, of which Nick is a world renowned technical expert.
After leaving CISR Nick joined Regs4ships and leads the Consultancy team. We are now the Recognized Organization (RO) for the Marshall Islands in the survey and certification of yachts and experts in flag and survey issues.
Captain Mick Caulkin. Master Mariner, BSc., MNI - Commercial Director
Mick is responsible for ensuring the infrastructure and resources are in place so that the business can perform and flourish.
He is responsible for all revenue generation for data and consultancy activities and leading the development of relations with the various flag states necessary to grow our subscriber product range.
Mick served at sea for 14 years on passenger ships, tankers and bulk carriers, latterly as Captain.
He graduated in Shipping Law and Operations and then worked ashore in New Zealand and Australia in shipping operations and transport business management. He returned to the UK after 7 years abroad and worked as a consultant in transport economics for the EC on projects for developing nations.
Mick then worked for the MCA for over 6 years as a Surveyor of Ships, Port State Control Inspector, ISM Auditor and Examiner of Masters and Mates.
During his time with Regs4ships Mick has led with several major projects such as the ISPS Code activities successfully delivered for over 40 ships and superyachts; the introduction of ISM systems to many vessels and managers; and the internal implementation of ISO 9001 and 14001 systems. Mick also lectures at Warsash, colleges overseas and to various Flag State customers covering ISPS, ISM, ISO and Auditing.
Captain Richard Eastham. Master Mariner, BA. MNI - Technical Director
Richard has been responsible for the technical development of the regulations database into a unique and world leading resource. In addition he has led his team with many complex solutions for shipping customers involving content and document management software and e-mail applications.
Richard has over 27 years experience in the marine industry. After 13 years at sea, latterly on passenger ships as Chief Officer he was appointed Port Captain with responsibility for project cargoes.
Richard spent six years with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency as a Surveyor of Ships, Port State Control Inspector, ISM Auditor and Examiner of Masters and Mates.
During his time at the MCA he became an ISM and Audit specialist including Lead Surveyor experience on P&O Cruises, Princess Cruises, P&O Ferries, National Environment Research Council Fleet and prestigious yachts such as "Alexander".
Richard is a past-Chairman of the Solent branch of the Nautical Institute and is still heavily involved in NI activities.
US Office
Captain Matt Lynch. Master Mariner - Surveyor
Matt joined regs4ships during 2008 and operates from our US office as a principle surveyor. He is also working at developing our business in the US arena. Matt holds a UK master mariners certificate of competency and brings auditing experience as well as an essential knowledge of US regulatory bodies, US regulations and union contracts.
After spending 12 years at sea Matt went ashore in the USA initially as a superintendent for a stevedoring company and then joined a major US flag container company where he quickly progressed to the position of quality manager with the role of DPA. He was in charge of the companies safety, quality, environmental and security management and quickly helped to significantly improve the companies safety record and overall regulatory compliance.
Matt subsequently returned to sea as master on large Ro-Ro passenger ships in the Mediterranean and worldwide.
UK Office
David Wright. C.Eng, BSc.(Eng), MIMarEST – Head of Business Development
David’s career started as a Naval Dockyard apprentice, he graduated from Kings College London and served in the Royal Navy for 17 years as a marine engineer officer.
He was a Surveyor, PSC Inspector and Examiner of Engineers in the UK Department of Transport and then Principal Marine Surveyor in charge of the Bermuda Registry of Shipping. Joining the MCA, his posts included Chief Surveyor of Ship Construction and Deputy Director with responsibility for Business Development. His duties were also as a Governor of the World Maritime University, Chairing committees including those for UK Safety of Navigation, Domestic Passenger Ship Safety, Port Marine Safety Code and High Speed Craft.
He was also seconded in 2003 to the UK Foreign Office in Iraq as Coalition Provisional Authority Envoy to Thi Qar Province. His final post in the MCA was as Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen for the UK Ship Register during a period when the UKSR tonnage grew by 28% in just over two years.
Robert Aldous BSc - Surveyor
Robert joined the company in September 2007, bringing with him over thirteen years of seagoing experience as a deck officer. Robert works in the capacity of Surveyor, looking after the implementation of ISM and ISPS procedures. As a qualified Lead Auditor, Robert represents the company globally, auditing yachts and ships of differing flags.
After completing his cadetship, Robert remained with P&O Cruises for a further five years, progressing to the rank of second officer. From this, he went on to work onboard passenger ferries as Mate and latterly worked aboard mega yachts in a senior rank, now providing our company with a close relationship and understanding of the industry’s needs and expectations.
Mark Robinson – Master Mariner, BSc. - Surveyor
Mark joined the team in November 2007 having spent 16 years with the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, serving the final 3 years in post ashore as the RFA Fleet tanker Superintendent.
Mark gained his Master Mariners Certificate in 2003 having served on a variety of ships and finally sailing as senior First Officer on the RFA’s latest Fleet tanker. He brings with him ship vetting and auditing expertise.
Keith Shears – Technical Editor
Keith joined Regs4ships in August 2005 and provides the essential mariners input to the products in the content management system.
Keith sailed at sea for many years on a wide variety of ships, including Cargo Ships, Bulk Carriers, Tankers and latterly as a Chief Officer/Senior DPO in the offshore oil and gas industry. He also brings with him 18 years in the MCA (HM Coastguard) in various operational and managerial positions.
During his time with the MCA he served in a wide variety of rescue co-ordination roles throughout the UK. This was followed by a period where he had technical authorship of the MCA's Search and Rescue related publications. Towards the end of his tenure at the MCA he was the Acting Deputy Chief Operations Officer and Strategic Planning Coordinator; both positions responsible for significant change management and the introduction of complex IT applications.
Tom Westwood B.Sc. – Deputy Technical Editor
Tom joined the regs4ships team in November 2008. He has over 11 years of experience within the maritime world including both the shipping and ports sectors. He started his career as a Deck Officer Cadet completing an NVQ in Merchant Vessel Operations and has since developed both theoretical and practical maritime experience through a variety of roles within the industry, including working at the MCA alongside the SOSREP on maritime incidents within UK waters. Tom has also studied a degree in shipping operations at Solent University which provided an excellent knowledge of maritime policy.
Dr Charles Kerr. B.Sc., M.Sc., Ph.D. – Senior IT Project Officer
Charles joined Regs4ships in July 2008 as a systems developer for the company’s customised product team. He brings with him over 15 years of IT system administration and development.
Charles obtained his doctorate from the University of Southampton where his research focused on novel techniques for integrating satellite imagery and airborne geophysical data as an aid for gold exploration. After working as a geophysics field technician for a site investigation consultancy Charles spent 3 years working for the Natural Environment Research Council’s Equipment Pool for Field Spectroscopy developing custom software data processing tools and web-based technical documentation.
From there Charles took up an IT support position at the School of Geography, University of Southampton where for 10 years he was responsible for developing and maintaining the School’s IT infrastructure. Charles gained extensive knowledge of implementing IT projects from the planning and testing phase through to deployment and end-user support. He was closely involved in the rollout of the School’s Microsoft SharePoint service, a product which forms the basis of many of Regs4ships’ customised solutions.
Dr Jim Milne. B.A., Ph.D. – Senior IT Project Officer
Jim joined Regs4ships in July 2008 after a long career in higher education having initially taught Geography at the University of Newcastle (1978-1983) and then serving in an IT support role in the School of Geography at the University of Southampton since 1986. Between these posts he worked as Executive Assistant in the Directorate of the Microelectronics Education Programme which underpinned the introduction of microcomputers in schools.
Jim has extensive experience in providing IT support, database applications, managing computer networks and software development for various platforms. Most recently he has been responsible for the design and maintenance of significant Sharepoint applications at the University of Southampton. He is also experienced in topographic surveying and laser scanning.
Jim's primary role at Regs4ships is to develop custom Sharepoint applications for the company's marine clients and support the provision of regulations to the shipping industry.
Ross Forrest - Network and CMS Administrator
Ross joined us from a company who built a web-based fault diagnosis database for electrical/electronic systems onboard motor vehicles and he was selected because of his content management and programming skills.
Ross has worked for Regs4ships since December 2004 and has been heavily involved in developing the functionality of the content management system and has become an expert in ColdFusion language. He is responsible for the presentation and structure of each new product group which is developed in the content management system.
Zena Parkin - Office Manager
Zena is our longest serving member of staff and probably the calmest. Zena manages the office infrastructure and support functions to the total staff of 13. She provides the essential sales support to Mick and ChartCo and is usually the main point of contact for customers.
Angie Calton - Financial Coordinator
Angie joined Regs4ships on a permanent basis in March 2007, having previously supported us on a part time basis for 3 years. Angie brings with her over 15 years of varied accountancy and financial experience.
O’Neil Esson – CMS Data Technician
O'Neil joined Regs4ships in July 2007 and has wide IT skills and experience and a BSc Computation degree (part-completed) at the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology.
James Thomson - CMS Data Technician
James is one of our data entry technicians. Ex RN diver for many years and recently retired as a North Sea dive supervisor he manipulates source data and adds value before insertion in the content management system database.
Jo Tidbury - CMS Data Technician
Jo joined the team part-time in November 2007 as a data entry technician. She has worked in the military ship industry for four years as a database administrator and more recently as an export controller.
Jenny Gales - CMS Data Technician
Jenny is a part-time data entry technician. She is currently in her final year at Southampton University studying for a BSc in Oceanography, she plans to take her Masters in Marine Geology and Geophysics at Southampton in 2008/9 and will specialise in marine geophysics and off-shore surveying. Jenny is an accomplished kayak instructor, sailor and diver.
