About Martech Polar
Martech Polar Consulting Ltd
Martech Polar Consulting Ltd. is a privately owned company providing global ice pilotage and navigation services in accordance with IMO Polar Code, Nautical Institute Ice Navigator, Canadian Arctic Shipping Safety and Security Regulations and national and regional regulations and guidelines.
Martech Polar’s founder, Captain David (Duke) Snider is an ice pilot and ice navigator with extensive ice navigation experience in Arctic, Antarctic, Baltic and East Coast North American ice covered waters. He also has extensive tenure onboard coastal and offshore vessels as Chief Officer and Master.
Company Profile
Services
As Arctic sea ice and Antarctic continental ice diminishes, the season for accessing these environments lengthens. However, the Polar Regions remain the most remote and challenging areas on the globe, subject to climate extremes and at the furthest limit of logistic support. This poses unique challenges and requires specialized expertise to mitigate danger and maximize efficiency.
Martech Polar’s experience and familiarity in challenging Polar Regions provides clients with the best way forward in ensuring safe and efficient operations. We provide global ice navigation services and support for polar shipping, ice navigation, polar research, expedition logistics support and ice-related consulting services..
Qualifications
As long as Arctic ice exists, it will remain a challenge. Knowing how to identify ice, plan for and execute a transit in ice-infested water, particularly where dangerous multi-year and glacial ice can be encountered, is vital to operations in the Polar Regions.
It takes many years of experience to learn how to identify ice and to safely manoeuvre a vessel in ice-infested waters. It is often a lack of experience in operations in ice-infested waters that results in damage or loss. Many that truly know the Polar Regions accept that the skills and knowledge required to operate there is far and above those held by the average mariner.
Captain David (Duke) Snider brings his extensive experience in polar shipping and as a highly qualified ice navigator to Martech Polar. He also calls on expert mariners with decades of polar shipping experience to ensure continual progress in all aspects of polar shipping and vessel operations.
Team
Martech Polar calls on a core of highly qualified and experienced mariners who are available to provide ice pilotage and ice navigation services worldwide. Our associates are based in North America, New Zealand and Western Europe.
Martech Polar’s associates are experts in:
- Ice Pilotage and ice navigation
- Ice physics and dynamics
- Chartering and brokerage
- Logistics support
- Marine engineering with a focus on cold climate operations
- Naval architecture with a focus on ice strengthening design
- State of technology to collect, display and utilize weather and ice information
- Operational characteristics on commercial cargo, passenger, expedition ships; research ships; naval and coast guard ships; super yachts.
Martech Polar’s associates possess:
- Current STCW Master Mariner equivalent Certificates of Competency
- Nautical Institute Ice Navigator Level 2 Certification
- Certificate of Proficiency Polar Waters Advanced Training
Goals
Martech Polar endeavors to ensure continual progress in all aspects of polar shipping and vessel operations. We are dedicated to improving safety at sea, with a particular focus on improving standards of ice navigation.
Captain Snider is the President of the Nautical Institute and Chair of the Ice Navigator Working Group. The Ice Navigator Working Group is tasked with advancing the Nautical Institute's goal establishing a global standard for ice navigators and contributing to safe navigation in ice-covered waters.
Awards
- Captain Snider was awarded the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee medal in 2011 for his years as a member of the Nautical Institute
- Canadian Coast Guard Exemplary Service Medal
- United States Coast Guard Antarctic Service Medal
- Canadian Coast Guard Commissioner’s Commendation
- International Transport and Shipping – Maritime Shipping Awards 2018 – Best Global Ice Pilotage Specialists North America
- CV Magazine – Canadian Business Awards 2019 – Best Polar Ice Navigation and Pilotage Specialists
- CV Magazine – Canadian Business Awards 2020 – Best Polar Ice Navigation and Pilotage Specialists
- Maritime Museum of British Columbia Beaver Medal
Captain Snider, Principal Consultant
Captain David (Duke) Snider, MM, BMS, FNI, FRGS
Captain Snider is the CEO and Principal Consultant of Martech Polar Consulting, Ltd. He is a Master Mariner and with 40 years at sea, operating vessels in a variety of ice regimes in the Arctic, Antarctic, Baltic, Great Lakes and Eastern North American waters. He also has extensive tenure onboard coastal and offshore research vessels as Chief Officer and Master. He retired from Canadian Coast Guard service as Regional Director Fleet Western Region in 2012.
Accomplishments
Captain Snider holds a Bachelor of Maritime Studies degree from the Memorial University of Newfoundland and is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society
He was awarded the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee medal in 2011 for his years as a member of the Nautical Institute.
Additional awards include:
Canadian Coast Guard Exemplary Service Medal
United States Coast Guard Antarctic Service Medal
Canadian Coast Guard Commissioner’s Commendation
Maritime Museum of British Columbia Beaver Medal
International Transport and Shipping – Maritime Shipping Awards 2018 – Best Global Ice Pilotage Specialists North America
CV Magazine – Canadian Business Awards 2019 – Best Polar Ice Navigation and Pilotage Specialists
CV Magazine – Canadian Business Awards 2020 – Best Polar Ice Navigation and Pilotage Specialists
Reach Us
World-wide ice pilotage and navigation services
Martech Polar Consulting Ltd.
563 Caselton Place
Victoria, BC Canada V8Z 7Y5
1 (250) 479-4745
1 (250) 216-0906