Kevin Drake studied civil engineering as an undergraduate at Leeds University and ocean engineering as a research assistant within the Department of Mechanical Engineering at University College London (UCL). After obtaining his PhD in 1984, he worked for Shell UK Exploration and Production for five years before joining Earl and Wright Consulting Engineers where he worked for a further six years. He is a chartered civil engineer and his industrial experience includes the design, fabrication, installation and decommissioning of various offshore structures for the oil and gas industry. He has spent approximately two and a half years working on fabrication sites and several periods working offshore on installation related activities. He returned to UCL in October 1995 as a lecturer within the Department of Mechanical Engineering. In 2000 he was an expert witness for the UK government’s Re-hearing of the Formal Investigation into the loss of the m.v. Derbyshire. He was promoted to Senior Lecturer in 2004. In June 2013 he returned to industrial practice by joining GL Noble Denton, prior to its subsequent merger with DNV, and was a Principal Engineer within the Jack-up, Geotechnical and Metocean team. He is currently an external consultant for DNV and a Visiting Professor within the Department of Mechanical Engineering at UCL.