David Surplus
David is Chairman of the B9 Energy Group and MD of B9 Shipping.
David has had a lifelong connection to the sea. He has a Marine Engineering degree from Newcastle and his vacations were spent at Harland and Wolff in Belfast. He served aboard several merchant ships as an Engineer for Ropner Ship Management and went on to spend 11 years with Lloyds Register before setting up B9 Energy. It was whilst working for Lloyds as an Offshore Surveyor, responsible for the construction and commissioning of offshore oil platforms, that he undertook private studies in his spare time gaining a deep understanding of climate change, renewable energy and specifically the understanding of wind turbine technology.
B9 Shipping is the result of the combined expertise gained from his maritime experience and deep understanding and experience of renewable energy technology, its commercial applications and the appropriate legislative landscape.
Diane Gilpin
Diane has been interpreting engineering solutions since mobile phones were as rare as hen's teeth. She was part of the team that brought Cellnet (now O2) to the UK market. She went on to work in F1 where transferring technology from race track to the commercial sector was a key aspect of the work. Seeking a healthier environment she moved into to yacht racing where the technology transfer from blue water racing to commercial shipping was under exploited.
A chance meeting with Jeff Allen ignited the vision that ultimately became B9 Shipping.
Diane left school at 17 but a combination of home study and full grant enabled her to study Business at North London University. She went on to gain a PG Dip (dist) in Development Economics.
She is married with one child, keeps three horses, a flock of ex battery chickens which sustain the Community Henterprise - supplying fresh, free range eggs to the local community at below supermarket prices. She grows fruit and veg on the family smallholding, and lives in a carbon neutral house - heated by a wood pellet boiler with electricity supplied by Good Energy. She is Chair of Governors at Holy Trinity School in Great Cheverell, Wiltshire.
David Surplus
David is Chairman of the B9 Energy Group and MD of B9 Shipping.
David has had a lifelong connection to the sea. He has a Marine Engineering degree from Newcastle and his vacations were spent at Harland and Wolff in Belfast. He served aboard several merchant ships as an Engineer for Ropner Ship Management and went on to spend 11 years with Lloyds Register before setting up B9 Energy. It was whilst working for Lloyds as an Offshore Surveyor, responsible for the construction and commissioning of offshore oil platforms, that he undertook private studies in his spare time gaining a deep understanding of climate change, renewable energy and specifically the understanding of wind turbine technology.
B9 Shipping is the result of the combined expertise gained from his maritime experience and deep understanding and experience of renewable energy technology, its commercial applications and the appropriate legislative landscape.
Diane Gilpin
Diane has been interpreting engineering solutions since mobile phones were as rare as hen's teeth. She was part of the team that brought Cellnet (now O2) to the UK market. She went on to work in F1 where transferring technology from race track to the commercial sector was a key aspect of the work. Seeking a healthier environment she moved into to yacht racing where the technology transfer from blue water racing to commercial shipping was under exploited.
A chance meeting with Jeff Allen ignited the vision that ultimately became B9 Shipping.
Diane left school at 17 but a combination of home study and full grant enabled her to study Business at North London University. She went on to gain a PG Dip (dist) in Development Economics.
She is married with one child, keeps three horses, a flock of ex battery chickens which sustain the Community Henterprise - supplying fresh, free range eggs to the local community at below supermarket prices. She grows fruit and veg on the family smallholding, and lives in a carbon neutral house - heated by a wood pellet boiler with electricity supplied by Good Energy. She is Chair of Governors at Holy Trinity School in Great Cheverell, Wiltshire.