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| Sanmar Shipping looks ahead |
| If spring time brings forth hope in its wake, leaving
a cold and dreary winter a distant memory, summer time calls for revelry.
Are we not told from childhood days that summer is a time for fun
and frolic and is virtually the beginning of a new year for one and
all alike? While many in the western world welcome the warmer climate
and “go for a walk in the woods”, most of us in Chennai
scamper for cover into sheltered locations, viz the office or the
home. For those on the high seas, it is a matter of opinion or geographic
location, to be more precise. Down under in the southern hemisphere,
it is summer in Australia in December, while up north in Europe it
is winter at the same time. |
| At Sanmar, shipping is gearing up to the new challenges,
despite adverse market pressures and the vagaries of the weather and
climates worldwide. Successful negotiations with reputed charterers
worldwide have kept even the “old girls”, Sanmar Pride
and Sanmar Pavilion employed at reasonable levels. |
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| Per Kristian Aamlid, MD, A S Bulkhandling, Norway,
seen with his two sons and his colleague Hans Petter Oppl on our vessel
Sanmar Pride. Capt D J Bhote, Vice President, Marine & Commercial
and Master of the vessel Capt Arun Kumar are also seen. |
| Where cost and waste remain on the list of priorities
to be reined in for any shipowner, Sanmar has stayed ahead in consolidating
its effective cost management culture to manage the difficult terrain
ahead. One of the key areas targeted for cost control is on the repairs
effected on board vessels. The general assumption is India, per se,
is labour intensive and hence the cost of labour is cheaper here than
in other nations. Indeed, our mental models argue that part of the
repairs can be done in India. Our mapping of the situation of India
for ship repairs is incorrect. Effectiveness in cost management involves
not just the basic cost of men and material, but also the quality
and the recurrence of a defect at a later date that calls for closer
scrutiny. In this aspect, India scores low in ship repairs, while
in IT, perhaps it is a sound decision to invest in Indian manpower. |
| It is against this background that our approach
to scanning other appropriate areas for ship repair has brought forth
the issue of China as our destination for repairs. Managing relationships
is a key capability, which came in handy for Sanmar to negotiate with
our pool associates in Europe for three bulk carriers, i.e., Sanmar
Pioneer, Sanmar Progress, and Sanmar Pageant to be suitably diverted
to the Far East for trading at the time of docking. Sanmar Progress
and Sanmar Pageant successfully completed drydockings and major repairs
and overhauls at Qingdao (pronounced Chingdao), China, in May/June 1999
and Sanmar Pioneer was drydocked in late June 1999. |
| The rest of 1999 promises plenty, as the division
unfolds a strategy of quality, image and relationship management,
with optimism and flair. A grammar school background and Shakespeare’s
famous words “To be or not to be...” perhaps have no place
in this age. When the markets improve, Sanmar Shipping will be ready
to cash in, with their vessels in good condition and ready to be benchmarked
among the best. |
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