01945 Winter 2022

A master at work
Commercial Vessel
Examiner Robert
Scanlan stands with
his custom-built van
that stores marine
professional radio
electronic equipment.
STAFF PHOTOS:
LIBBY O'NEILL
By Anthony Cammalleri
Robert Scanlan's 52 years working with
boats encompasses his career title, Master
Marine Surveyor.
In Scanlan’s driveway sit two red trucks,
both kept immaculately clean, showing not
even a speck of dirt on the tires, and both
showed Scanlan’s name and company, “R.T.
Scanlan, United States Marine Surveyor ''
printed in gold paint on the side.
Within Scanlan’s office, tucked in the
back of his basement, sit dozens, if not
hundreds of model ships. Scanlan took one
off of his desk, explaining that it was a PT
boat, similar to one’s he’s inspected before.
He then pointed through one of many
lines of model boats, explaining that that
particular collection contained every kind
of amphibious assault vehicle from World
War II until Desert Storm. “This is my
vice,” he said.
Scanlan, who turned 70 in January, said
that he began working with boats at the
age of 14, when he got a job working at the
Bass Point marina in Nahant. Scanlan said
that he made a lot of money working at the
boat yard, enough to buy himself a car, and
enough to realize that his time was better
spent working with boats than playing
football at Lynn Classical High School.
“ I went to Lynn Classical High School,
but I was in a khaki uniform, (that read)
‘Bass Point Marina, Rob’ and, Jesus, the
phys ed coach, football coach, the gym
coach on look at me, ‘Oh, we got some
football beef,’ (I said) ‘hold, hold it. I’ve
got a new car, I’ve got a car payment. I got
a job. I'm not giving that up to chase a
pigskin, it's not going to happen,’ ” Scanlan
said.
After graduating from a college prep
course in 1970, Scanlan went on to
spend two years attending Massachusetts
Maritime Academy, spending nights at
law enforcement training sessions in Lynn
English High School.
“That's when I realized, ‘I'm making
more money than the Chief of Police in
Nahant with my business Maritime Yacht
Consults, selling and installing marine
equipment and electronics,” he said.
In the mid-1980s, after a few people
asked Scanlan to look at their boats, he
decided to become a
Marine Surveyor. Scanlan flew down
to Fort Myers, Florida to take his marine
surveyor exams, and opened his practice
inspecting boats and yachts as soon as he
returned to New England.
In his first few years in business, Scanlan
struggled to make ends meet, sometimes,
he said, he had to get creative to cut basic
utilities from his budget.
“It was tough those first few years and I
remember there was the gas stove and the
gas hot water heater. I made a decision to
shut the gas off. I took two electric blankets
and wrapped them around the hot water
heater because we had electricity. The
heating was electric and that's what I did
for six seven months to look good and pick
the business up,” Scanlan said.
In his early days as a surveyor, Scanlan
would also drive hundreds of miles to meet
with clients. He said that he once drove
six hours to Montauk, New York, only to
turn down the assignment. Another time,
Scanlan drove 24 hours to Nova Scotia,
Canada to survey a boat. Scanlan, who
wakes up at 5 a.m. every morning and does
not sleep until he turns in his last survey
report of the night, said that he gets his
disciplined work ethic from his father, who
he said spent 41 years of his life servicing
ships after he left the Navy.
“I'll come down and work in the office
until around 8:30 p.m. and then turn in
and then be up maybe three or four in the
morning to get the report done. Our clients
don't want to hear that you had a family
member passed away. They don't want to