Master below the surface

RIDING WAVE OF SUCCESS: Ward W. McIntyre, founder of Fathom Research LLC, moves a 14-foot inflatable raft into his company's new space in Middletown. / PBN PHOTO/KATE WHITNEY LUCEY
RIDING WAVE OF SUCCESS: Ward W. McIntyre, founder of Fathom Research LLC, moves a 14-foot inflatable raft into his company's new space in Middletown. / PBN PHOTO/KATE WHITNEY LUCEY

Ward W. McIntyre grew up next to the water in Jamestown.

He became certified to dive in deep water at the age of 13 and spent his summers as a teenager working on lobster boats. His childhood connection to the water played an intuitive role in his starting a career as a marine technician and later founding Fathom Research LLC, headquartered in New Bedford.

“My background is in biology and history, with a whole bunch of technical skills in marine [science], commercial diving, small-boat operations and other similar work,” McIntyre told Providence Business News. “It’s because I grew up on the water.”

Fathom Research, with offices in Middletown, is a jack of all trades when it comes to underwater assistance. The company, founded in 2002, provides marine biological data-gathering services, scientific and commercial, underwater technical support and offshore marine-safety training.

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McIntyre, 43, credits his academic and diving background with helping him quickly grow the business.

“It was kind of my niche,” he said.

At first, much of his businesses came from marine surveyors, hydrographers and other scientific industries. Fathom Research would provide underwater assistance ranging from taking video to gathering sentiment samplings and installing underwater devices.

But once the global financial crisis of 2008 hit the region, McIntyre was forced to diversify.

“Like a lot of companies at the time, I was kind of caught like a deer in the headlights,” he said.

Fathom Research expanded its offerings and started working with marine fisheries and getting involved in the scallop industry. The pivot helped the company widen its footprint from Virginia to Maine, although a high volume of work remained in New Bedford.

“We’ve had a good mix of business,” McIntyre said.

Looking forward, McIntyre feels he’s positioned well for future growth, although he acknowledged diving work is a “feast or famine” line of business.

While trying to expand his contracts with the federal government to work on Navy-related projects throughout the country, he’s also closely watching the nascent offshore wind industry that’s developing along the East Coast.

Strategically located near the New Bedford Marine Commerce facility, McIntyre is hoping the industry will create a lot more work for Fathom Research once it grows. He even took a recent trip with a group of people from Massachusetts to see offshore wind farms in Germany and Denmark. He was impressed with what he found.

“[We] met with businesses and saw how it’s been a great economic boon and a great energy resource, so I think it will happen here sooner or later,” he said.

“But hopefully sooner,” he added with a laugh. •

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