Page 42: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (November 2017)

Paul Smulders, CEO, Radio Holland oices

Photo: Radio Holland

As Radio Holland Group (Rotterdam) ? nishes its ‘100th anniversary’ celebration in the maritime shipping industry, we caught up with Paul Smulders, CEO, to discuss a century of accomplishment and the path ahead.

BY GREG TRAUTHWEIN “ aul Smulders, CEO of Radio Reality?,’” Smulders said. During the

Today the market is challenged, but overall it is important

Holland since 2016, offers discussion it became clear to Smulders for Radio Holland, as a company, to be there for them (ship has a wealth of maritime ex- that while ship owners realize the poten- owners) when they need us, providing ef? cient and effective service to keep them moving. Quality of Service and Sup- perience and an in-depth per- tial bene? ts of remote monitoring, they port is central to all that we do, central to our future.

Pspective on Radio Holland, don’t have a crystal clear picture of how as this is actually his second run with the it will be organized and implemented company, the ? rst stretching from 1989 which saw the signi? cance and necessity nical knowledge excellently. across the ? eet and the company.

to 2012.“If you look at my tenure with of radio communications to the safety “The ‘100-years-young’ milestone we As the industry searches for solutions, the company, the biggest change was, of and ef? ciency of shipping. At the outset, celebrate has given us a chance to not Smulders believes Radio Holland well course, the change in ownership in 2015, Radio Holland began installing radio sta- only celebrate the past, but prepare for positioned to provide answers – and which when we started to really apply tions on board of Dutch merchant ves- the future and the decades to come,” practical tools – to provide ship owners a strategy of customer support, mainte- sels. In those years and up to the nine- Smulders said. the insight and overview they need to nance and repair services,” said Smul- ties Radio Holland also employed the Companies like Radio Holland are take investment in the technology to the ders. The focus on in-depth and true radio-of? cer (also called ‘sparks’) on the future of the maritime and logistics next level.

customer support has lead to additional board, who operated the equipment and market, as increasingly the movement opportunities. “It naturally led us into in the early days with the morse key. For of goods from manufacture to end-user The Move Forward additional services such as remote moni- this purpose, Radio Holland founded a depends on a seamless ? ow of and inter- Smulders and his team are focused toring, IT onboard and the use of data for special own training college for radio- activity among data sources. While “Big sharply on working with ship owners to support of the equipment on board.” of? cers after the WWI, in Amsterdam. Data” is a headline grabber in maritime deliver not simply a deluge of data, rath-

When the radio-of? cer job ceased to ex- circles, Smulders maintains that the con- er actionable information that has real,

A Long History ist on board in the beginning of the nine- cept is still in its infancy. immediate value in helping them to run

The company was founded in 1916 ties, several radio-of? cers came ashore “Just this week (late September 2017) safer, more ef? cient operations. in Amsterdam as the “Nederlandsche in the Radio Holland organization in I hosted a round-table discussion with “Today the market is challenged, but

Telegraaf Maatschappij Radio-Holland” various functions, from technician to a number of ship owners, and I put on overall it is important for Radio Holland, by a group of Dutch ship owners, a group purchaser, using their onboard and tech- the table ‘Remote Monitoring: Hype or as a company, to be there for them (ship 42 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News • NOVEMBER 2017

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