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  DR. JAMES F. MCFARLANE  


DR. JAMES F. MCFARLANE
DR. JAMES F. MCFARLANE
Executive Biography – October 2005

Dr. McFarlane was the 2nd President & CEO of GRG after the death of the Co-Founder, Vince Jensen. Dr. McFarlane is now a candidate to the GRG Board of Directors as VP-Technology & Product Development for the GRG Group of Companies.

Dr. McFarlane is the founder and President/CEO of International Submarine Engineering Ltd. (ISE), a 28-year-old company & recognized international leader in robotics technologies, sub-sea unmanned vehicles and submarine technologies.

Dr. McFarlane is a graduate of the University of New Brunswick and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology “MIT”. He obtained a B.Sc., in Mechanical Engineering from UNB in 1960. In 1965, he received the degree of Master of Science in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering and the degree of Naval Engineering from MIT. He also received Honorary Doctor of Engineering Degrees from the Royal Military College and the University of Victoria in 1988, received an Honorary Doctor of Military Science Degree from Royal Roads Military College in 1991, and an Honorary Doctor of Science Degree from the University of New Brunswick in 1992.

Dr. McFarlane served in the Canadian Armed Forces both afloat and ashore. During this 18 year period, he held among others the positions of Special Projects Officer, Senior Structural Engineer and Staff Officer Construction on the staff of the Canadian Naval Submarine Technical Representatives, with technical responsibilities related to the Canadian Oberon Class submarines built in England. Dr. McFarlane also obtained bridge and engine room watch keeping tickets. On his return from England, Dr. McFarlane was appointed Senior Structural Engineer and Project System Engineer for a diving tender, and Project Manager for the SDL- 1 Diver Lockout Submersible.

Following his retirement from the Canadian Forces as a Lieutenant Commander, Dr. McFarlane joined International Hydrodynamics as Vice President of Engineering and Operations. In this capacity, he had personal responsibility for development, construction, trials and operations of the company's submersibles, their ancillary equipment and launch and recovery systems.

Dr. McFarlane is the founder of ISE and has since 1974 been involved with the design, construction, and operation of manned, tethered and untethered Remotely Operated Vehicles.

Dr. McFarlane is the author of many papers on submarines, manned submersibles, ROVs and autonomous vehicles. Dr. McFarlane has served on many committees for international meetings and as a guest speaker at many conferences. He has also received many awards. His curriculum vitae includes:

UNIVERSITY DEGREES:
B.Sc., Mechanical Engineering, University of New Brunswick 1960
M.Sc., Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) 1965
Naval Engineering Degree, Massachusetts Institute of Technology 1965
Doctorate of Engineering (Honorary), University of New Brunswick 1988
Doctorate of Engineering (Honorary), University of Victoria 1988
Doctorate of Military Science (Honorary), Royal Roads Military College 1991
Doctorate of Science (Honorary), University of New Brunswick 1992


AWARDS & HONOURS CONFERRED ON DR. JAMES F. McFARLANE:
Member Federal Government Meech Lake Ontario Think Tank Re: the Offshore 1984
Member Nova Scotia Government Think Tank re the Nova Scotia Economy, Orchard Inn, Nova Scotia 1984
Contributing author Marine Technology Society "ROV Guidelines" 1985
Member Committee Canada Awards for Excellence 1985
Founding Member - Canadian Academy of Engineering 1986
Massachusetts Institute of Technology Robert Bruce Wallace Speaker 1986
Member - Federal Minister's Task Force on the Oceans 1986
Member Committee - Canada Awards for Excellence 1986
Member of the Canadian Institute of Advanced Research 1986
Member- National Marine Council 1986-88
Director – PreCarn 1987-88
Ernest C. Manning Award 1987
Founding Member – PreCarn 1987
IEEE - Technical Achievement Award 1987
Member - University of Victoria, ME Chairman Search Committee 1987
Memorial University of Newfoundland Advisory Council on Ocean Studies 1987
Professional Engineers of BC Meritorious Achievement Award 1987
Canadian O.D.P. Evaluation Committee 1988
Member Committee - Canada Awards for Excellence 1988
Member-Science Council of British Columbia 1988
Prime Minister's "National Conference on Technology and Innovation" 1988
Adjunct Professor School of Engineering Science Simon Fraser University 1988-94
Appointed Officer of the Order of Canada 1989
British Columbia Science and Engineering Gold Medal 1989
Director- BC Trade Development Corporation 1989
H. Burr Steinbach Visiting Scholar at MIT/Woodshole 1989
Member Committee - Canada Awards for Excellence 1989
Member of the British Colombian Delegation and Speaker at the World Economic Forum, Davos, Switzerland 1989
Alumni Representative, MIT Corporation Visiting Committee for Dept. of Ocean Engineering 1989-93
Member- Canadian Institute of Industrial Technology, National Research Council of Canada (NRC) 1990-92
Member- Defence Staff, Science Advisory Board 1990-92
Convocation Speaker, BCIT 1990
Recipient Julian C. Smith Medal 1990
Convocation Speaker Royal Roads 1991
Adjunct Senior Systems Engineer, Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute 1992-97
Chairman- SPARK Committee on Ocean Industry Science and Technology (SCOIST) 1992-95
Member of the United States National Research, Council Committee on Undersea Vehicle Systems and National Needs 1992-95
Director - Canadian Ocean Frontier Initiative 1995-97
Angus Medal 1995
MTS Chairman's Award 1995
Chamber of Commerce, Business Person of the Year 1996
IEEE – Engineer of the Year Award 1998
Joseph F. Engelberger Award for Technology Development 2000


PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS:
  • Member of the Canadian Academy of Engineering; Sigma XI
  • Professional Engineer in the Province of British Columbia.