WITH the next big storm never too far away, there can be fewer more complex logistics roles than running the ferries connecting the many islands and archipelagos on Scotland's west coast.

But it is one Martin Dorchester, chief executive of David MacBrayne Group, parent of Caledonian MacBrayne ferries, clearly relishes.

"I love the role," said Mr Dorchester, whose varied career has featured high-profile logistics roles for Dixons, J Sainsbury and Maersk.

"At the heart of what we do is that lifeline service. I'd find it very hard to replicate how much satisfaction I get a company that has real heart and delivers real benefits and tangible outcomes from fragile communities."

Yet for all life is rewarding on the waterways of the west coast, it is not without its challenges.

Mr Dorchester, a jovial soul whom one could easily imagine helming a ferry, found the Scottish Government owned ferry system in dire need of investment when he came on board three years ago.

The IT system had not been touched in 15 years, he said, while the fleet had an average age of 22. The vessels themselves, as well as the ports and harbours, are owned by Caledonian Maritime Assets, also government owned. Cal-Mac has the contract to run the ferries.

Slowly but surely, however, things are improving, with several big infrastructure projects underway.

One involves David MacBrayne, which also operates the Gourock to Dunoon service as Argyll Ferries, rolling out an integrated ticketing system.

The investment, which will allow the group to offer an "oyster card" for travel throughout the islands, follows the roll-out of broadband across the islands.

"For the west coast of Scotland it will be quite a technological revolution," Mr Dorchester said.

But oyster cards will not be the only benefit from broadband connectivity. Mr Dorchester said it has allowed Cal-Mac to introduce online training safety modules, part of its leadership and management academy, easing a major logistical headache in the process.

"If you go out to the islands, there is no such thing as connectivity," he explained. "For some of our employees, talking has always been a face to face thing. What we are now doing is rolling out a physical network which will allows us to put things people in the cities take for granted on top.

"We can stream training and let them interact."

Yet digital infrastructure won't solve all of the group's training worries.

David MacBrayne currently has to send staff to Teeside for training in maritime fundamentals such as watch keeping and map reading.

The training gap has widened since the Merchant Navy stopped running courses, meaning younger staff have been unable to access a service their more senior colleagues once benefited from.

Talks are taking place with councils and the University of Highlands and Islands with a view to colleges offering the courses closer to where the bulk of its staff live. Out of the 1400 staff it employs (which rises by 100 during the peak season), 90 per cent are local to the Cal-Mac network. Some 200 work in the Gourock head office, many in "high value" technical, finance and marketing positions.

Mr Dorchester said around half of the company's training budget currently goes on accommodation with people travelling to the north east of England to attend college.

By reducing that expenditure, more funding can be directed for its training budget in Scotland.

"We take people from cradle to grave," he said, underlining the importance of the ferry network to the islands' economic prosperity. "You can come in as a trainee cadet and work your work through to be chief engineers, and you can do that without leaving Scotland."

The promise of change and improvement is one thing. Its delivery is another.

Mr Dorchester admits that trying to keep passengers happy while the projects unfold is a difficult task, particularly since big infrastructure works cannot be completed overnight.

He cites the ongoing development on the Ullapool to Stornoway route as a classic example.

"There is going to be a brand new vessel on there and effectively two brand new ports, but they have had a year of noise and work going on," Mr Dorchester explained.

"As we upgrade and improve the network and service, you will invariably go through troubling and challenging times."

For all of the inconvenience it brings in the short-term, Mr Dorchester insists the long-term benefits of such infrastructure investments are irrefutable. He contends the true potential of developments such as the broadband roll-out will not be realised without the right infrastructure in place.

"If you want to grow the economy, the infrastructure investment is something you have to do," he said. "The challenge with infrastructure investment is that it takes time to do, and the results are further down the road."

Such challenges aside, the executive is content with how the ferry business is performing. He expects revenue to increase by six per cent this year, driven by Cal-Mac, and reckons it is the only ferry business in the UK to be making such progress.

Asked to pinpoint the reasons behind the growth, he points to the bumper year Scotland had in 2014 with the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and the Ryder Cup in Gleneagles.

Cal-Mac has ramped its own marketing presence over the last 12 months, Mr Dorchester said, with investment on TV, online and in brochures. It has also taken its relationship with VisitScotland to a new level.

"We've always worked with VisitScotland very closely," he said. "But just over a year ago we made a decision to fully engage with VisitScotland in all of its outlets.

"They've got 89 or 90 visitor centres in Scotland - initially we were in about half a dozen because we were just focusing on the west coast of Scotland.

"We have also made a determined effort to sell Scotland around the world. We have got a German market now that is growing and getting stronger, a good North American market, and we are growing in places like The Netherlands."

Despite the marketing hype around the concept of "staycations", Mr Dorchester said the islands remained hamstrung by the fact it takes a long team to reach more of the remote destinations.

The journey from Glasgow to Stornoway, for example, takes five hours, by which time he notes that people can reach a whole host of places in Europe and slightly further afield.

However he did say the islands were drawing more attention because of the number of events they are beginning to stage.

These include Heb Celt, the annual summer music festival which takes place on the Hebridean island of Lewis, the Tiree Wave Festival and the Mod, which brought a big boost to Inverness last year.

"We've seen real growth around events, and that's what's drawing people," Mr Dorchester said.

"We're also seeing people getting attracted to the islands through adventure holidays - kayaking, water sports, climbing.

"I think staycations help people want to do it (holiday in Scotland), but the fact islands and communities are doing more and more to make people want to do it."

And the cause is also being helped by the status the islands' beaches and pristine waters are beginning to command on the world stage, added Mr Dorchester, who is also looking to reap benefits as Scotland is promoted this year as the Land of Food and Drink.

He pointed out that the Cal-Mac ferries are effectively floating restaurants, all committed to sourcing local produce as far as possible.

"We've just gone out and got Taste of Scotland food accreditation," Mr Dorchester said. "I think we are the only ferry company to have that.

"We have done that in tandem with VisitScotland to help promote food and drink. For Scotland over the next 12 months the quality of food and drink is going to be a real key focus.

"It plays into some real strengths for Scotland and the economy as well."