“Taking the Tide Where It Serves” is a new autobiography by Dave Adamson about his life in salvage, deep diving and offshore field construction. He wishes the book to give hope to anyone who thinks the lack of a university degree somehow condemns them to a humdrum life.

Adamson tells how, from simple beginnings, he managed to serve an apprenticeship in engineering, before deciding it wasn’t for him and embarking on an adventure underwater. His journey began with a bunch of friends salvaging scrap metal from shipwrecks then moved into the world of offshore oilfield deep diving. It was intended to be short term to make the deposit on a house and turned into 40 years in the industry, culminating in becoming the offshore manager of major oilfield construction projects around the world. The book is interspersed with anecdotes and tales of people he met along the way.