Gary Gray - MES and Liferaft Technical Manager

Gary Gray is widely acknowledged as one of the marine industry's leading experts in Marine Evacuation Systems (MES) and inflatable liferafts. 

He joined Cosalt in January 2009 bringing with him a wealth of experience gained over many years in the marine industry, most notably with Viking Lifesaving Equipment. 

Yet Gary's early career path was far from typical. After training as an agricultural engineer, he joined Italian tractor manufacturer SAME. He later moved into retail sales with an office stationery company, eventually setting up in business for himself. 

But it was Gary's love of the sea that eventually led him to take up an opportunity with Viking.  While working as a volunteer with the RNLI in the 1990s, Gary had grown passionate about safety at sea.  He had spent all his life around boats so it was a natural step for him to take on the voluntary role of RNLI safety advisor, giving safety demonstrations at boat shows and yacht clubs. 

When Gary heard that the global marine safety business Viking was looking to recruit people with an engineering background to work as service engineers, he jumped at the chance. He signed up as a Senior Service Supervisor in 2003 and after further training he was soon promoted to the role of Chief Surveyor for Liferafts and MES.  He did this job for four years, working all over Europe and Scandinavia. 

Gary's combination of experience with Viking and now Cosalt makes his experience in MES and liferaft servicing unique in the industry. He has an in-depth knowledge of all the major brands of marine safety equipment including Viking, LSA, DSB and RFD. 

As Cosalt's MES and Liferaft Technical Manager he provides vital technical support to the company's engineering teams and key customer accounts throughout the UK.  Gary also sits on the Safety Equipment Advisory Committee and is in regular contact with the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) on how to improve safety equipment and save lives at sea.

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