Reflections of International Marina Scholarship winner

by Colin Bransgrove on 6 Nov 2014 The recipient of the MIA Bellingham International Scholarship is returning to Australia after participating in the Advanced Marina Management (AMM) course conducted by the British Marine Federation (BMF) on the South Coast of England. David Osmond, Marina Manager at d'Albora Marinas Pier 35 and Victoria Harbour was announced as the Bellingham international scholarship winner earlier this year at the World Marina Conference.

The internationally recognised AMM course involves five days of lectures, site visits and group work with participants in this instance coming from eight countries. David commented: 'that despite some obvious differences in operations; like 12 metre tides, locks, salt bins at the top of ramps, drying marinas (where the tide goes out and boats are left 'dry') and hawk men (a man with a trained falcon used to deter smaller birds!); the trends and challenges faced by our industry are similar.

Boats are getting bigger, environmental compliance and regulations are becoming more stringent; there is a strong focus on business development in an attempt to keep our marinas occupied through difficult trading times and the never ending attempt to keep on top of technological changes to keep our businesses at the forefront of service delivery, operational and process efficiencies. There are also very positive indicators around the globe that we have been through the worst of the global recession and things are on the up' he said.

John Spragg, General Manager, Bellingham Marine Australia commented that it was pleasing to see that David had gained a lot from the experience. 'Bellingham understands the importance of industry education and the development of global networks to strengthen our industry. David has clearly been an excellent ambassador for this region.'

The AMM course is acknowledged as the most valuable training course within the career pathway for marina managers. The course is one of the prerequisites to acquiring marina industry certification that is endorsed by the Global Marina Institute and delivered by the Marina Industries Association.