From lone apprentice to Head of Production

When 17-year-old Craig was flicking through the job ads in the newspaper in late 1995, he wasn’t sure what came next. Police? Army? Something practical?

His family had only recently moved from Sydney to Adelaide – his dad had flown down to join ASC as a mechanical foreman after decades working on Oberonclass submarines at Cockatoo Island.

“Dad said, why don’t you have a look at ASC? So I enquired about an apprenticeship,” Craig recalls. “I put ‘fitter’ or ‘fabricator’ on the group training form. My scores were really good, and they convinced me to go electrical.”

He grins. “All the best people go electrical…” – a thinly veiled dig at his fitter and fabricator mates.

Early Career: Apprenticeship and Collins

Craig joined ASC at age 17 and began working on the original build of the Collins Class Submarines. HMAS Collins was already in the water, but he vividly remembers working on Farncomb and the remaining boats.

After completing his apprenticeship, he was offered a role as a tradesperson. Around the same time, he bought his first house and began putting down roots in Adelaide’s western suburbs.

A Variety of Jobs

Over the years, Craig has worked across countless parts of ASC. He spent long stretches in Western Australia as ASC established its sustainment operations in the west. The role also gave him opportunity to see much of the world, responding to call-out tasks for deployed submarines in Singapore, New Zealand, Hawaii and Japan.

Craig also spent five years on the Air Warfare Destroyer program, rising to Supervisor and then Senior Supervisor. The role took him overseas to Navantia in Spain and Bath Iron Works in the United States, providing valuable international experience.

One weekend in 1997 stands out vividly in Craig’s memory. He was flown to New South Wales for a call-out, lost his luggage on the flight, took two $500 taxis between Sydney and Wollongong, completed the repair, and flew home all within 48 hours.

“It was just me and my teammate, Scott, on that little adventure. Those are the experiences that build mateship and camaraderie,” Craig shares.

Craig later served as Boat Superintendent and Boat Manager during full-cycle dockings in Adelaide. An extremely challenging assignment following ASC’s first successful two-year full-cycle docking on a Collins Class submarine post-Coles review.

“It was hugely rewarding,” he reflects, “I even received a commendation from the Captain and crew, but that full-cycle docking was definitely when my hair started falling out,” he laughs.

Head of Production (SA)

Today, Craig is ASC’s Head of Production for South Australia.

“It’s a difficult, sometimes frustrating, but incredibly rewarding role and the people are amazing,” he says. “I don’t feel like I’ve been here 30 years. My goal from the day I started remains the same: make today better than yesterday and make tomorrow better than today. Whether it’s improving safety, productivity or capability – I just want to add value.”

Craig holds deep respect for the submariners he indirectly supports.

“There are only six Collins Class submarines in the world. We’re privileged to work on them. I wouldn’t want to be a submariner, but I want to repay them for what they do.” Craig is constantly impressed by the mastery of ASC’s tradespeople.

“When a challenge comes up – and you give the team the access, materials and scope – the miracles start to happen. Supporting that, being part of that… I love it,” says Craig.

“I’m incredibly lucky,” he continues. “I’ve got a wife who’s stood by me through every high and low, and two beautiful kids. They’ve been patient, supportive and understanding in ways I don’t think I fully appreciated until I finally slowed down enough to see it… whenever that actually happens.

“I care about this place deeply. I’m grateful for the opportunities I’ve had – the support along the way, the lessons learned, the friends made. Now I want to give back.

“This job is technical and personal but it’s also custodianship. We owe it to the submariners, and to each other, to uphold the standards and pass on what we’ve learned. That’s what keeps me coming in every day.”