Handling systems for the maritime industry constitute the product and service lines from TTS, based in Bergen, Norway. The company resources are focused on design and engineering in addition to assembly and testing of cargo handling systems – and for the bulk carrier industry this means mostly cranes and hatch covers.
Nils O Ericsson (left), Sales Director, and Göran K Johansson, Head of Port and Materials Division, TTS in Gothenburg.
TTS is a global provider of hatch covers.
“Another way of expressing our vision is that TTS wants to be the supplier which receives ‘The first and last call’: This means that TTS Marine aims to be the company that the customers call first when they are considering new solutions and new projects. TTS shall possess the expertise and capacity to advise customers during this phase. ‘The last call’ we want from the shipyards at the end of their decision process, to get the chance to meet the lowest price. This means that TTS must have a globally competitive cost structure in order to compete with the lowest bidder.”
This is a bold statement from the 1.6 billion NOK turnover company, boasting earnings just short of 100 million NOK for 2006.
The TTS operations are divided into the divisions Marine Cranes, Dry Cargo Handling, Port and Material Handling, Deck Machinery and Drilling Equipment. TTS has 1,100 employees and the headquarters are in Bergen, Norway. We, however, visited TTS in Gothenburg, Sweden, talking to Göran Johansson, Head of Port and Material Handling division and Sales Director Nils O. Ericsson of TTS Ships Equipment AB.
“We are also very pleased with the developments of our company as a consequence of the high activity level in general terms for the maritime industry, but also from the efforts of the TTS team. Our order volume right now includes a total of equipment for about 600 vessels and of those 250 are bulk carriers. 150 are Handy, 50 are Cape and 75 Panmax. For the bulk carriers our deliveries comprise side rolling hatch covers for the Cape and Panamax vessels, folding for the Handy size vessels,” says Johansson.
“The bulk market has surpassed our expectations and we now manufacture the hatch covers mostly in China, where we have more than 50 employees. The hydraulics and electrical equipments are manufactured in Germany. We have a market share of some 65 per cent in China which we are very proud of, through our partnership with CSCC,” says Johansson.
The product portfolio for bulk carriers includes weatherdeck hatch covers, tweendeck hatch covers, side loading systems, external doors, cargo cranes, gantry cranes, service and provision cranes, rescue boat davits and winches. For the complete range of TTS services, please visit www.tts-marine.com.
Date: 04 February 2008