About ORS and Captain

Oceanic Research Services, Inc. (ORS) was formed by Bill Kopplin after working as a logistics coordinator during the summer of 1981 on the North Slope of Alaska.  He managed a large environmental project that included five field camps, six boats for collecting samples, 30+ different investigators, and supervised five technicians.  He realized there was a need for a vessel that could reliably operate in Arctic conditions, accommodate scientists overnight, be designed and outfitted for carrying out multiple oceanographic operations, and be available soon after the ice left in the spring.

He bought the R/V Annika Marie in Seattle in early 1982.  He and a crew worked on her for about a month and then sailed to Seward, AK.  The vessel was put on a trailer and trucked to Fairbanks and for the next six weeks was outfitted for oceanographic work.  In July, she was trucked to Prudhoe Bay and had a successful first season. 

 Bill has lengthy experience retrofitting and operating vessels as well as in the technical aspects of oceanographic studies.  He graduated from Clatsop College, Astoria, OR, with degrees in Oceanographic Technology and Marine Technology.  These degrees taught him both sides of the trade he was moving into: instrumentation and data collection (Oceanographic Technology) and vessel operation and handling, diesel mechanics, marine electronics, and hydraulics (Marine Technology). 

 After graduating in 1975, Bill was offered a job with the University of Alaska, Fairbanks (UAF) as a Marine Technician.  His main duty was to assist investigators collecting shipboard data, insure the instruments operated properly and to repair them when they broke.  He was able to work in many different fields of marine science, including physical, biological, chemical, and geological oceanography.  He averaged 120 days per year at sea during 1975-1981 for UAF.  He was also the head diver for two spring dive seasons out of Prudhoe Bay Alaska.  This experience gave him valuable insight to know what projects could be performed from the R/V Annika Marie and to have the necessary ship board equipment for scientists to conduct their research.

 Bill received his first Coast Guard Master Mariner’s license in 1984.  Since that time he has worked his way up to a 500 Ton Masters license with the Oceans and STCW endorsement in 1999.  This license allows Bill to operate a US vessel of 500 Tons anywhere in the world and there is no restriction as to how far offshore he can go.

 With the exception of the nine months of yard work during the 2008-2009 off season, the R/V Annika Marie has stayed in Prudhoe Bay.  Since the vessel stays at Prudhoe Bay, we are able to get into the water as soon as possible after the spring ice leaves.  This is important for ice gouge and strudel scour surveys.  If the vessel had to come up from an ice free port far to the south and around Barrow, it might have to wait until the first week of August for the ice to clear possibly losing up to two weeks of survey time. The vessel would also have to leave the area early at the end of the work season due to the possibility of ice closing in around Barrow.  This would vastly decrease the vessel’s availability for the summer season.  There have been ups and downs over the past 34 years, but R/V Annika Marie has operated every year except one when we were asked to bring a larger vessel into the Beaufort Sea for a geo-chemical project in 1987. 

 We have had the pleasure of operating the R/V Annika Marie on a wide variety of projects as mentioned in the History section and have met many different and interesting people over the years.  This has resulted in many long lasting and great friendships.  As mentioned earlier, the R/V Annika Marie was trucked down to Fairbanks for a major yard period during the winter and spring of 2008-2009.  This was a major undertaking and required thousands of hours to coordinate and complete.  It was successful and now runs like a new boat.  What is even better is that the main engines are EPA emission compliant.  She is the only research vessel in the Alaskan Beaufort Sea to have that designation and we are proud we can provide a platform for conducting arctic oceanographic research in a clean and efficient manner.