Secretary
Frank Owen OAM
Since joining the SIA Committee in 2004, Frank has acted as its Treasurer, Vice President (Communications) and now Secretary. He also acts as mentor for the Organising Committees of the SIA’s annual conferences. Frank served in the RAN for a total of 31 years, specialising in submarines. He served as the Follow-On Submarine Project Officer from 1981-82, mounting a successful proposition to Government that it commit to the procurement of large submarines and later as the Operational Requirements Manager for the New Construction Submarines Project from 1992-1998. He was responsible for the introduction of a sovereign submarine escape and rescue capability in 1996, an innovative system that inspired the development of a similar capability in the United States Navy: the Submarine Rescue and Diving Recompression System (SRDRS). On leaving active service in 1999, Frank founded InDepth Project Management (IDPM) and has provided services to a wide range of defence and private clients over the intervening 18 years. Frank was part of the successful DCNS/Naval Group team in the Competitive Evaluation Process for the Future Submarine and is now a senior manager with Sonartech Atlas. He was awarded a Medal in the Order of Australia (OAM) in June 2018 for services to the maritime sector, particularly submarines.