Chief
Engineer
Job Description:
The Chief Engineer is in charge of the engineering department
and is responsible for its safe and efficient
operation. He/she reports directly to the Captain. As
well as managing the Engineers, Electricians and ETOs (Electronic
Technical Officers), the Chief Engineer has overall responsibility
for the engineering department.
The Chief Engineer is likely to get involved in the day-to-day
work of maintaining the mechanical and electrical operations of the
yacht, supervising the rest of the team and ensuring that all
planned maintenance takes place. Additionally the Chief
Engineer will coordinate operations with shore-side
engineers. Many yachts have warrantee and/or service contracts
for all of the mechanical and electrical equipment and shore-side
engineers undertake the vast majority of service and repair
work.
A Chief Engineer must be a very technically-minded individual
who can wear many hats during the course of the day. He/she
must be able to transition well between engine room work and
interacting with guests. The Chief Engineer will ultimately
be responsible for keeping the mechanical side of the yacht running
without a hitch. This is particularly the case with the Hotel
Services elements of the yacht.
The Engineering department is responsible for just about
everything on the yacht that could break and need to be fixed.
This includes everything from the main engines to smaller
pieces of equipment like jet skis, televisions, refrigerators, air
conditioners, etc. The Chief Engineer must be able to
trouble-shoot and repair virtually everything in the confines of
the yacht. Additionally, they will have a good knowledge base
of finding and purchasing parts for the yacht.
In smaller yachts it is not unusual for the Chief Engineer to be
required to assist on deck particularly in docking, undocking and
anchoring operations.
Required Skills and Experience:
Most Chief Engineers have reached their position by starting out
as an Engineer on board superyachts. They should have broad
experience of maintaining and repairing all of the mechanical and
electrical operations on board, including engines, generators, air
conditioning systems, electrical systems and water makers.
The Chief Engineer will be expert in preventative maintenance
and troubleshooting and will have the ability to manage and
supervise engine repairs, re-hauls and general upkeep in the Engine
Room.
The Chief Engineer also needs the ability to manage and train
subordinate staff in the engine room and should have a good
knowledge of outsourcing contractors and shore based repairs when
necessary.
Experience or an understanding of International Safety
Management (ISM) or Mini ISM is required for many yachts.
Required Certification:
The Chief Engineer should hold the MCA STCW Chief Engineer
(Yachts) certification appropriate for the engine capacity, or
Merchant Navy Second Engineer or Chief Engineer certification.
In some larger yachts the Merchant Navy certification is the
required certification.
Salary Range:
A Chief Engineer is likely to be paid between £2,500 and £4,500
per month, depending on experience and the size of yacht. On
larger yachts with more engineering crew to supervise, the salary
could rise to between £3,800 and £5,500 per month. In many of
the larger yachts the salary scale may well be higher than this and
there may be the opportunity for
rotation.
Career Progression:
Superyacht Crew:
Experienced Chief Engineers will always be in demand, and
progression usually leads to working on other, larger yachts.
Marine Industry:
An experienced Chief Engineer would be in demand in a number of
roles within the marine industry. Boatbuilding and
shipbuilding firms employ Engineering Managers and Directors to
head up their Engineering Teams, and Port Operations also require
Engineers. It is also possible that your experience is
relevant for Yacht Surveying work.
Other Industries:
Engineering skills are valued in many other
industries. Depending on the position, it may however be
necessary to attend training courses or gain qualifications to
convert your marine engineering skills to those relevant to the
position.