Ronald Radder

Marine Surveyor,
BMT De Beer 

As a Marine Surveyor, it's my job to carry out technical assessments of damaged vessels. I conduct on-site investigations, gathering evidence and piecing together the facts, and then submit my reports to the relevant ship owner or insurance company. We often joke that it's ‘CSI for the marine sector'.

I've been with BMT de Beer for a couple of years now, and the thing I love most about my work is the constant movement and change. Sure, I'm behind my desk for some of the time. But for the most part I'm outdoors, guiding operations at a salvage site or crawling over shipyards. I love it. This job's taken me to some amazing places like Morocco and the South Pacific.

Case work can be challenging at times, and in your first years at BMT de Beer everyone is assigned a senior colleague mentor. You can call your mentor day or night for guidance and advice.

There's certainly a lot to get to grips with in this sector. There are constant legislative changes, for instance, regarding fuel quality and maritime pollution, and you have to be on top of all that for certain claims and cases. But so long as you're prepared to put in the work, it's a hugely rewarding job.