Vestdavit is reaping the benefits of its strategic location in the Netherlands with its Dutch subsidiary boosting revenue by 50% last year as the regional business grows on the back of increasing aftersales and davit commissioning work on newbuilds. And the ball keeps rolling for Vestdavit BV, led by regional Managing Director Magnar Bøyum, as turnover has already risen by 25% in the first quarter of this year, mirroring a similar trend for the overall group that has recorded huge sales growth amid a significant rise in offshore wind orders.
The Vianen (Utrecht)-based sales and service centre is situated on an important European shipping route for vessels passing through ports in Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and France, giving clients direct access to Vestdavit’s service expertise that results in reduced time for inspections, maintenance and spare parts delivery carried out during port stays.
Boots on the ground
Dutch subsidiary also regularly gains new sales leads for the company’s head office in Norway
Bøyum believes Vestdavit’s local presence has been a key factor behind the spike in activity as it has secured more work for existing clients due to a higher installed base of davit systems. The Dutch subsidiary also regularly gains new sales leads for the company’s head office in Norway.
In addition, it can support davit deliveries by assisting with system integration in the design phase, as well as during installation, while also performing commissioning work on mainly naval and offshore wind vessel newbuilds at regional yards, including Damen Shipyard in the Netherlands and French shipbuilding facilities. Furthermore, the regional unit provides davit support for seismic vessels and assists with service requirements for German and Belgian pilotage vessels.
Davit demand drives expansion
“Our clients are very positive to the fact that we are located at a key maritime hub, which enables them to get in contact more easily. Having closer proximity to our European clients enables us both to help expedite new sales and rapidly respond to their inspection and service requirements in a timely and cost-effective manner," Bøyum says.
“Given that Vestdavit supplies between 70 and 80 davits a year overall, it is natural that our business is expanding and we anticipate this trend will continue on higher demand, both from our core naval market as well as from offshore energy, with a number of promising order prospects in the pipeline,” Bøyum says. In line with business growth, the local subsidiary has recently moved into larger office premises and is looking to bring onboard an additional service engineer in the Dutch team as it targets multi-vessel service contracts for naval and other clients.
Service vital for reliability
Vestdavit has gained a major market standing as a pioneering supplier of robust and reliable
Bøyum emphasises the importance for clients of regular servicing of boat-handling equipment at annual and five-yearly intervals by Vestdavit’s specialised and competent technicians to maintain efficiency and minimise downtime, given that davits may need to be used multiple times a day for the deployment of rescue boats and other craft, especially in the naval sector.
This is also an important factor in offshore wind and oil & gas as davits are required to perform efficiently in variable sea states for safe launch and recovery of workboats carrying crews for field installation and maintenance work, with the focus on a wide operational window. Vestdavit has gained a prominent market reputation as a pioneering supplier of robust and reliable davit systems through more than 2000 deliveries over the past 40 years based on constant product development and innovation to provide high-specification boat-handling equipment tailored to the needs of clients.
Staying focused
Its well-established brand has been bolstered by a strong track record of davit installations for the vast majority of navies in the Nato alliance, as well as coast guards worldwide, which have high demands for boat deployment with rapid response in rough sea conditions to counter activities such as piracy, drug smuggling and terrorism, or carry out tasks including patrol of fishing grounds.
“At the Netherlands office, we remain focused on providing high-quality service and support to our clients, both with respect to newbuilds and aftermarket, as we develop and expand the operation in line with continual growth of the business,” Bøyum concludes.
