Port St. Maarten staff members complete spreader certification | THE DAILY HERALD

Port St. Maarten maintenance and crane personnel who successfully completed the training in maintenance and full-operation of the container crane spreader carried out by Bromma Engineer Neftaly Rodriquez.

 

PHILIPSBURG–Staff members working in cargo operations at Port St. Maarten have recently completed training in maintenance and full-operation of the container crane spreader. This is a piece of equipment used for lifting shipping containers and combined cargo.

  The training was carried out by Bromma Engineer Neftaly Rodriquez. Brommer is a world leader in crane spreaders. With more than 50 years of continuous operations, Bromma has delivered crane spreaders to 500 terminals in 90 nations, according to a press release.

  Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunication (TEATT) Minister Stuart Johnson said he was delighted with the Port’s efforts to improve the skills of its staff.

  Port St. Maarten’s cargo operations maintenance team received certification in proactive maintenance of the spreaders.  The training also included several crane operators to ensure that they have “an all-inclusive understanding of the spreader and its intricacies,” according to a press release.

  “As an educator for several years, I have always maintained that the only way for our people to become successful leaders is through education, training and retraining of the staff,” said Johnson.

  He said the training of human resources at Port St. Maarten is essential for the country to maintain its hub function in the North-eastern Caribbean for container handling and cargo.

  “A well-trained team lifts productivity and keeps us at the forefront … The quality of work and level of service St. Maarten produces will not only improve the bottom line for local companies, but it will be critical for St. Maarten as the Caribbean tourism market becomes more competitive.

  “We must be able to say, not just that we can offer a certain service in any industry, but that we provide the best quality service as well,” said Johnson.

  He also congratulated the newly certified staff and encouraged them to keep striving for excellence in their professions.

  Port St. Maarten said spreaders require special care and a “robust” maintenance programme to maintain high performance levels at the cargo berths.

  “As vessel turnaround time is one of the KPIs (key performance indicators) in order to maintain relevance in the industry and, ensuring our operational excellence platform is intact, a continued investment in the port’s human resources will ensure [that – Ed.], especially as we expand our transhipment hub footprint.

  “It also ensures an effective service to continue to aid in the rebuilding efforts of our country … as various hospitality properties and critical infrastructure projects commence with construction.

  “The training is part of the port’s phased human resource training and skillset development programme, leading to the launching of the training outpost for the region. We are in the process of creating a pool of expertise who can train our own people here, but also train others from abroad.

  “Over the years we have been having difficulty finding qualified maintenance support for our specialised mobile harbour cranes. So, what we did is find individuals with principle skillsets in electrical and mechanical work, but with the intention to train them … where crane maintenance is concerned and, to date, we have been very successful with this venture.

  “We look at it as a human capital investment for the long haul and increasing the specialised skillsets of our locals in this field,” said Port St. Maarten on Wednesday.

Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/91776-port-st-maarten-staff-members-complete-spreader-certification

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