Role model with a mission - BMT names new Global Technical Director
BMT, the international maritime design, engineering, science and risk-management organisation, has appointed Catriona Savage to the newly created role of Global Technical Director – the first technical leadership position at this level in BMT’s history.
The creation of the role is a deliberate move to align technical excellence across the business, bringing together BMT’s innovation, technical capability and assurance under a single, globally aligned remit, at a moment of rapid change for the industries BMT serves.
A Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering and the first female President of the Royal Institution of Naval Architects (RINA), Savage is among the most recognisable figures in naval architecture. She began her career at BMT in 1996 and rose through the ranks to Head of Naval Architecture and, later, Technical Director, before holding the UK Ministry of Defence Chair in Naval Architecture at UCL where she continues to hold an Honorary Professorship. In a voluntary capacity she contributes to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) and Lloyd’s Register as a member of advisory committees.
Her technical credits read as a tour of the modern maritime agenda, a body of work that places her at the intersection of the very themes now defining the sector’s future.
For Savage, the move is also a return. “I wouldn’t have come back if BMT wasn’t a great place to work,” she says – pointing to a culture of curiosity, collaboration and technical excellence that she believes is the organisation’s real differentiator.
“The value we bring to customers isn’t just what we do – it’s how we do it,” Savage explains. “It’s the way we work alongside customers, challenge their thinking and focus on solving the right problem – not just the one in front of us. That willingness to be provocative in the right way is a genuine strength, and it’s what brings people to BMT.”
Looking ahead, Savage sees clear ground where BMT can lead: energy security and sustainability; digital, data and AI; cyber; and automation, robotics and autonomous systems – underpinned, in every case, by people. But she is emphatic that innovation must never come at the expense of the assurance BMT’s customers rely on.
“Our customers operate in risk-sensitive environments, so assurance will always matter – but that shouldn’t limit us, it should enable us to take the right risks in the right way,” she says. “The opportunity ahead is as much about people as it is about technology: ensuring we have the skills, the mindset and the capability to adapt and lead.”
Savage steps into the role with the business carrying real momentum. In November 2025, the UK’s Fleet Solid Support (FSS) programme – a BMT design – passed its Critical Design Review, confirming the detailed design is ready for manufacture. The ships will join a Royal Fleet Auxiliary already operating BMT-designed Tide-class tankers – a measure of the trust the organisation has earned on the most demanding naval programmes. The same month, BMT signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Teledyne Marine Vehicles to advance maritime autonomy, while its 2024 acquisition of Australian Maritime Technologies (AMT) has deepened sovereign design capability across the Asia-Pacific. Each speaks to a strand of the new remit – assurance proven at the highest level, innovation in autonomy, and technical capability aligned across the globe – precisely what the Global Technical Director role exists to bring together.
Drawing those threads together globally is precisely the point of the new role. “We already have fantastic expertise right across the business,” Savage notes. “The opportunity is to make it easier for our customers – and our people – to see what makes BMT distinct, and how we pull together across our regions to deliver even greater impact.”
Beyond the technology, Savage brings a personal mission that has defined her public voice: widening the door to engineering and maritime careers. As RINA President she has championed diversity and the breadth of opportunity open to the next generation – from hands-on STEM workshops to programmes that help people back in after career breaks. With women making up just 16.9 per cent of engineering professionals and only a fraction of seafarers, she argues the sector’s talent challenge is also its greatest untapped opportunity.
“Ours is the generation facing challenges like decarbonisation and autonomy. We don’t have all the solutions yet – but one thing is clear: collaboration will be key,” she has said. It is a fitting note on which to begin a role built, at its heart, on bringing people and ideas together.
“Cat is one of the most respected technical leaders in our industry, and her return to lead this new global function speaks volumes about both her and BMT,” said Sarah Kenny OBE, Chief Executive of BMT. “As the maritime and defence sectors face their most significant period of change in a generation, bringing our technical capability together under a single, globally aligned vision will help us continue to deliver trusted, innovative solutions for our customers – today and for the long term.”
Exhibitor; BMT
The creation of the role is a deliberate move to align technical excellence across the business, bringing together BMT’s innovation, technical capability and assurance under a single, globally aligned remit, at a moment of rapid change for the industries BMT serves.
A Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering and the first female President of the Royal Institution of Naval Architects (RINA), Savage is among the most recognisable figures in naval architecture. She began her career at BMT in 1996 and rose through the ranks to Head of Naval Architecture and, later, Technical Director, before holding the UK Ministry of Defence Chair in Naval Architecture at UCL where she continues to hold an Honorary Professorship. In a voluntary capacity she contributes to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) and Lloyd’s Register as a member of advisory committees.
Her technical credits read as a tour of the modern maritime agenda, a body of work that places her at the intersection of the very themes now defining the sector’s future.
For Savage, the move is also a return. “I wouldn’t have come back if BMT wasn’t a great place to work,” she says – pointing to a culture of curiosity, collaboration and technical excellence that she believes is the organisation’s real differentiator.
“The value we bring to customers isn’t just what we do – it’s how we do it,” Savage explains. “It’s the way we work alongside customers, challenge their thinking and focus on solving the right problem – not just the one in front of us. That willingness to be provocative in the right way is a genuine strength, and it’s what brings people to BMT.”
Looking ahead, Savage sees clear ground where BMT can lead: energy security and sustainability; digital, data and AI; cyber; and automation, robotics and autonomous systems – underpinned, in every case, by people. But she is emphatic that innovation must never come at the expense of the assurance BMT’s customers rely on.
“Our customers operate in risk-sensitive environments, so assurance will always matter – but that shouldn’t limit us, it should enable us to take the right risks in the right way,” she says. “The opportunity ahead is as much about people as it is about technology: ensuring we have the skills, the mindset and the capability to adapt and lead.”
Savage steps into the role with the business carrying real momentum. In November 2025, the UK’s Fleet Solid Support (FSS) programme – a BMT design – passed its Critical Design Review, confirming the detailed design is ready for manufacture. The ships will join a Royal Fleet Auxiliary already operating BMT-designed Tide-class tankers – a measure of the trust the organisation has earned on the most demanding naval programmes. The same month, BMT signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Teledyne Marine Vehicles to advance maritime autonomy, while its 2024 acquisition of Australian Maritime Technologies (AMT) has deepened sovereign design capability across the Asia-Pacific. Each speaks to a strand of the new remit – assurance proven at the highest level, innovation in autonomy, and technical capability aligned across the globe – precisely what the Global Technical Director role exists to bring together.
Drawing those threads together globally is precisely the point of the new role. “We already have fantastic expertise right across the business,” Savage notes. “The opportunity is to make it easier for our customers – and our people – to see what makes BMT distinct, and how we pull together across our regions to deliver even greater impact.”
Beyond the technology, Savage brings a personal mission that has defined her public voice: widening the door to engineering and maritime careers. As RINA President she has championed diversity and the breadth of opportunity open to the next generation – from hands-on STEM workshops to programmes that help people back in after career breaks. With women making up just 16.9 per cent of engineering professionals and only a fraction of seafarers, she argues the sector’s talent challenge is also its greatest untapped opportunity.
“Ours is the generation facing challenges like decarbonisation and autonomy. We don’t have all the solutions yet – but one thing is clear: collaboration will be key,” she has said. It is a fitting note on which to begin a role built, at its heart, on bringing people and ideas together.
“Cat is one of the most respected technical leaders in our industry, and her return to lead this new global function speaks volumes about both her and BMT,” said Sarah Kenny OBE, Chief Executive of BMT. “As the maritime and defence sectors face their most significant period of change in a generation, bringing our technical capability together under a single, globally aligned vision will help us continue to deliver trusted, innovative solutions for our customers – today and for the long term.”
Exhibitor; BMT
Recommended News for You
Pushing the envelope of ocean understanding
July 20, 2026Seawork Press FP
Realistic pathway to overcoming range limitations proven
July 16, 2026Seawork Press FP
Mecal approved as new certifying authority for ROUVs
July 16, 2026Seawork Press FP
Heading for the HaiSea
July 14, 2026Seawork Press FP
Tight, tighter, tightest - new supply contract for Libra-Plast
July 14, 2026Seawork Press FP