National Oceanography Centre
Rory O'Brien currently serves as the Associate Head of Marine Autonomous and Robotic Systems (Operations) at the National Oceanography Centre since June 2025. Prior experience includes roles as Team Leader in Naval Architecture & Marine Engineering at QinetiQ and Head of Maritime at the UK Defence Solutions Centre, where responsibilities encompassed innovation and strategic analysis within the maritime domain. O'Brien began a career in the UK Ministry of Defence as a Technical Advisor and has also worked as a Graduate Engineer at Defence Equipment & Support. O'Brien holds a Master of Science (MSc) with Merit in Engineering and Management, as well as a BEng Hons in Mechanical Engineering, both from the University of Exeter. Prior academic and leadership experiences include serving as Secretary/Vice-President of the Exeter University Boat Club and working as an Assistant Lock Keeper with the Environment Agency.
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National Oceanography Centre
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The National Oceanography Centre is an independent self-governing organisation - a charitable company limited by guarantee. The NOC is funded by UK Research and Innovation to work on National Capability programmes, and manages on its behalf, the National Marine Equipment Pool - Europe’s largest fleet of autonomous and robotic vehicles, and two state of the art research ships RRS Discovery and RRS James Cook. The NOC has two sites, Southampton and Liverpool, and employs around 650 staff. We are co-located at both sites with leading UK Universities, giving us a unique position in UK marine research.