Damen has just announced that they successfully hosted a dredging seminar in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on Tuesday, 11th July 2017.
The event was attended by over 100 representatives from the Dutch Embassy in Bangladesh, experts from the Bangladesh Government, the Bangladesh Navy, local financing institutions, various customers of Damen and other industry stakeholders, the company said in its release.
Damen Regional Sales Director, Rabien Bahadoer, spoke of Damen’s relationship with the country, saying, “We have had a presence in Bangladesh since the 1970s. There are quite a number of Damen vessels in operation in the country from that time of which some are still in function.”
“We want to support growth in Bangladesh with quality equipment, dedicated services and proper training. In order to support our fast growing fleet of dredgers, workboats and tugboats, Damen further invests in expanding its local service center with a modern workshop, skilled service engineers and local availability of crucial spares; all to maximize the uptime of our equipment.
“Also, as part of our commitment to the country and the collaboration with the Government, Damen is working closely with local shipyards to build vessels in the region, a process by which Dutch shipbuilding technology is transferred to local stakeholders.”
At the seminar, guest of honor Her Excellency Ms. Leoni Cuelenaere, the Dutch Ambassador to Bangladesh, shared her views on the Dutch perspective of dredging in Bangladesh.
In addition, Damen’s Product Director Dredging, Olivier Marcus, presented key points on efficient Project Management of dredging contracts and Wouter Breekman, Manager Damen Services Bangladesh, discussed the importance of local services, maintenance and continuous training.
Furthermore Dr. S. M. Akbar of UBICO Investments gave his view of how the financial sector is looking at the dredging industry, and Mr. Gazi Golam Rabbani, Chairman of Dhaka Dockyard & Engineering Works, shared his views on the future of shipbuilding in Bangladesh.