PROFILE
Robert G. Allan P.Eng is Executive Chairman of the Board at Robert Allan Ltd. in Vancouver.
What academic qualifications do you have? I have a
B.Sc (Honours) in Naval Architecture from the University of Glasgow, Scotland.
How are you qualified to carry out your role? I am qualified as a Registered Professional Engineer in my home Province of British Columbia, so I can perform the services required of a naval architect “with a license”. In my new role as the Executive Chairman of the company, I am still learning what that means, compared to my role of the past 27 years as the sole owner and President of the company. I guess my experience as the latter will stand me well.
Have you continued your education throughout your career? I have participated in numerous courses and many technical seminars, but no “formal” further education. Many times I felt that some formal business training would have been a great asset, but there was never time as I was too busy running a business!
What country do you work in? Our offices are located in Vancouver, Canada; however our project work takes us all over the world.
Robert Allan Ltd. is Canada’s oldest privately owned consulting Naval Architectural firm. Robert G. Allan is the sole owner and President of the company.
• to provide an “exit strategy” for myself when retirement looms (another few years yet!),
marine business for their careers; and most critically, success of our company.
My challenge in the next few years will be to mentor this new team of owners in what I have learned about being successful in the workboat design business,
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What challenges do you face in your role? Over the past two years I have completed the negotia- tion and sale of this third-generation, family-owned business to a group of 11 senior employees. I did this for three critical reasons:
• to ensure the continuity of this very successful small business, as none of my sons have chosen the
• to reward a team of great younger engineers who have contributed significantly to the recent growth and
while learning to gracefully “ease off” from running every aspect of the day-to-day business.
Describe a typical working day. My day starts at 0800, usually with scanning through overnight emails. Ten my day gets consumed with writing proposals, answering emails, checking drawings, writing or checking specifications, project- related meetings and general business management and development issues. I rarely find time in my routine work day to have uninterrupted “work” time, so when I leave the office at 1800, I always take at least two hours of work such as report writing or design concept development work home. A major part of my business life involves travel to meet with new and existing clients for new projects, so I am oſten away from our office for 7-10 days at a time.
What advice would you give to young people starting out in your profession? Be prepared to work hard, and to recognise that this is a business where there is absolutely no substitute for experience. Perhaps most critically, don’t go into this business (at least the consulting design side of naval architecture), unless you truly love the concept of designing ships.
Of what are you most proud with regard to your career? I found myself in full charge of Robert Allan Ltd aſter my Father’s rather premature death in 1981. It was a bad time economically with a severe down turn in the marine business worldwide. However, with the help of an amazingly committed and supportive staff we hung on through a few tough years and gradually built Robert Allan Ltd into a globally recognised talent in several fields of small ship design. To have achieved that status from our small office in Vancouver is a source of great personal and corporate pride. At a very personal level, I was honoured and humbled to have been recognised by my peers in 2005 by both the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers (SNAME) and by the Royal Institution of Naval Architects (RINA) with major awards for my contributions to the field of small ship design; honour
Ship & Boat International March/April 2009
ROBERT ALLAN LTD.
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