Opening Design Office in Singapore
IJmuiden-based Offshore Ship Designers (OSD) has strengthened its global network by opening a design office in Singapore. The office will provide a local liaison point for customers building ships in Asia which were designed in the Dutch and UK offices of OSD, and also provide a local solution for design projects for companies based in Singapore.“We already have a successful design and newbuilding supervision office in Shanghai,” explains Michiel Wijsmuller, managing director of OSD. “But as Singapore is rapidly strengthening as a hub for offshore activities, it is important for us to have a company there. Our group is currently overseeing ten offshore vessels built to our designs in Asia and we are getting an increasing amount of enquiries from offshore vessel and tug operators across Asia. Singapore is a good place to handle that business from, and we expect to grow design capacity there as a complement to our main design offices in the UK, Holland and China. Asian owners value the independence and efficiency we bring to the design process, and we want to be close to them to provide what they want.”
The Singapore office will be managed by Andy Robson, an experienced marine engineer. Following a career as an engine builder, including a period at sea and as senior engineer with a large consultancy firm, Andy was engineering manager for Devonport Yachts before he joined OSD-IMT and became Principal Marine Engineer for the OSD group. He has now been appointed Managing Director of Offshore Ship Designers (Singapore) Pte Ltd (OSD-Singapore).