Simon began his maritime career in 1974 at the age of 17, joining the Union Castle Line/Clan Line as a Navigating Officer Cadet.

From 1978 to 1981, he took a three-year sabbatical to pursue a degree in Environmental Science at the University of East Anglia (UEA) in Norwich. He specialized in Meteorology and Oceanography, with additional studies in Marine and Coastal Management and Environmental Hazards, graduating with a 2:1 honours degree.

He then returned to his seagoing career, and 32 years ago, joined Swire Pacific Offshore (SPO), the marine services division of the Hong Kong-based Swire Pacific Limited, supporting offshore oil and gas exploration and production.

After serving as Master on several voyages, Simon transitioned ashore in 1991. He held a series of progressively senior roles including HSE and Country Manager in Brunei, HSE Manager for Swire Production Testers supporting rig-based Early Production Systems for Maersk in Qatar and Shell in Iran and Thailand, Project Manager in Singapore, and Marketing Manager in Dubai. He later became General Manager responsible for operating three of SPO’s advanced icebreaking platform supply vessels in Sakhalin, in the Russian Far East.

Eight years ago, Simon returned to Singapore and now holds dual roles. He serves as General Manager for Sustainable Development at SPO and, since late 2010, has also held the same position at The China Navigation Company (CNCo)—the Swire Group’s privately owned deep-sea container and bulk shipping line, which relocated its headquarters to Singapore. Both SPO and CNCo operate from Singapore under the Maritime and Port Authority’s MSI-AIS initiative.

A Member of the Nautical Institute since 1976, Simon served on its Council from 1989 to 1994. He also served in the Royal Naval Reserve, attaining the rank of Lieutenant Commander and receiving the Reserve Decoration before relocating permanently to the Far East.