News Content

Janholt: Quality is not a given at the Chinese shipyards

As a shipowner, you should keep a close eye on the work done by the shipyard if you choose to have your ships built in China, says Torben Janholt, CEO of J. Lauritzen.
It takes a sharp focus on the shipyards' work to have ships built in China, but it pays off because of the low price, said CEO of J. Lauritzen, Torben Janholt, at the International Maritime Industries Forum's spring meeting, which took place on Wednesday afternoon at CBS. Board members of the Blue MBA participated, along with members of the industry and of Women's International Shipping & Trading Association.
"There is a learning curve for everything, and China is a relatively young country when it comes to building ships. It's fine if you keep that in mind, but you still a fairly big supervisory team opresent at the shipyard," said Torben Janholt.
The supervisory team's job is to control the work done by the yard, so the ship owner is sure that the ships is being built as agreed upon, and also the ensure that there are no nasty surprises for the owner when the ship is delivered to him. The team consists of employees with the relevant knowledge, acting as the owner's eyes and ears on the ship yard.
Expensive in Japan
J. Lauritzen currently has newbuildings on the way from Chinese shipyards only.
"We have had our ships built in Japan for many years, where we have many good contacts. But ships are very expensive, and they haven't necessarily improved upon their designs. Korea is the most advanced country for ship building, but China wants in on that market. They can build ships at a favorable price, but you have to make a bigger effort yourself and keep an eye on the process. There are some really good shipyards, but are some yards one should be careful with," said Torben Janholt.
To Torben Janholt, the basic attitude toward Chinese ship building is the same as for any other business.
"As with all business, choose your partners with care."