Bermuda had never produced a qualified marine engineer until this year, when Carlton Fubler Uchida became the very first Bermudian to receive his degree in Marine Engineering. Ironically, just a few moments later, at the same graduation ceremony at Ontario's Georgian College, his friend Francis Richardson, became the second.

Now, Mr. Uchida is the assistant engineer on Weatherbird II , the marine research vessel at the Bermuda Biological Station, while Mr. Richardson is working for Marine and Ports.

Carlton Uchida's success in his chosen career makes him something of a role model for other young Bermudians. He believes it was his mother's decision to send her teenage son away to school that turned his life around. He transferred from Dellwood School to Whitney Institute, but after two years there, he went to Florida, where he had family, to attend Sandalwood Senior High School in Jacksonville.

"I was always a trouble-maker at Dellwood and my teachers there probably think I'm sitting on a wall somewhere! It was the exposure to a different lifestyle and education system that turned my life around. I'm very grateful to have had that experience.'' He pays tribute to his mother who, he says, always pushed the idea of further education.

"She used to tell me that high school isn't the end -- it's the beginning.'' As part of his course, Mr. Uchida spent a summer vacation as an engineering cadet on a CAST (bulk and container) ship, where he travelled to Antwerp, Belgium. In the summer of 1992, he served on an Alcan vessel travelling from Montreal to the Amazon. While on board he had to complete specific college assignments pertaining to his hands-on experience.

"A ship is like a floating city, so you have to spend a certain amount of time in the day to day running of a ship. I did everything during that trip -- even mopping the floors!'' One of the most important aspects of marine engineering is the ability to assess exactly what repairs and maintenance work needs to be done when a vessel goes into dry dock.

"Exact instructions have to be backed up by rough drawings. The information has to be very precise and you have to make sure nothing is overlooked. It's a big responsibility, because any mistakes or omissions could be very serious, especially when you're talking about a multi-million dollar ship.'' The refurbished Weatherbird II , where the new marine engineer is often at sea for five days at a time, travels some 300 miles off Bermuda, where scientific equipment often plunges more than 4,000 metres to collect marine secrets of the deep. Besides the captain and chief engineer, a crew of six is required to man the 225-ton vessel.

"I assist the scientists in operating their water-sampling equipment and I help the chief engineer in ensuring the smooth running of the ship,'' explains Mr. Uchida. This involves regular maintenance checks, engine watches and overhauling of steering systems, main propulsion and air-conditioning systems.

This summer, at least, it's been plain sailing for the new engineer -- apart from the first day, when he was sea-sick.

"I think the most exciting thing that's happened so far was the day when a whale came right up alongside. It was only about five feet from the stern and it hovered awhile, as if it was checking us out.'' Days and nights merge into two six-hour shifts, so that work for the crew can continue 24 hours.

"I'm either working from 12 noon to 6 p.m. or from 12 midnight to 6 a.m.'' Although alcohol is strictly forbidden on board, movies and plenty of books help pass spare time.

Carlton Uchida had originally planned to become a pharmacist and, in fact, had already entered a pre-pharmacy course when he was offered a scholarship to study engineering.

"I was having a hard time obtaining funds to do pharmacy so when this offer came up, I had a talk with Ron Ross, who is the director of Marine and Ports and he explained all the possibilities I could pursue with a degree in marine engineering,'' he explains.

His scholarship was an impressive one -- $30,000 from Alcan (Bermuda) Ltd., which took him to Georgian College, an institute which specialises in engineering.

Mr. Hume Rochfort, President of the Canadian shipping and trading company, Alcan (Bermuda) Ltd., says the award was in recognition of the 25th anniversary of Alcan's Bermuda presence.

"We thought it would be appropriate to give a Bermudian the opportunity to take a marine engineering course,'' explains Mr. Rochfort, whose freighting company owns three Bermuda-registered vessels. "He took the three-year course and did extremely well.'' Carlton Uchida recognises that, in order to progress in his career he will, in the future, have to move to a bigger ship to get more experience at sea if he is to realise his plan of eventually qualifying as a principal marine surveyor.

"It's not easy to get started in a place like Bermuda, so I'm very lucky.

Alcan is still helping me to try and find a job within their fleet. I was warned that if would be difficult to find an entry-level position, but Capt.

John Moore, on the Islander recommended me to the Bio Station. Another problem facing young engineers today is the fact that there are far more people from places like Asia applying for jobs that were once mainly taken by Westerners.'' If Mr. Uchida's name sounds distinctly un-Bermudian, that is because it is, in fact, Japanese. While he was at pharmacy college, he met his future wife, Tomoko, and since his marriage in Japan has tacked her name onto his own name of Fubler. And to pass those long hours out at sea, Carlton Fubler Uchida spends every spare moment acquiring yet another qualification -- he is learning Japanese.

ENGINEER AHOY! -- Bermuda's first marine engineer, Mr. Carlton Fubler Uchida, pictured on board the Bermuda Biological Station's research vessel, Weatherbird II .