Nautronix Expands its Board with Another Senior Industry Player

05 July 2010

Nautronix Group Limited is delighted to announce the appointment of Jay Collins as a Non-Executive Board Member. Mr Collins also currently serves as President, Chief Executive Officer, and Director on the Board of Oceaneering International, Inc. He is the second senior industry player to join the new Nautronix Board following the acquisition of Nautronix by SCF Partners on the 8th April.

Mr. Collins has a MBA from Harvard Graduate School of Business as well as a Bachelor of Arts degree and a Masters of Engineering degree in Chemical Engineering from Rice University. He joined Oceaneering in October 1993, initially serving as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. In May 1995, he was appointed Executive Vice President Oilfield Marine Services; in November 1998, he was appointed President and Chief Operating Officer; in April 2002, he was elected to the Board of Directors; and in May 2006 was appointed Chief Executive Officer.

Mark Patterson, CEO of Nautronix said: ‘We are delighted to have Jay on the board. With Oceaneering generating revenue of nearly $1.9 billion in 2009 and employing over 7,900 employees working out of 68 locations in 21 countries there is no denying that Jay’s significant industry experience and knowledge will be invaluable to us as we continue to grow the business.”

Mr Collins is also a past Chairman of the Board of Directors for National Ocean Industries Association. He currently serves on the Board of the American Productivity & Quality Center, Petroleum Equipment Suppliers Association, CanCare of Houston and is also a member of the National Petroleum Council. He joins the Nautronix Group Limited board alongside Rodney Eads, previously Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Pride International, Inc, who was appointed in May.

Mr Collins said: “I am pleased to be joining the Nautronix board and working with SCF Partners to enhance growth prospects for the company. Recent events have focused industry attention on the subsea arena and where Nautronix technology seems well positioned to serve this growing market.”

Nautronix offer acoustic communication and positioning systems to the global offshore industry. The company’s technology is receiving significant industry interest at present due to its capability to provide an acoustic system for emergency BOP (Blow Out Preventer) disconnect and BOP stack monitoring.

In addition Nautronix NASNet® system is a unique acoustic positioning system which through its passive signalling methods offers an ‘underwater GPS’ system providing multi-user capabilities while removing the issue of SIMOPS and frequency management which are common in busy fields. An application of the system also offers the systems as a complimentary input to DGPS for vessel station keeping. The use of a subsea positioning system for DP (Dynamic Positioning ) will combat the upcoming issue of scintillation, which could result in periods of GPS instability (especially in the southern hemisphere). With an update rate equal to DGPS NASNet® DPR is a true acoustic solution, providing further redundancy, minimising downtime and offering the contractors and operators with a safer and more cost effective solution.