Just a year since its launch, Wilhelmsen Ships Service (WSS) reports positive uptake of the ‘Your Strait Solution’ initiative – an integrated service solution for vessels passing through the Straits of Gibraltar.
According to Nicholai Bado, Ships Agency Service Manager, 2012 was an ‘intensive year’, with the centralization of one dedicated team and coordination of services within the three Strait ports of Algeciras, Ceuta and Gibraltar. Bado said: “We are on track to exceed all initial expectations of the project, and have made a number of tweaks to the service over the past year based on customer feedback. Many customers are reporting significant cost efficiencies through having just one point of contact. For example, a vessel needing to take on bunkers at Gibraltar and liferaft exchange services at Algeciras will pay just one agency fee – streamlining operations for all involved.”
With no signs of rapid improvement in the market, demand for reliable ships agency services is on the rise – coupled with a need to stay competitive on price – and Bado believes that those suppliers that are able to adapt to market challenges will have good potential for growth. Furthermore, he says that centralization of services has proven to be the way forward, especially during the financial recession: “It is vital that we maintain the quality standards expected of our operations whilst being able to work within the financial constraints that our clients face. ‘Your Strait Solution’ is just one example of how we are accommodating the needs of our customers in a turbulent market.”