From a childhood in East London to working in the bustling hubs of Auckland, Singapore, Amsterdam and Kuala Lumpur, the metallurgy specialist now divides his time between two very different worlds - Wellington and Waimate.
Dr Saunders-Tack is vice-president for the world outside the United States for Quest Integrity, a global company specialising in oil, gas and generation integrity management, which is owned by a US entity and based out of Seattle.
For just over a year, a typical week has involved driving to Timaru on a Tuesday and catching the 11.05am flight to Wellington to work, returning to the rural South Canterbury town on a Friday.
While it was never as good as being at home full-time "everything's a compromise in the end and it works for us", he said philosophically.
So how did Dr Saunders-Tack - armed with a PhD and an impressive curriculum vitae - end up living in a charming Edwardian villa in Waimate?
Born and educated in East London, he studied metallurgy materials at Birmingham University and went on to complete a PhD, obtaining a scholarship from Rolls Royce to study fracture mechanics.
After working in the UK for a few years, he and his wife Clare - the couple met at university and married in 1990 - decided to move overseas and "do something different".
The first port of call was Auckland to the newly created Industrial Research, where he looked after ECNZ's engineering and integrity issues, both hydro and thermal, while his wife worked at Starship Children's Hospital.
They lived in the city between 1991 and 1999 before moving to Singapore for three and a-half years, before deciding it was again time to move on.
Dr Saunders-Tack had previously been approached a few times by Shell and he decided to accept a position with the global giant in Amsterdam. Initially, the couple agreed it would be for a year but it turned into a four-year stint.
He ended up in charge of materials, corrosion and integrity in the east - basically all of the assets east of the Middle East.
Amsterdam was followed by four years in Kuala Lumpur and, by that stage, the couple were well versed with travelling and working around the world. "We knew the process."
There were always negatives and positives and "you just always accentuate the positive stuff", he said.
One of his wife's roles was advising expatriates on moves. The process could be quite daunting and she would often encounter people in floods of tears.
Potentially, the next move after Kuala Lumpur was either Houston or Amsterdam and neither appealed so the couple decided to return to New Zealand.
A visit to Gary and Ann Dennison, whom they met in Singapore and had known for years, played a key part in them ending up in Waimate.
Mr and Mrs Dennison returned to live in Waimate a few years ago after time overseas and established the Point Bush Estates Vineyard and Winery.
After visiting the Dennisons one day, when they were still living in Malaysia, they stopped to see a real estate agent on their way out of town and asked about properties in the area.
Looking for a family home, with "a bit of character", they were captivated by an Edwardian villa on the outskirts of town and its own history was "all part" of the attraction.
The house, built in 1906, was once the home of Charles Vincent Clarke, who served several terms as mayor of Waimate.
Mr Clarke was born in the United States, educated in England and, in his very early teens, sailed for New Zealand.
He left the ship in Oamaru and was later attracted to the goldrush in Otago. He had no luck in finding gold but had success selling supplies, allowing him to purchase property in Waimate.
Restoring the house, in a style sympathetic to its era, has been a labour of love for the couple, who share the home with their young daughter.
Their home is rural, without being isolated, and the family was enjoying being part of a district that had an "excellent sense of community" - something Dr Saunders-Tack was not sure that large cities necessarily possessed.
One of the couple's concerns when they initially moved from Malaysia to Waimate was whether there was going to be enough to do. That concern was eliminated within about the first three weeks, Dr Saunders-Tack said.
He has taken an interest in two major projects in the town - the restoration of Quinns Arcade, which was believed to be New Zealand's first indoor shopping mall, and the Bushtown Waimate project, which is establishing a park as a tourist attraction based on the district's pioneer timber industry - while his wife has become heavily involved in the community.
He was enjoying the work-life balance that his new lifestyle afforded and he was able to be fairly flexible as to his work schedule.
Modern telecommunication was a big help and he was getting better than he used to be at "switching off".
He still enjoyed his job, saying being surrounded by enthusiastic people was infectious, and the company had no trouble motivating people. The company, which was growing, was still small enough that he felt he could "make a real difference".
"I learn something every day and more than one thing every day. That's really exciting when you do that," he said.
After all the years of living in various cities, having somewhere to call home was a major bonus - "we're pretty happy here" - and the couple were focused on staying put for at least five years.
After that? "Who knows. I wouldn't mind another stint overseas at some stage," he said.
