Page 8: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (September 2011)

Kent Ekenberg, founder and owner of KE Marine and Worldwide Diesel Power, Inc., spent five minutes with Maritime Reporter last month to discuss trends in the business of servicing and repairing diesel engines. When and why did you create your companies? Ekenberg Chris-Marine was founded in Malmö, Swe- den in 1962 as a designer and manufacturer of diesel en- gine maintenance/reconditioning machines. As the company grew and expanded, in 1980 I was appointed to open, operate and manage the Jacksonville, Fla., office (Chris-Marine USA). From this office we operated a serv- ice department to support and provide full services, in- cluding repairs and overhauls to diesel engines, serving customers in North, South and Central America as well as the Caribbean. As the U.S. company grew and sales began to flourish, Chris-Marine East Coast was created in 1998 in order to accommodate all Chris-Marine machine andspare parts sales only, while CM USA focused on diesel engine service. For nearly 15 years, Chris-Marine USA (today WWDP) was an authorized repair facility for MAN B&W. In 2005, I purchased the U.S. branches ofChris-Marine, which today are known today as KE Ma- rine (the sales division) and Worldwide Diesel Power, Inc. (the service division). Both companies retain the rights as sole distributor for Chris-Marine equipment in North, South, Central America and the Caribbean and have since gained representation for IOP and Vibracon. Please give a brief overview of the products and services you supply. Ekenberg Today we have Worldwide Diesel Power, our full diesel engine support company providing diesel engine services from complete engine overhauls, spare parts reconditioning and parts sales, turbo charger repairs, etc. Our facilities include a 26,000 sq. ft. repair facility with all up-to-date workshop equipment to provide re- conditioning services to cylinder heads, liners, fuel pumps, turbochargers, and to support to work in the field. Our field work consists of international diesel engine re- pair on ships (docked and underway), in power plants or wherever the job may be. In addition to overhaul and en- gine repairs, we provide in-place/on-site machining serv- ices. Finally, we provide training of Chris-Marine equipment to all customers with CM equipment, as wellas machine repairs/troubleshooting. In the last 20 years,our sales have been increasingly directed toward the power plant business. How has the recent economy affected your business? Ekenberg It has affected everyone, but since we have expanded our business into power plants, business has re- mained steady. The ship business comes in waves, and there are still some ships today that are laid-up; but power plants don?t stop because of a bad economy. How have your customers needs most changed, and in turn, how has this changed your business?Ekenberg The products ? both those we use andservice ? are much more high-tech. We have to ensure we have all the proper equipment, certification and peo- ple to carry out work today. Also, ships today have in- creasingly less time in port, meaning we have to be quick, efficient and effective, or provide riding crews to carry out works underway to accommodate vessels? schedules. With increased power plant requests, we also have crews that service power plants. What do you count as the biggest challenge(s) toowning and operating a business today?Ekenberg It is difficult sometimes to simply find the right people. Also, this business is much more competi- tive today. But the competition comes increasingly from small repair companies that may offer a lower price, but are not offering the appropriate requirements or equally qualified personnel. www.kemarine.com Kent Ekenberg INTERVIEWFIVE MINUTES WITH KENT EKENBERG, KE MARINE & WORLDWIDE DIESEL POWER, INC. Worldwide Diesel Power counts its modern 26,000- sq.-ft. repair shop; its highly qualified technicians, and its ability to work on any diesel engine, no mat-ter where it sits in the world, as its strengths.