[1] Mark Mellett is from Castlebar, County Mayo, and joined the Irish Naval Service in November 1976 having served in the then FCÁ (Army Reserve), 5th Motor Sqn (modern-day Cavalry Corps), before being appointed as a Commissioned Officer after a two-year cadetship where he studied at the Cadet School Military College in the Curragh Camp, County Kildare, Cadet School Naval College Haulbowline, Cork in Ireland, and at Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth, England.

[2] Mellett is a qualified navy diver and former member of the specialist Naval Service Diving Section (NSDS).

[3] Mellett served overseas with the Irish Defence Forces as part of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in 1989, and with the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan in 2004 as a senior North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Information Operations Officer, where he was credited as being a major player in the success of the 2004 Afghan presidential election – where Hamid Karzai was elected into office – using his diplomacy skills in bringing together the numerous official bodies entrusted with running the democratic elections.

[5] As flag officer, his vision was to transform the Irish Naval Service into the "smartest, most innovative and responsive" navy in the world.

The aim of IMERC is to enhance Defence Forces capability while facilitating innovation, transformation and job creation in the private sector.