Board of Directors
Clem Rowe | Founder and Executive Chair
Born and bred in Western Australia, Clem is a Curtin University graduate with a degree in mechanical engineering. Early in his career, Clem worked on offshore engineering projects in Western Australia and France. While working offshore, Clem was first exposed to inflatable packers, manufactured by a small Australian company that he subsequently joined in 1988 as Engineering Director.
Clem established IPI in 1999 and has grown it from a small Western Australian manufacturing operation, to the world-wide manufacturing and distribution organization that it is today, by carefully selecting a competent team, that shares his values of quality, innovation and customer service.
Clem is a member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers, the Institute of Hydrogeologists and the Institution of Engineers, Australia. He is the author of multiple articles and papers on inflatable packers and their application and has several international patents to his credit.
Howard Kenworthy | Director
Howard joined IPI in 2005 as commercial manager when IPI had 5 staff and was making customized product to order.
His prior career was with UK public companies in retailing and financial services, leading operating companies. He holds an MBA which he took a few years after his degree from Oxford (Philosophy, Politics and Economics).
He has led IPI’s distribution development with standard products and established most of IPI’s international operations as part of his role in business planning, finance and strategy. This included joint ventures in the USA, Chile and Indonesia.
He was based in South East Asia 2015 to 2022, prior to relocating to Sharjah in the UAE, from where, as Commercial Director, he continues to develop and co-ordinate planning and strategy, the group’s global distribution and financial operations.
Dave Knell | Director
David (Dave) Knell has been involved with the manufacture and application of inflatable packers for over 35 years. He started his career as an apprentice aged 15, and within a year, was running packers offshore, in Western Australia.
Dave was the first employee of IPI and has been instrumental in the development of IPI’s manufacturing facility and capabilities. His knowledge of building packers is backed by extensive experience in the field, an innate understanding of real-world applications, and a fierce attention to detail.
Dave is currently focused on expanding IPI’s ISO9001 certified manufacturing operations on a global scale, to better serve customers and to foster the continued growth of the company.
Francis Ford | Director
Francis joined IPI in 2005, based in Perth, Western Australia, as an apprentice. He developed his skills in manufacturing, tool and packer design and field operations across multiple industries – mining, water, civil/construction and oil & gas.
His level of expertise and understanding enabled him to progress into leading IPI’s R&D efforts as manager. This included leading key custom / OEM designs and their practical developments, for multiple clients as well as continuing to progress the design and development of IPI’s unique systems.
Now as engineering director, he is developing IPI’s engineering team to better support clients by improving our predictive packer modelling and fostering the continuous improvement of our packer tools and technology.
A member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers and author of several technical papers, he is credited in several industry patents.
Joel Adams | Director
Joel Adams is a hydrogeologist, turned packer expert who has spent 30 years applying inflatable packer technology to complex downhole problems. His experience includes well testing for nuclear waste site characterization, water resources, water rights, rock stress testing, water well rehabilitation and P&A.
Joel has led the IPI North American team since 2007 and has been associated with IPI, either as a key customer, agent or employee, since its founding in 1999. He led the introduction of IPI packer technology to P&A work, offshore in the Gulf of Mexico, and the establishment of DuraFRAC® packers as the market leader in the water well hydrofrac market.
With numerous publications and presentations, Joel is a recognized expert in well testing and custom packer system design.
Gordon Mackenzie | Director
Gordon has over 35 years experience in the oil & gas energy sector in various field, operations, marketing, product line, business development, and senior management positions with companies such as Baker Hughes, Westerton and Halliburton.
Most of his experience has been related to well bore intervention in both conventional and live well environments and he is a peer recognized subject matter expert, in inflatable packer technology and global applications.
A former global, senior chair of ICoTA, (Intervention & Coiled Tubing Association), current SPE / ICoTA program committee member, and SPE editorial review committee technical editor.
He has authored and presented multiple SPE papers, published in numerous industry journals and holds more than 12 industry patents.
Garry Taylor | Group Company Secretary
Garry is a corporate financial management and corporate governance professional.
He possesses extensive experience across extractive industries, manufacturing and international trade, in the listed, private and non-profit sectors.
Garry is a member of CPA Australia and the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants; a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Secretaries, and a graduate of the University of Western Australia’s Executive MBA program.
