ADAS Updates

It has been a busy year at ADAS engaging with stakeholders in Australia and the wider Asia Pacific region, and the Executive Director has also attended an international diving forum in the UK and a seminar in Norway.

Internal and External Stakeholder Engagement and Participation

• • Standards Australia participation: 2 meetings attended
  • ADAS Board of Directors: one online meeting in December 2025
  • European Diving Technology Committee Annual Meeting in Portsmouth, UK 25-26 September 2025
    • Attended by Amada Sordes. View the minutes from the meeting here
  • International Diving Regulators & Certifiers Forum (IDRCF) 2025
    • In September the ADAS Executive Director, Amanda Sordes, participated in the 2025 IDRCF meeting, connecting with representatives from international regulators and certifiers including the UK (HSE), Norway (Havtil), Canada (DCBC) South Africa (SADOL), IMCA, and USA (ADCI). The annual IDRCF meeting is an opportunity for regulators and certifiers to meet and exchange information for mutual benefit, with the aim of improving the safety and effectiveness of diver training and facilitate international recognition.
    • Key topics discussed this year included the use of dry suits in diver training, the new Australian Standards for Closed Bell Training to be introduced in January 2026, and consistency of renewal requirements across agencies
  • Bergen International Diving Seminar (Norway, November 4th-5th 2025)
    • Amanda Sordes delivered a presentation titled Mental health offshore: building an inclusive, healthier dive industry at the Bergen International Diving Seminar as part of a session on mental health as a future focus for the industry. The session included a presentation by Abbie Coutts and Stuart Cowie from TechnipFMC titled Brotherhood Below: Mental Strength Beneath the Surface
    • View the slide show presented by ADAS at Bergen here
    • All presentations delivered at the Bergen International Diving Seminar 2025 are now available on NUI’s website.
    • A selection of photos from the conference is displayed below

Training Materials Update

• Major update to ADAS Course Requirements Manual
• Update to ADAS Administration and Operational Procedures manual
• Update to Part 2 assessment tools
• Continued work on creation of Part 3 online exam
• Finalisation of updated Part 2 text

Quality assurance September – December 2025

• On site audits: Boğaziçi Underwater Research Centre (BURC), Turkiye
• School accreditations / reaccreditations / extension to scope applications:
  • 1 x ATE reaccreditation reviewed and approved
  • 2 x new ATE accreditation applications currently underway
  • One diver training establishment has achieved ADAS accreditation: Australasian Occupational Diver Training (AODT)

Vocational Education and Training (VET)

ADAS is currently developing an application to have its two Vocational Education and Training (VET) qualifications reaccredited with the Australian VET regulator, Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA). This is a substantial project which includes consultation with industry stakeholders and a full review of all ADAS courses to ensure continued relevance and effectiveness for the hyperbaric industry.