Wallem True North Magazine Issue 1 2015

Inside this issue: Award win for innovative safety study

Service focus: Chinese crew30 years of command with Wallem

Ten VLCCs welcomed into fleet

35 YEAR VETERAN WINS EMPLOYEE OF THE YEAR AWARD

The WAy forWArd 2015 Issue 1

www.wallem.com

delivering Maritime Solutions

(RNLI), Mission to Seafarers and many others which have people on the ground as first responders during an emergency before the crew managers can arrive on scene. Both of the organisations I have mentioned were an important part of the response for the Höegh Osaka crew. Wallem thanks each of you for your training and skills at supporting crew members far from home, both physically and emotionally.

Work goes on across Wallem to build on our quality assurance, and the recent results of the Shell Management Review for Wallem Europe were very pleasing with an assessment that means we are eligible for 12 month time charters with Shell for oil and gas vessels under our technical management.

With a new client on board, Associated Maritime Company (HK) Ltd (AMCL), a member of the China Merchants Group, the Hong Kong ship management team has been taking delivery of 10 VLCCs over five months – an illustration of how the teams pull together to deliver for a client.

I am also pleased to say Wallem is walking the talk when it comes to seafarer wellness, recently launching a programme which provides support to seafarers while at sea, and guidance on how to support each other.

The shipping industry has also started to address the issue of crew welfare with the Sailors’ Society recently launching a Wellness at Sea programme to deliver materials to improve education and understanding of the topic. As a founding member of the programme, I was happy to see so many other key organisations in the industry back an agenda which has been ignored for too long.

The Chinese Year of the Goat is here and the goat is an auspicious animal in the Chinese zodiac calendar, implying a year full of promise and prosperity. Most importantly let 2015 be a safe sailing year for all.

Regards,

Simon Doughty Wallem Group CEO

Welcome to the first issue of 2015 and I hope that your new year has got off to a great start.

2015 has tested Wallem in its early days with the Höegh Osaka beaching on a bank in the Solent River near Southampton after the vessel began to list. But this is what we prepare for – the unexpected – and the overall response has been an impressive team effort.

We have been fortunate to work with a client, Höegh Autoliners, whose professional response has ensured all parties remained focused on the welfare of the crew, protecting the environment, and salvaging the vessel without further damage to cargo.

The management of communications has been exceptional from the salvage team, the local authorities, and Höegh Autoliners. Regular updates and a continuous stream of information reduced speculation and has proven shipping can be an excellent media performer. By working together the maritime community can illustrate how everyday it delivers the world’s trade safely and efficiently, and is ready to respond when things do not go to plan.

We were all pleased to see the vessel arrive safely alongside the berth in Southampton 20 days after the event began. Crew members are on board working to make her ship-shape again.

Although investigations about the cause are ongoing, I want to add my voice to others that have praised the crew members who have assisted the salvage team as they prepared the vessel to move to the berth.

Wallem has had team members in Singapore, Hong Kong, Mumbai and Germany working around the clock to support the crew, the salvage team and investigators. I publicly thank them all for their hard work.

The new year began with many vessel incidents in the industry, some of them tragically including loss of life. We are not ignorant to the at-times dangerous environment in which our seafarers work. In these times we look to maritime support organisations such as the Royal National Lifeboat Institution

CEO’s MEssagE

True NorTh The Way ForWard

The Shipman agreement to provide a full technical management service to AMCL commenced in October of 2014.

Speaking of the new client, Wallem Group CEO Simon Doughty said: “We are proud to be partnering with another strong Hong Kong-based ship manager. AMCL was looking for a company which could offer a good record in VLCC experience and had the crewing pool to quickly take over the vessels.”

With only five months to take-over 10 VLCCs, Fleet Manager in charge of the vessels, Prasenjit Sen, explains it all comes down to planning and team work.

“We have a long history of managing VLCCs and we used this knowledge to plan the take-overs and make sure each happened as smoothly as possible,” said Mr Sen.

Ten VLCCs boost tanker fleet

“It was important all of the teams at Wallem were coordinated, including Fleet Personnel, Technical and Safety teams. We also need to have the Wallem systems on board which requires the support of our Information Technology team. But you can’t take your eye off the ball once a vessel is in management. We are fortunate to have a pool of professional and well trained seafarers who understand the needs of our clients and work hard to operate the ships efficiently and effectively.”

With the tenth VLCC in management, Wallem Ship Management is technically managing 122 tankers, 18 of them VLCCs.

AMCL manages an oil tanker fleet consisting of VLCC, Suezmax and Aframax vessels.

Fleet Manager Prasenjit sen

Wallem welcomed the tenth and final VLCC to come into management from associated Maritime Company (HK) Ltd (aMCL), a member of the China Merchants group, in mid-February 2015.

2Issue 1 2015

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safety study halving injuries recognised at awards

Wallem Ship Management received the Safety Award at the 2014 Lloyds List Asia Awards as a result of a study undertaken to detect ‘red thread’ commonalities linking Lost Time Injury events – nonfatal injuries causing loss of time from work.

As a result of the study changes to on board mentoring, training and crew briefing were introduced and the LTIF rates have halved (at November 2014). The Wallem LTIF is calculated according to the OCIMF guidelines.

The Lloyd’s List Awards recognise “excellence and leadership in the shipping and maritime industry” so, according to Captain Soman, Wallem Ship Management’s Director of Safety and Insurance, “receiving the Lloyds List Asia Award for safety is proof that the maritime industry recognises our continuous efforts for improved safety. Having happier and safer seafarers on Wallem’s vessels is a win for us.”

The Wallem LTI Demographics Safety Study focussed on the ‘human element’ as a key factor in accidents, investigating four main areas and their individual impact on the frequency of maritime accidents. These comprised the age of the injured seafarer, the time and date of the injury, the number of months on board at the time

of injury, and the injured seafarer’s service history with Wallem. These investigations indicated a number of key factors linking the majority of incidents.

Firstly, it was found that the most vulnerable demographic was seafarers between the ages of 25 and 30 years. The reason suggested for this result was the possibility that seafarers of this age group could be more impulsive than those of a younger or greater age as they would have some sailing experience and feel confident about their on board skills.

It was also observed that, in many cases, accidents occurred after rest breaks or just prior to the end of the day. The inference here was that a seafarer might experience a lapse in concentration following a break, or could be keen to finish a job near to the end of the day, increasing the likelihood of an accident occurring.

The study showed that most accidents occur within the first month of a seafarer’s contract, or between six to eight months on board a vessel. This could be due to seafarers adjusting to a new work environment at the beginning of a contract. At six months, they may be beginning to think of home and/or reducing their vigilance.

Congratulations to all the winners of the Lloyd’s List asia awards 2014


Finally, it was shown that seafarers’ experience with Wallem was a significant factor as they are given important training in safety precautions and injury prevention throughout their time on board and ashore with Wallem.

Captain Vijay Soman explains that, “with clear links between safety and a seafarers’ length of time on board, the point of time in their contract, and their experience with Wallem, we can better plan seafarer teams and combine individuals who are more at risk with those who can mitigate risk of accident or injury. The results of the study also provided us with more understanding and knowledge to tailor training programmes for seafarers both on board and ashore.”

The results of this study were introduced to the Wallem-managed fleet and circulated to our eight training centres and all recruiting centres for briefing and discussion with the staff. This led to the introduction of a number of new initiatives on board.

The captain and chief engineer are now informed if a person joining the vessel is in the higher risk demographic i.e. aged between 25 and 30 years and/or new to the company. They receive a more comprehensive briefing when boarding.

The second engineer and chief officer visit the workplace of individuals identified at risk, holding safety conversations at points of high risk throughout the day, such as close to the end of shift and lunch breaks, and also with those seafarers nearing the end of their contract to ensure they return home safely.

In addition to these initiatives, the Safety Award recognised Wallem’s other, existing safety programmes. These include an LTI Specialist Programme for injured crew members to share their experience with fellow seafarers, behaviour based safety, stop work authorities, frequent information sharing from the safety department, and recognition for safety achievements.

Wallem has a team of nine QMS superintendents who sail with vessels, carrying out on board audits and training. Experienced masters mentor the seafarers – particularly junior officers and junior crews – to improve safety and operational standards.

Wallem also accepted the Amver Rescue at Sea Award on behalf of the Crown Sapphire crew at the Lloyd’s List Global Awards 2014.

Words by Rose Buchan

Ms Tan Ben Tee, assistant Chief Executive (Development) of the singapore MPa, presented Captain Deepak Honawar, Managing Director Wallem singapore, with the safety award.

Captain Vijay soman, Director of safety and Insurance, Wallem ship Management

4Issue 1 2015

YEar In rEVIEW: HIgHLIgHTs OF TWEnTY FOurTEEn

ISWAN Shipping Company of the year AwardThe Shipping Company of the Year title was bestowed on Wallem by the International Seafarers Welfare and Assistance Network (ISWAN) for the

Wallem Group’s crew welfare programme.

Seatrade Asia Ship Manager of the year AwardPresented to Wallem Ship Management, the Award recognises excellence in ship management, from crewing to technical and procurement services.

Most compassionate employer of Indian Seafarers Award

Presented to Wallem Ship Management, the Government of India recognised Wallem’s role in seafarer welfare with the Most Compassionate Employer of Indian Seafarers award as part of the National Maritime Day

celebrations.

NyK Car Carrier of the year Award vessels NYK presented Wallem with Car Carrier of the Year Awards for two vessels

in management, and the Innovative Bunker and Idle time Saving (IBIS) Award for all NYK container vessels in Wallem’s management.

Global Technical director appointed Ioannis (Yanni) Stefanou was appointed as Global Technical Director of Wallem Ship Management to lead the business as it positions itself for

continued growth. Mr Stefanou leads the Group’s technical teams in Hong Kong, Singapore and Europe (Hamburg) in delivering reliable, cost effective

and safe shipping operations.

dickson Chin promoted to Ship Agency Managing director Dickson Chin has been with Wallem Ship Agency since 2008, initially in the

role of General Manger for the Hong Kong ship agency business, and in 2012 was promoted to Managing Director for Indo-China. He leads the

agency teams across Asia, the Americas and South Africa.

höegh appoints Wallem Singapore Höegh Autoliners signed a nine vessel ship management deal with Wallem

Ship Management. The ship management agreement is for Wallem to deliver technical and crew management to nine PCTCs from Wallem’s

Singapore base.

Wallem europe re-launches Wallem’s Europe service hub, based in Hamburg, Germany, celebrated its

new beginning with a party for clients, suppliers and stakeholders.

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Credit: seatrade

Ioannis stefanou

Dickson Chin


TUI Cruises comes to Asia with Wallem Wallem Ship Agency continues its leadership role as the cruise agent of choice after being selected by TUI Cruises to be its ship agent on its first

cruise season in Asia in 2015/16.

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Lloyds List Global Award – Assisted rescue at Sea The Lloyds List Global Awards bestowed the Amver Assisted Rescue at Sea Award on the crew of the specialised reefer ship Crown Sapphire for their

successful rescue of two sailors from a yacht in the Atlantic Ocean in March 2014. The rescue was accomplished in treacherous weather conditions.

AMVer Awards More than ten per cent of Wallem’ Ship Managements fleet was presented

with Amver (Automated Mutual-Assistance Vessel Rescue System) Awards in ceremonies in Hong Kong and Europe

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NoCC deal signed Norwegian Car Carriers AS (NOCC) appointed Wallem Ship Management

Europe to technically and crew manage six of its vessels.

fleet Personnel director appointed Captain Fared Khan was appointed as Wallem Ship Management’s new Fleet Personnel Director, spearheading the company’s recruitment and

retention of professional seafarers.

Simulators launched in odessa Hundreds of Eastern European seafarers will benefit from access to three

state-of-the-art simulators launched at the Wallem Maritime Training Centre in Odessa, Ukraine.

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Thöegh and Wallem agree to establish joint venture

Höegh Autoliners and Wallem Ship Management agree to extend cooperation by establishing a joint venture ship management company in

Singapore, managing 28 Höegh PCCs.

Lloyds List Asia Safety Award Wallem Ship Management proudly received the Safety Award in the 2014

Lloyds List Asia Awards, recognising a special study undertaken by the Wallem safety team which has Lost Time Injury (LTI) rates dropping

year-on-year.

Wiebke Schuett promoted to Managing director, Wallem europe

Wiebke Schuett will work closely with the managing directors of the busi-ness areas and other regions to further develop the client-base and com-

mercial success of Wallem Europe.

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6Issue 1 2015

PEOPLE

Wallem’s Seafarer of the year Awards

For Ukrainian-born Second Engineer Oleksandr Loza, the three pillars of seafaring are “honesty, responsibility and hard work.” Second Engineer Loza has

upheld these beliefs for more than 45 years, working on fishing vessels for 30 years before joining the Wallem Group in 1999.

“My company sold all its vessels and then I joined Wallem. I am very happy to have worked with Wallem for so many years,” explains Second Engineer Loza.

Since joining in 1999 Mr. Loza has been committed to sailing reefer ships and is currently working aboard the Crown Ruby. Recognised very quickly for his dedication and hard work, he was made a second engineer in 2002.

Despite working at sea for so many years, however, Second Engineer Loza doesn’t believe that much has altered in the business: “Truly, nothing has changed, only people change.” However, one aspect of modern life which he does note is the fact that fewer young people are choosing the profession today: “…nowadays youngsters choose more often to stay onshore.” He compares this with the attitudes

toward seafaring of his own youth, when it was “very prestigious to become a seafarer, pilot or soldier.” His many years in the profession are testament to the fact that he feels that a career at sea was “definitely the right choice!”.

Mr Loza suggests that, in order for the profession to become more competitive, contracts for seafarers will become shorter so that officers can be closer to their families. “We can already see that on offshore vessels contracts are 6-8 weeks. So it is most likely that this will happen on all types of ships,” he explains.

His advice for officers of the future? “Don’t be lazy, respect the work of others and remember that the ship is a lady, so be careful and sensitive with her.” Second Engineer Loza, well-known for his enthusiasm and hands-on approach to his own work, also maintains that the characteristics of honesty, responsibility and hard work are vital not only for seafarers but “for all people and professions.”

After 30 years working in the fishing industry, 16 years at Wallem and “too many stories” to count, Second Engineer Loza has decided to retire in 2015. He thinks, however, that he will sustain his connection with the sea: “after so many years working at sea, it is very difficult to imagine your life without it.”

Congratulations to the four Wallem Seafarer of the Year Award winners: Captain Qiang Zhen Ming, Captain Jover Lacerna, Second Engineer Oleksandra Loza, and Bosun Ghanshymdas Balmiki.

We featured profiles on Captains Qiang and Lacerna in the previous issue of True North magazine (Issue 3, 2014). This issue we share with you the profiles of Second Engineer Oleksandra Loza, and Bosun Ghanshymdas Balmiki.

Second engineer oleksandr Loza


Bosun Ghanshymdas Balmiki

“Every seafarer of Wallem is treated like a family member.” Well-known for his good crew management, for Bosun Ghanshymdas Balmiki the wellbeing of his fellow seamen is one of the most important aspects of the profession, and a company that feels like a family goes a long way toward this.

He also champions the opportunity to grow and develop within that company: “Seafarers are well looked after, they get a chance to grow from a ratings background to officer level,” explains Bosun Balmiki.

Mr. Balmiki joined the Wallem Group in 1985 as a Trainee Seaman. In his youth he would visit the Shipping Corporation of India’s (SCI) vessels in the port where his uncle worked as a clerk. “I found the seafarer job was quite challenging and because of this I decided to join a career at sea. My family also supported me in this decision.”

In 1978 he completed his pre-sea training on the TS Mekhala, a training ship set up in 1951 for the instruction of cadets at Vishakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India. Subsequently, Mr. Balmiki joined Chevron as a Trainee Seaman in 1979, before joining Wallem in 1985 where he was made a Bosun in 2005.

In his years in the company Mr Blamiki has sailed on a combination of Aframax tankers, VLCCs, multipurpose and container vessels. He not only “enjoys sailing with Wallem” but explains that the company gave him what he needed to support his family as one of the reasons why he chose to sail with the company.

Bosun Balmiki says that things have changed over the last 20 years in shipping, but is positive about the future of seafaring, especially with regards to the development of safety precautions through onboard and shore training.

“Today we have weekly safety meetings and all crew members who join the vessel are briefed about every aspect of shipping through various training. Today every seafarer works in an environment where safety is more important and the modern seafarer is more educated and well versed with safety requirements.”

Mr. Balmiki certainly understands the importance of security and readiness at sea, having been attacked by Somali pirates while transiting the region during his tenure on board MT Lania. “We were saved by the quick thinking of our onboard captain as he manouvered the vessel to prevent the pirates to board our vessel. The captain then called the Indian and local navies and they chased the pirates off.”

Hard-working, sincere and experienced, Bosun Balmiki has been called an ‘asset to the company’. He would like to thank Wallem for selecting him as a recipient at the Seafarer of Year Award.


Seafarers: Have your voice heard Send your feedback, comments or concerns to:

[email protected]

This email is not to be used for operational matters

8Issue 1 2015

FEaTurE

Service focus: Chinese crew

Wallem’s Chinese seafaring team has grown year on year since it began recruiting in the region in 1998. Today the Chinese are the single largest nationality in Wallem’s 12 000-strong seafarer pool, making up to 40 per cent of some ranks. It has been a steady growth based on demand from clients. There are now 60 ships in Wallem’s fleet with a full Chinese crew complement.

Clients for Wallem’s crewing service have at times been unsure of Chinese crew for their assets. Kinny Pun, Wallem Fleet Personnel General Manager, says once clients experience the many advantages to hiring professional seafarers from the People’s Republic of China, they choose the Chinese seafaring professionals over others.

“We have found that if our client trials a full PRC crew, the client then opts to expand the Chinese crew to other vessels,” explains Kinny Pun.

“Wallem has built a name amongst reputable ship owners as a supplier of excellent Chinese crew. We have achieved this over many years of working closely with our Chinese

manning partners and our crew, many of whom have sailed with Wallem for more than 10 years.

“There have been other companies that have left China after trying to recruit Chinese seafarers, but Wallem has always had a genuine belief in Chinese crew on international vessels, and the seafarers have recognised our commitment so they want to work with us.

“Chinese crew are ambitious and want to show they can serve on international vessels. With the right environment, including training, we believe the PRC seafarers offer a great on board operational service.”

At the Wallem Maritime Training Centre in Qingdao, training focuses on the interpersonal skills needed for an effective on board team, in particular the Swedish Club MRM (Maritime Resource Management) course. This provides the crew with important skills that complements the training at the state-run government institutes. Courses are also developed on the needs of the seafarers and the clients.

Common understanding – more than language

Shore-side support is also important for a crewing source to flourish. Wallem’s Chinese speaking superintendents and shore side support staff provide an important connection with crew which goes beyond a common language. Common understanding is a two-way street which is not just about clarity with crew, but also providing comfort and confidence to a client’s commercial teams with a bilingual operational service. Wallem is also fortunate to employ professional commercial managers with fluency in Mandarin and English.

For vessels trading in and around China, Chinese crew can be an advantage in aiding understanding with local port authorities, PSC inspectors and other stakeholders at local ports. Local knowledge and expertise can lead to operational efficiency and cost savings.

There are few, if any, third party ship managers and commercial managers with their own ship agency teams in China – except for Wallem. The


Service focus: Chinese crew

Kinny Pun – Fleet Personnel General Manager,

Wallem Ship Management

local agency support in China can be invaluable for efficient port turnarounds, up to date knowledge of regulatory requirements, and a clear focus on the needs of the vessel. Wallem’s ship agency business was the licensed first foreign owned agent in China and staff from the seven offices service all ports in China.

Capacity building

The seafarers in Wallem’s crew pool have extensive bulk carrier experience, ranging from small to large vessels. With the depth of experience, Wallem can provide a dedicated pool of seafarers for a client’s vessels. There is a strong future for Chinese crew in the tanker market, and Wallem is already

investing in a cadetship programme for future tanker officers.

“If clients want to move to or increase the number of vessels they have with PRC crew, we are ready and able to provide them with what they need,” says Ms Pun.

With dedicated professional seafarers, training centre and experienced fleet personnel team, Wallem has the capability to deliver quality crew services.

About Kinny Pun: Calling on her 19 years’ experience in fleet

personnel working with seafarers from around the world, Kinny Pun

has been a driving force for Wallem’s excellent reputation in the Chinese

crewing market. A fleet personnel professional experienced in roles

with ship owner and third party ship manager companies, Kinny leads a Hong Kong-based team of fleet personnel experts providing first-

class crewing services to Wallem Ship Management’s clients.

10Issue 1 2015

Wellness at Sea offers “missing piece of the puzzle”Seafarers are describing the launch of the Wallem Wellness at Sea programme as the “missing piece of the puzzle” for their on board skill-set. Wellness at Sea presentations and workshops were conducted at the Qingdao and Manila WFOMs (Wallem Fleet Officer Meetings) in November 2014 delivering the message of Wellness at Sea to 103 senior officers, mainly from China and the Philippines. Some seafarers said it was something that they knew was important, but may not have previously known how to put into practice.

The presentation focused on seafarers’ mental and emotional stress. Signs and indicators of emotional distress that leads to behavioral problems; poor performance; poor decision making and impulsivity that increases the prevalence of human errors, injuries, minor and major accidents and conflict.

The presenter at the workshops was Dr Kevin Menon, a clinical psychologist by profession with expertise in maritime incidents, crisis management, conflict incidents on board and counseling of hijacked seafarers and their families at home.

Wellness @ sea will be distributed to all Wallem-managed vessels in March 2015

PEOPLE

Dr Menon is also the author of the Wellness @ Sea: Seafarer’s Guide of Mastering Wellbeing book which Wallem is publishing in English and Simplified Chinese, and will be distributed to the Wallem fleet in March 2015.

Wellness @ Sea was developed to help seafarers understand and manage stress at sea. It focuses on the right awareness, mindset, coping skills and support structure so that seafarers will be able to more effectively take charge of their own well-being and identify colleagues that need help and support.

Artist in our midstBosun Francis of the Van Iris has a creative way of relaxing after his shift, creating beautiful paintings in his cabin. Keeping up a hobby whilst on board is highlighted in the Wellness @ Sea Guide (see article above) as an important feature in creating a positive lifestyle on board. According to the Guide: “Play is an emotional and mental health necessity. The important thing is to find activities that you enjoy and that give you a boost.”


Ukraine officers kick-off mentoring programme

Officers at the Ukraine fleet officers’ meeting in October were the first volunteers in the Wallem mentoring programming established to provide support, both professionally and personally, to younger seafarers.

Fleet Personnel Director Captain Fared Khan said mentoring was always a part of the role of senior officers, but it had never been formalised.

“The mentoring programme provides a framework for support and guidance for our younger sea staff. In ten years the cadets we have today will be the captains and chief engineers, so it is important we give them access to our professional leaders on board who can share their experiences and insights,” Captain Khan.

Four Wallem senior officers voluntarily adopted young cadets as their mentees, one selecting a Filipino cadet, illustrating the diversity of Wallem’s fleet and its future. The relationship will continue be it on board, on leave and when the cadets attend their studies ashore.

The mentors and mentees are:

Captain Gilts Vaily - Deck Cadet Badunenko Dmitry

Chief Engineer Galchenko Viktor - Engine Cadet Kozariezov Yevgeniy

Chief Officer Kovba Vitaliy - Deck Cadet Vorontsov Viktor

Chief Officer Vitaliy Shtefutyak – Cadet Gercia Billy

The publication Mentoring at Sea - The 10 minutes Challenge by Captain André Le Goubin has been sent to every Wallem ship. The book demonstrates that anyone can be a mentor at sea and that it only takes 10 minutes to get started. It emphasises the role of mentoring in improving communications and enhancing team-building, leading to a reduction in accidents and incidents.

Likewise, there is also a considerable benefit for the mentor, who is encouraged to sift through and reflect on their own experience in order to pass on their knowledge.

Captain Le Goubin said that the book will help identify knowledge gaps at sea and focus thought on how mentoring can address them. “We can improve life at sea for today’s seafarers, by sharing experiential knowledge for the benefit of ourselves and those who will come after us.”

There will be further updates and next steps communicated to the fleet as we move forward on this important initiative.

The officers who volunteered to join the mentoring programme

PEOPLE

Captain Fared Khan

12Issue 1 2015

35 year Wallem Veteran

Wins employee

Award

Jovinna Chan had double the reason to smile at the recent company annual dinner in Hong Kong, where she received both a long service award recognising her 35 years with the company, and Wallem’s Employee of the Year 2014 Award for shore-based staff. Jovinna shares with us some of her memories of Wallem and how the accounting world has changed.

Assistant Accountant of Ship Management Jovinna Chan began working at Wallem in 1979. She decided to join Wallem as it “seemed stable, and there were good benefits to the job.” Jovinna has now been working as part of Wallem’s accounting team for more than 35 years and has made it her focus to safeguard the company’s assets as she would her own money.

Jovinna said that winning the Employee of the Year Award 2014 was among her favourite memories at the company, saying with great modesty: “I was very surprised and very touched at that moment; I wanted to cry with happiness.” Francis Tseng, Financial Controller and one of Jovinna’s nominators, however, said that Jovinna “deserved this nomination a long time ago.”

COVEr sTOrY

During her time at Wallem, Jovinna said that “not a lot has changed, only that there are colleagues coming in and out”, but there has been an influx of new customers and vendors and technological advances in the last few years. For example the AX accounting system which will be upgraded this year. This technology makes the job easier, Jovinna says, because in the past everything had to be done manually, now all the relevant data can be uploaded onto the system.

Jovinna’s role is to prepare payments to suppliers, check credit balance and follow up payments – taking care of the company’s internal and external accounting. She is known to be meticulous in her work and at times spots errors from other parties in order to avoid duplication of payments. Superintendents and members of other departments send invoices to Jovinna for advance payments and these must be checked and followed up. Occasionally, the payment is made to the agent but no job has been carried out, leading Wallem to be eligible for refunds. A recent example of this was Jovinna’s producing a complete record of payment history which resulted in Wallem gaining a refund of USD 245k.


According to Rajan Gupta, Head of Vehicle Carrier Operations and Jovinna’s second award nominator, “she is dedicated and hardworking and I have seen her helping colleagues.” For Jovinna, helping others is essential to the job, and is well respected by other colleagues for her detailed coaching. She encourages new joiners to “work hard and listen to other colleagues… try not to say no if a colleague needs help, you should always do your best to help others to solve their problems. I never say no if I can do it.”

For the future, Jovinna says that she hopes “Wallem will go on being the best it can be.”


Wallem employee of the year Award 2014 – runners Up1st Runner Up:

Smaragda Kaminara, Tanker TCO (Germany)

2nd Runner Up:

Dewie Sofie Binte Mohammed Zain, Technical and operations Assistant (Singapore)

3rd Runner Up:

Gavin D’Souza, Superintendent (Hong Kong)

Höegh Wallem Ship Management, a joint venture established between Höegh Autoliners and Wallem Ship Management in late 2014, has welcomed its first vessels into the fleet.

The PCCs will be managed from Singapore, a growing centre for ship management. Once the handover is complete, the joint venture will be technically managing 28 of Höegh Autoliner’s vessels.

Crewing services for these vessels will continue to be handled from separate Höegh crewing offices in China and the Philippines.

Wallem’s Singapore base delivers ship management and ship agency services, providing an attractive option for ship owners looking to access Singapore’s maritime business advantages.

First vessel welcomed to Höegh Wallem Ship Management

The crew of the Höegh Triton, the first vessel to come into Höegh Wallem ship Management care

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14Issue 1 2015

A team from Wallem will again take on the Sailors’ Society Asian Challenge, climbing Mount Kinabalu from 17-20 April 2015.Mount Kinabalu is the highest Mountain in South East Asia (4,095 m) and the climbers can expect tio witness incredible scenery. Along with the dedication to complete the climb, the volunteers have committed to raise funds for the Sailors’ Society to continue its valuable work.If you would like to support the team with their fundraising, you can do so quickly and easily through the Just Giving site: https://www.justgiving.com/Wallem-Asian-Challenge-Team-2015/

Taking the Asian Challenge

Sailors’ Society launches Wellness at Sea initiative Leading names in shipping among supporters of new coaching programme designed to enhance crew welfare and improve retention rates.

Sailors’ Society, one of the largest seafarer support charities operating internationally, has unveiled Wellness at Sea, a coaching and support programme designed to promote health and well-being among the world’s seafarers.

Wellness at Sea has been designed to reflect the needs of mariners and the shipping industry alike by promoting cultural awareness, emotional intelligence, social skills and spiritual well-being alongside more familiar skills competence.

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The programme will seek to support the mental and physical health of seafarers in a holistic, manner, addressing five specific needs: social, emotional, physical, intellectual and spiritual wellness.

The initiative grew out of a roundtable discussion chaired by Sailors’ Society in Hong Kong at which several key shipping industry figures shared their concerns over crew attrition rates and the complex problem of maintaining wellness on board. Supporting the programme launch are RightShip, Wah Kwong, Pacific Basin and Wallem Group.

Sailors’ Society Chief Executive Stuart Rivers says Wellness at Sea marks a step change in the way the industry views the issue of seafarer health.

“Fatigue, poor mental health, stress and many other issues all affect seafarers going about their daily work, and can be the difference between a safe transit and a major incident. Wellness at Sea is designed to fill a vital need by recognising the importance to safety of a crew whose mental and spiritual needs are met. By choosing to be person-centred instead of problem-centred, we are focussing on people: the centre point around which the industry revolves.”


fleet Personnel director speaks on MLC and Geny concerns

Wallem Ship Management Fleet Personnel Director, Captain Fared Khan, spoke at the Asia Pacific Manning and Training Conference in Manila, joining two panels of experts discussing the implementation of MLC, including how the industry has coped and if there are any major issues. The second panel of experts took questions from a group of cadets, and included a discussion on concerns of the cadets joining the industry, crew welfare and career progression.

New office in Guangzhou

Wallem Ship Agency has recently opened an office in Guangzhou to deliver agency services for break bulk vessels, chemical tankers, container ships, dry docking and owner’s matters. NileDutch was the office’s first key client, appointing Wallem Guangzhou in November 2014 as their port agent. The local contact is Jerry Pang: [email protected]

dickson Chin speaks at cruise conference

Dickson Chin, Managing Director of Ship Agency, presented at the Cruise Shipping Asia held in Hong Kong in November 2014. Dickson is one of our cruise specialists and a regular speaker at cruise conferences. His presentation was on “An agent’s perspective on challenges handling cruise ships across Asia and in particular China”, highlighting the challenges that exist in the region and how key stakeholders can collectively work to resolve these.

The agency team also hosted a booth at the Cruise Shipping Asia, with teams from Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea, Singapore and Malaysia representing the business. It gave a chance for them to meet with major cruise principals and tourism boards.

nEWs In BrIEF

Group Ceo appointed to INTerTANKo

Wallem Group CEO, Simon Doughty, was elected to represent Hong Kong on INTERTANKO’s Council. INTERTANKO is the International Association of Independent Tanker Owners. INTERTANKO has been the voice of independent tanker owners since 1970, ensuring that the oil that keeps the world turning is shipped safely, responsibly and competitively.

Group Ceo brings together Asian Ambassadors

As Chairman of the Sailors' Society’s Asian Ambassadors, Wallem Group CEO, Simon Doughty chaired a “kick off” meeting of Ambassadors in Manila in November 2014. The Sailor’s Society has Ambassadors in Hong Kong and Singapore, but not in the Philippines.“ Considering the importance of the Philippines to the seafaring community this is an obvious choice to establish a presence,” said Mr Doughty. The role of a Sailor’s Society Ambassador is to promote the awareness of the Sailor’s Society, educating the shipping community on the excellent work they do supporting seafarers and their families, and also to organise charitable events as the Sailors' Society relies on donations.

Wallem agents for cruise ship revitalisation

Royal Caribbean International’s Voyager of the Seas, the largest cruise ship based in Asia, successfully completed her month-long US$80 million revitalisation which was carried out in the Sembawang Shipyard in Singapore. The Wallem Singapore Agency team, led by Steven Yong, did a fantastic job supporting the dry docking process, and was proud to be involved in this project.

New batch of cadets graduate

Twenty seven eager cadets graduated from the Wallem training centre in the Philippines in mid December 2014. Known as Batch India, 14 deck and 13 engine cadets graduated six weeks of induction at Wallem Maritime training Centre Philippines (WMTCP). They are excited and ready to be part of the Wallem family and to join their first ship in the near future.

Clark team share joy of Christmas

The Wallem Clark team, in coordination with the AWAM charity, organised a gift giving event on 13 December, delivering more than 200 gift bags and toys to the local children and their families. The team was greeted with the children singing Christmas carols in English and Tagalog. It was a great day seeing the children’s eyes light up when they were given the gifts.

europe team share the advent spirit

The Wallem Europe office staff shared their advent calendars with the patients of a children’s hospital in Hamburg, as there is nothing better than a small surprise in the days leading up to Christmas to cheer a sick child.

16Issue 1 2015

nEWs

new ship simulators to benefit hundreds of officers

Hundreds of Eastern European seafarers will benefit from access to state-of-the-art training equipment launched recently at the Wallem Maritime Training Centre in Odessa, Ukraine.

The three training simulators – bridge simulator (Transas NT-PRO 5000 5.25), engine room simulator (Transas Techsim 5000 8.3) and liquid cargo handling simulator (Transas LCHS 5000), will be used to simultaneously train deck and engine officers in handling all types of vessels including tankers, container and bulk carriers, and car carriers.

At the launch of the simulators, Wallem’s Fleet Personnel Director, Fared Khan, explained the simulators are one of the primary means of delivering courses required by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) which establishes the standards for seafarer knowledge and skills.

“Nothing is better than hands on training when evaluating capability for making ships safer for everyone onboard” said Captain Khan.

“The state-of-the-art Transas simulators will assist us to not only refine the officers’ skills leading to operational excellence onboard, but also to train our sea staff in how best to respond to different non-routine, challenging and critical situations at sea and in port. Integrating previous incidents and lessons learnt will ensure the same mistakes are never repeated in the fleet.”

Two officers training on the bridge simulator before boarding the MV ashna

Wallem Europe Managing Director Wiebke Schuett said hundreds of Wallem Ship Management’s masters, officers and engineers will benefit from the simulators, receiving training prior to joining their next vessel.

“The Wallem Maritime Training Centres in Odessa trains not only Ukrainian officers, but also officers from other Eastern European countries including Russia, Romania, Serbia and Croatia,” said Ms Schuett.

“We currently have about 250 officers from the region on board Wallem-managed vessels, and a pool of 700.”

The training centre in Odessa currently offers 18 courses for Wallem seafarers to keep their knowledge and skills up to date with industry developments and to ensure their – and their colleagues – safety on board.

Wallem Ship Management has nine training centres in the Group’s key seafarer recruitment centres in the Philippines, India, China, Indonesia and Eastern Europe.


FEaTurE

Emerging markets will drive trade, long term investors return, and a new breed of financial expert will rise

– Nitin Mathur, Commercial Management

Emerging economies are expected to continue growth in excess of 4 %, 1.5 % more than the average annual growth. Seaborne trade patterns are changing and emerging markets are continuing their steady rise. Some of these markets will contribute significantly to global growth and in turn to maritime transportation. We expect that the Indian sub-continent and South East Asian economies will become major contributors to growth by 2025. There will be a substantial increase in trade to and from Africa as development initiatives on the continent take shape.

We expect the return of long term investors in shipping markets as the speculators retreat. Over the next 10 years major players will consolidate as shipping companies seek to bulk up to gain bargaining power.

There is a growing trend of financial institutions taking a larger interest in shipping. Shipping will see more financial experts with complex mathematical modelling entering in shipping freight forecasting, freight derivatives and asset prices. These financial meritocracies will make the cyclical shipping market more robust and resilient.

In chartering there is an increase in charterers fixing cargoes through online platforms. These platforms increase transparency in bidding and eventual negotiations. These tools are expected to gain momentum with an increased number of charterers looking for a standardised process. The new generation of commercial shipping professionals are comfortable with technology and are expected to drive such initiatives.

Cost control with condition-based maintenance and strategic partnerships that meet market needs – Mark Haslett, Procurement

There will be a total change in the way that planned and preventive maintenance is completed due to improvements in remote and on board analysis, and increased links between ship and shore. Maintenance will be moved to a condition-based approach, so buying will be according to need rather than a generic schedule.

Stronger partnerships between high quality equipment manufacturers and quality ship managers will allow both to leverage their expertise, and focus on asset protection and optimum operations. They will understand the relative value of the spare parts purchased – and we hope it will be the end of substandard pirate spare parts.

Consumable items, including lube oil, will be requisitioned, ordered, supplied, invoiced and paid in an automatic authorising system agreed on contract terms. It reduces manual input, offers a faster process from order to delivery, and removes subjectivity.

Ship managers which offer quality asset protection will grow to fleets of up to 1000, making them a purchasing powerhouse, and can work closely with quality manufacturers to build a strategic understanding of market needs.

Shipping in 2025Wallem’s experts provide insight into the next decade

18Issue 1 2015


Water and Wood combine in the Year of the goat for a prosperous shipping year

Translation from original text

Feng Shui Master Chow says in the Year of the Goat we can expect to see a sound US economy, a breakthrough in the maritime industry and strong prospects for shipping in the East.

2015 represents a turning point because out of the five Elements (Gold, Wood, Water, Fire and Earth), the years 2013, 2014 and 2015 were under ‘Fire’, yet 2015 sees the rise of ‘Gold’, with the Golden Monkey approaching in 2016. This means that while the residual power of ‘Fire’ is weakening, the power of ‘Gold’ is awakening.

The maritime industry belongs to ‘Water’, and 2015 is the Year of ‘Yi Wei’ - the Wood Goat - and so is associated with ‘Wood’. As the latter is favourable for agriculture, and water a key element therein, the world’s maritime and logistics industry is expected to progressively recover. These industries should work

collaboratively for a better future.

The economic condition for the coming year will improve slightly, especially for eastern parts of the world such as Mainland China. Favourable, lucky stars such as ‘Fortune’ and ‘General’ will be present in the Year of the Goat, bringing benefit to both economic and foreign affairs. As a result of Hong Kong’s southern location, the ‘Seven Red Raider’ stars may have an impact but, luckily, there is a ‘Fortune’ star to balance it. Although the Year of the Goat means a new breakthrough for Hong Kong, this will develop gradually.

The outlook for the US in 2015 is prosperous and the economy can expect an upturn. The forecast for Canada is also relatively positive. Europe, however, is facing three bad stars in the west and five bad, yellow stars are imminent. This suggests that for the European economy the Year of the Goat remains weak.

However, this slight improvement in the global economy is favourable for the maritime and logistics industry, with Asia, USA and Canada looking good. April, July, August, September, November and December will bring prosperity, especially concerning

bulk cargo transportation. The fourth quarter is traditionally the peak season for this, and its combination with the season of harvest is advantageous for maritime and logistics.

Maritime and logistics have had a difficult time over the past six years, yet the prediction for 2015 is positive with economic growth expected. Overall, there may not be rapid growth anticipated in the near future, but there will be no difficulty in remaining steady and prosperous.

20Issue 1 2015

PEOPLE

30 years of Command with WallemCaptain Deepak D. Nigam, a 39 year sailing veteran of Wallem, has decided to retire from the sea, and now shares his experience of 30 years as a captain, the nationalities he sailed with and the developments in safety, training and on board operations.

TrUe NorTh THE WaY FOrWarD

Many years ago, I took a first step into the office at Ballard Estate which, Capt. Gopinath Kelkar (Wallem Fleet Personnel Representative) used when visiting Bombay and began my amazing journey with Wallem Shipmanagement.

This first step resulted my joining the Stolt Vidar, under the command of Capt. D. K. Oberoi, as a Second Officer at New Orleans in November 1975. In those days most Indian Officers were wary of “foreign” companies and particularly of “foreign” crews. Numerous stories circulated about the violent crew behaviour and harsh personnel policies followed by “foreign” companies. The vast majority preferred the comfort and relative safety of the known and the trusted – the larger Indian ship owners.

Having satisfactorily served on the Stolt Vidar, over the next few years I found myself on ships of various types, trading on different routes around the world – product tankers, roll on roll off ships, crude tankers including “super tankers” as they were then known, bulk carriers and oil-bulk-ore vessels. During this period I enjoyed sailing with officers and crews from the UK, Scandinavia, Spain, Italy and Indonesia to name a few.

This was the time of messages being transmitted over radio in Morse code, of navigation using the sextant, the direction finder and the hand and deep sea lead lines for soundings, of streaming the “Patent” log at the start of sea passage and hauling it in at end of sea passage, of rigging the radio antennas on departure port and taking them down on anchoring. The “newer” technology was Decca and Loran. Radars had push button piano keys, the images on the PPI were poor, we plotted targets on paper plotting sheets or with “China marker” pencils on “reflection plotters” on the more advanced radar screens to calculate risk of collision. ARPA was unheard of.

In time I was promoted Chief Officer and continued with Wallem on progressively larger ships including some VLCCs. In June and July of 1984 I was sent to South Shields to do a ship simulator course and an advanced fire fighting course. This was the prelude of better things to come!

In October 1984, Mr. G. Singh had me made Master and I joined the South Pacific at San Francisco. Those were the days when agents still delivered newspapers to ships in port. My most vivid memory of the morning I took command is the front

page banner headline “Indira Gandhi Assasinated” together with a huge photograph and a confused story in the San Francisco Chronicle. On the South Pacific I was the only Indian. All others were Taiwanese. My first few years as Master saw the introduction of satellite navigators – if one was in the tropics the interval between two “fixes” could be as much as six hours and the gradual introduction of Radio telex followed by Telex on Inmarsat A.

As the years went by I commanded tankers of different types – crude, product, chemical and then gradually moved onto the larger steam vessels – VLCCs and several ULCCs. During this period I had the opportunity to sail with officers from Europe, Nigeria, Indonesia and Burma as well as crews from India, Honduras, Barbados and the Philippines.

For the better part of a decade and a half I was exclusively on these steam turbine ships. In 1991 I had the honour and privilege of being the take over master of the Jahre Viking – the world’s largest jumboised vessel, of some 568,769 tons burden.

This was the time Wallem commenced the move from paper based maintenance systems to “AMOSD” a computerised system which used DOS. Jahre Viking

a sample of Captain nigam’s impressive photography, taken on board the VK Eddie, september 2014

*continued over

22Issue 1 2015

was the first vessel to be supplied computers for use by the Master and Chief Engineer. Windows 3.0 was a program not the operating system and we used Word Perfect and “Quattro” for documents and spreadsheets respectively. The introduction of ship management systems also began in 1991 - initially in the form of DNV SEP which was introduced into Wallem largely due to the foresight and efforts of Mr. G. Singh. Wallem become the first ship manager to be certified for SEP. Certification for ISM and other codes followed. Vetting inspections by oil majors commenced in 1994. This was the year when a “Passage Planning Aid” for Singapore Straits, designed by myself was incorporated in Wallem Ship Management Bridge Procedures Manual. In 1997, at the request of Capt. Honawar (Wallem’s Safety Director) I prepared the first Wallem “Passage Planning” software. Ten years later in 2007, again at the request of Capt. Honawar, this software was given a complete rethink and rewrite to meet new requirements and that is the form in use today with minor modifications made over the years.

Towards the end of 1991 my family and I migrated to Australia and a few years later acquired Australian citizenship.

Some years later, having in the interim served on various ULCCs

and VLCCs and having enjoyed the company of officers from India, UK, Russia, Yugoslavia, Burma, Bangladesh, Croatia, Spain, Turkey and crews from the Philippines, Wallem accorded me another honour.

In 1999 I was take over Master of the Sea Giant – the worlds largest designed and built vessel of 554,974 tons burden and with a summer draft of 28.601 metres! As the Sea Giant had been designed to be this size she also had a very large beam – 63.00 meters and had two completely independent main boilers, main engines and steering systems. The boilers and main engines could however be cross connected. Her engines had the power of 65,000 horses. A grand vessel indeed!

In early 2004 the Sea Giant was sold for scrap.

Thereafter I was with the Sonangol fleet and sailed on various Sonangol vessels until 2010 when I switched back to VLCCs and have been on the good ship VK Eddie since.

A few days ago in October I hit a major milestone of my career – 30 years in command! I hope to continue to sail for another few years.

Photography is a hobby and I am concentrating on improving my photographic skills as I look forward to making my mark in this field, once

I stop sailing. Cooking is another hobby – my preference is for French provincial cuisine, though I attempt some others as well and particularly enjoy baking various types of bread. Renu (Dolly to her friends), my wife of 36 years and I, no longer encumbered by children needing attention have for the past several years enjoyed extensive worldwide travel during my vacations. On average, I have been home at Sydney for perhaps a month each year!

I am proud to have served with Wallem all these years and Wallem has given me reason to be proud on numerous occasions! That first step led to an amazing journey indeed.

Capt. Deepak D. Nigam

Master, VK Eddie

PEOPLE

Captain nigam, six from the right, with his fellow officers on the VK Eddie, taken on board april 2013


40 Years

30 Years

35 Years

Long Service AwardsCongratulations and a big thank you to the following crew and shore-based staff celebrating a milestone year of service with Wallem. The crew listed have achieved their milestone from September to December 2014 and the shore-based staff during the calendar year of 2014.

C/Eng

Manohar L Mosalpuri

Support Coordinator

Maria Koo

Agency Manager

OperationsS.T. Neo

Captain

Gurmit S Wig

Assistant Accountant

Jovinna Chan

PEOPLE

24Issue 1 2015

t

Captain Rajeev Goel

C/EngRamakrishna Pillai Gopala Pillai

C/EngKapaleshwara Hanasoge Shivashankara

E/Eng Rajbir S Panwar

6EFP Edwin G Rebelo

Accounts Supervisor

Fourly Cheng

Senior Accounts Clerk

Ruby Lee

Captain Ajay A Dange

2/Eng Vinod K Hande

3/Eng Pascoal F Antao

CPO/BSN Bajirao A Dessai

Director, Procurement

Mark Haslett

Assistant Manager, Customer Services

Anthony Leung

Assistant Accountant

Chi Fai Chan

Data Entry Clerk

Connie Chan

General Manager

Raymond Ho

Q/A Assistant Christina Chiu


Sui Pik Ho


Joan Chang

Office Assistant

Wa Lai

Messenger Ravi Naskar

Office Manager

Thanam Sitharam

Captain Jaipaul Sebastian

Captain Gaurav K Sharma

C/Off Amit Anand

C/Off Hanoze Z Karanjia

C/Off Sankaranarayanan Thiagarajan

GP AB Bhupendra M Tandel

Motorman Devendrakumar K Tandel

GP STWD Xavier Nicolau P Cardozo

Accounts Manager, Corporate Accounts

Samit Leung

Purchasing Supervisor Decky Tong

Purchaser Wing Wa Ho

Assistant Manager Thajudeen Haneefa

Finance/Accounting Sayuri Baba

Operations Harumi Grace Kakimoto

Senior General Manager Toru Shidara

Finance/Accounting Kazuko Kikuchi

Support Service Masakazu Konishi

Container Logistics Fumio Masegi

Customer Service, Yokohama

Eiko Mikami

Import Documentation/Customer Service

Masakazu Mutoh

Export Sales Fumio Nose

Import Sales Tukasa Ohtsuki

Export Documentation Kiyofumi Uchida

25 Years

20 Years

15 YearsLO

NG

SER

VIC

E A

WA

RD

S


t

Captain Gaurav Chaturvedi

C/Off Bhanu Kundi

C/Off Behzad V Mulla

2/Off Rakesh Kumar

2/Off Saif A Petkar

3/Off Ryan P Gonsalves

3/Off Karanbeer Singh

3/Off Amey V Kundyekar

2/Eng Thomas Thampy

E/Eng Chandy Anthony Paulvy

E/Eng John Kennedy Karlouis

E/Eng Joshua J Raju

A/B Paquito V Esoff Memorando

A/B Sidney V Salaya

Motorman Muhammad Ashraf Peringady Ibrahim

Motorman Bhupendrakumar K Tandel

Motorman Jitendrakumar G Tandel

PMN Roque Y. Toledo

Purchasing Supervisor Winnie Ma

Purchasing Supervisor Irene Yeong

Senior Accounts Clerk Raymond Chan

Deputy GM Hong Zhu

10 Years 10 YearsOperations Manager Win Wen

Assistant Operations Manager

Stella Zhang

Operations Manager Jack Zhu

Operations Manager Sammie Xie

Operations Coordinator Shawn Zhou

Port Coordination Hans Liu

Administration Manager MingXing Xu

Finance Manager Tess Zhang

Finance Assistant Manager

Jenny Zhao

Finance Assistant Manager

Ice Fu

Freight Manager Amy Zhang

Supervisor Bowie Yun

Customs Coordinator Mike Ling

Documentation Clerk Samual Guo

Branch Manager Leon Xu

Branch Manager QingTao Ma

Branch Manager Allen Zhang

General Manager/Management Representative

Anand Shingatgeri

Executive Rakesh Kumar

Executive Moncy Thomas

Customer Service Ryoko Yamamoto

26Issue 1 2015

Promotions and appointments

Wiebke Schuett, Managing director, Wallem europe Wiebke Schuett was been promoted to Managing Director, Wallem Europe, working closely with the managing directors of the business areas and other regions to further develop the client-base and commercial success of Wallem Europe.

Wiebke is a graduate of Wallem’s accelerated talent management training programme, again proving we have capable staff in line for promotions given the right development opportunities.

Brent richardson, Managing director Community of InterestBrent Richardson joined Wallem in November 2014 to lead Community of Interest (COIN), Wallem’s initiative for cooperation between Wallem, spares/equipment suppliers and ship owners. The cooperation will help to drive down costs of manufacturing and supply chain logistics with a view to offering the best value to our customers. Procurement and planning for spares, stores, consumables and equipment orders remains a key savings potential in efficient vessel operation.

Wallem is a ‘thought leader’ in third party procurement, seeking synergy and efficiency in cooperation with ship owners and suppliers: driving cost and waste out of the supply chain rather than merely leveraging volume as our competitors do. COIN will be a key service in continuing to develop Wallem’s reputation in delivering maritime solutions.

PEOPLE


In Memoriam: Jason Chen, Wallem Taiwan and CoSCo Wallem Chairman

rajan Gupta, head of Vehicle Carrier operationsRajan Gupta has been promoted to the new position of Head of Vehicle Carrier Operations, Ship Management. Rajan is responsible for setting the standards for, and compliance with, Wallem Group’s policies and procedures for all our vehicle carriers, ensuring they are operated and managed to the best ship management practices.

Rajan’s expertise in vehicle carrier management has contributed to Wallem’s current leading position as the vehicle carrier ship manager of choice. With the addition of a joint venture company, Wallem’s fleet of PCCs and PCTCs will soon extend beyond 60 vessels.

Ulf hallberg, Sales Manager, europeUlf Hallberg joined the Wallem Europe team in November 2014. Ulf’s role is to grow the client-base and commercial success of Wallem in Europe and build our reputation in the region for delivering maritime solutions. With strong experience in sales at liner agencies representing, for example, Evergreen Container Line, and a supplier of waste water treatment equipment to the maritime and offshore industry, Ulf will be a key contributor to achieving Wallem’s goal of increased commercial activity across the Group.

On the evening of 21 January 2015 Jason Chen died in a Taipei hospital with his family by his side. Jason was the Chairman of Taiwan Wallem Transportation Co., and COSCO Wallem Shipmanagement, Wallem’s joint venture company in Qingdao.

A shipbroker by profession, Jason established Taiwan Wallem in September 1994. The company is a member of Wallem’s Ship Agency network. Jason’s career highlights included being the first shipbroker to introduce the German KG investment vehicle to local Taiwanese shipowners in 2000, successfully concluding several ship sales with long term lease back to local shipowners.

In 2002 Jason assisted Hamburg Sued to take over the line’s services and all container facilities from a local liner operator Kien Hung Shipping.

Jason’s colleagues will remember his character as free and out-going without conceit, and a willingness to take care of his staff. He established an attitude of keeping positive and maintaining a passion for work.

Jason will be missed by his colleagues and friends at Wallem. Senior management has expressed their condolences to Jason’s family.

28Issue 1 2015

sOCIaL

WOW grows in India and is revitalised in PhilippinesWallem works hard to support our communities and in particular those of our seafarers through our Women of Wallem (WOW) initiative. WOW is a support group for seafarers’ families, originally established in 2004 in India, but now extending to the Philippines and Sri Lanka. Voluntarily organised by the spouses of Wallem’s seafarers, WOW chapters provide their members with courses in financial and family health as well as an important social support network. The families of our seafarers benefit from networking with others in similar situations and supporting each other as an extended family.

The WOW chapters also choose local philanthropic causes to support through donations and fund raising. The WOW members are well placed to understand the needs of their local communities, and can mobilise assistance quickly to provide help to those in hardship situations. Here are some of the recent activities by the WOW teams.

Navi Mumbai, IndiaThe newest chapter of WOW was established at our Navi Mumbai Welfare and Facilitation Centre. To kick start their activities, the team visited Girija Balgruh, an orphanage for boys, in late November 2014. The team donated food and spent a wonderful afternoon with the children.

Cebu, Philippines WOW in the Philippines has revived the Cebu Chapter with a general membership meeting and oath-taking ceremonies on 15th November 2014 held at Cebu’s JSU-PSU Mariners’ Court.

With active support from 16 new members, five new officers have committed to strengthening WOW’s presence in this ‘Queen City of the South’. The meeting was attended by Wallem Representative Brian Phipps, WSMPI (Westminster Seafarer Management Phils., Inc.) President Bong Regalado and WSMPI staff members.

Manila & Cebu, Philippines WOW Philippines officers and members from Manila and Cebu combined their efforts to assist underprivileged families in the rural area of Barangay San Roque, Cebu City in November. One hundred packs of food items were distributed to families in the area who were very appreciative of the kind gesture from our Wallem ladies. Westminster Seafarer Management Phils., Inc. (WSMPI) President Bong Regalado, together with WSMPI staff Charolyn Maur and Katherine Cristobal also assisted in the outreach program.WSMPI staff members.


PEOPLE

Officers’ meetings in sri Lanka, Philippines and China

Sri Lanka PRIDE (Personal Responsibility in Delivering Excellence) is important for a professional seafarer was a key message at the recent Wallem Fleet Officers’ Meeting in Sri Lanka. Held on 12-13th November in Colombo, the meeting was attended by more than 75 seafaring officers from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

Manila The Manila Fleet Officers’ Meeting was held in November 2014, and had a good attendance from Wallem officers, overseas guests and speakers. This year’s focus was on Wallem’s safety standards; seafarers’ wellness at sea and current issues affecting our seafarers in safe navigation and operation of our vessels.

Qingdao More than 100 Chinese seafaring officers and shore staff from our six manning agent partners met in Qingdao in November. Long service awards were presented to Chief Engineer Zhang Fu Yuan, Chief Engineer Guo Hong Fa and Captain Teng Yong. An interesting presentation was given by Dr. Kevin Menon of Wellness @ Sea. He focused on the difficult job and environment sometimes faced by our seafarers when at sea.

(l-r) Captain Vijay soman, Captain navin Passey, Ms sheami Dewendre, Mr Dewendre, Captain ajantha abeysinghe, akhileshwar roy and Captain srirang Manjeshwar

(l-r) Kinny Pun and Captain Fared Khan discuss the topics raised by the crew at the Manila meeting.

Officers were encouraged to be actively involved in the meetings, here in Qingdao

30Issue 1 2015

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Documents

Wallem True North Magazine Issue 1 2015