Omar Rafeh – President & Co-Owner

Omar Rafeh is President and Co-Owner of Innerspace Corporation, where he leads engineering, manufacturing, research and development, and the continued advancement of underwater propulsion systems. With nearly three decades of experience at Innerspace, Omar combines hands-on engineering expertise with an extensive understanding of underwater vehicle hydrodynamics, propulsion performance, manufacturing, and real-world subsea operations.

Omar earned his Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. While completing his engineering degree, his work in ocean engineering led to an introduction to the late Calvin A. Gongwer, then President and Owner of Innerspace Corporation. Gongwer hired Omar before graduation, beginning a mentorship that would help shape Omar’s career in underwater propulsion.

For approximately 12 years, Omar trained under Calvin Gongwer before assuming responsibility for Innerspace’s day-to-day operations in 2010. That mentorship provided Omar with a rare connection to an earlier generation of American underwater engineering and hydrodynamic research.

Calvin Gongwer was a pioneering underwater engineer and prolific inventor whose career included work with the U.S. Navy Underwater Sound Laboratory and Aerojet-General, where he held leadership positions in anti-submarine warfare and ocean engineering. His work included solid-propellant technology, water-jet propulsion, underwater vehicles, marine thrusters, propellers, and numerous patented hydrodynamic and propulsion technologies. He later brought that knowledge and experience to Innerspace Corporation, establishing an engineering philosophy centered on understanding the interaction between the thruster, the vehicle, and the surrounding water—not simply producing thrust.

Omar has carried that engineering heritage forward while continuing to develop Innerspace’s technology for modern underwater vehicles. His hands-on work spans electric and hydraulic thrusters, pressure-tolerant electric motors, propellers, motor and controller integration, and complete propulsion systems for ROVs, AUVs, Submersibles, and other specialized subsea vehicles.

Among his contributions, Omar developed Innerspace’s full-ocean-depth electric propulsion technology and has designed propulsion systems used in demanding military, commercial, scientific, and deep-ocean applications. Innerspace propulsion equipment has supported record-setting deep-ocean salvage operations, while systems developed under Omar’s leadership have been supplied for programs involving some of the world’s leading defense, subsea, and underwater vehicle organizations.

A major focus of Omar’s work is helping customers look beyond a standalone thruster and understand the performance of the complete vehicle propulsion system. He works directly with customers on thruster selection, propeller design, vehicle hydrodynamics, propulsion efficiency, CFD analysis, system integration, and matching motors and propellers to the actual operating requirements of the vehicle.

Omar has also shared his experience with the underwater technology community through technical papers and presentations at industry events including Underwater Intervention and MTS OCEANS, as well as technical presentations in the United States and Europe. His approach remains grounded in the philosophy passed down through his mentorship: combine sound hydrodynamic principles with practical engineering, extensive testing, and real-world operating experience.

Today, Omar and his wife, Wendy Rafeh, carry that legacy forward as owners of Innerspace Corporation. Together they are investing in the company’s engineering, manufacturing, testing, and quality capabilities while preparing Innerspace for its next generation. Their sons have grown up around the company and are now beginning their own hands-on exposure to engineering and manufacturing, continuing a tradition of knowledge being passed from one generation to the next.

From Calvin Gongwer’s pioneering work in underwater propulsion to today’s advanced electric and hydraulic propulsion systems, Innerspace continues to build on more than six decades of specialized experience with one primary focus: propelling underwater vehicles reliably and efficiently in some of the world’s most demanding environments.