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www.seadiscovery.com Marine Technology Reporter 21Please discuss your background. Grant My appointment in 2007 as managing director of Saab Seaeye came when Saab acquired Seaeye Marine to strengthen their position in the offshore market. Before that I had 20 years experience in the oil and gas underwa- ter industry, during which time I held positions in senior management and as a consultant. This June, Saab added to my responsibilities their underwater vehicles defense divi- sion, which includes transferring vehicle production from Sweden to the UK while retaining a Saab Seaeye engineer- ing design office in Sweden. How did you initially come to be interested in the subsea industry? Grant After starting my career as a qualified engineer inthe design of airborne military radar equipment I discov- ered the world of subsea engineering and became hooked! That was in the 1980?s when the North Sea oil and gas industry was becoming established and ROV equipment was beginning to become an accepted method of perform- ing underwater tasks. I figured underwater engineering would be a growth area and I wanted to be part of it. I am glad I did, because the underwater vehicle market has grown to become a vital subsea resource and the technolo- gy is very diverse and interesting for an engineer. Five Minutes With Dave Grant Managing Director, Saab Seaeye MTR#7 (18-33):MTR Layouts 8/29/2011 9:44 AM Page 21