Maritime Hotspots

Maritime trading has long been a Dutch stronghold. So what happens when you deepen that bond by engaging international Maritime Hotspots all over the world? This is an interesting thought and the related projects to kick-start the cooperation are taking shape.

“The Dutch have a strong international working area”, states Martin Bloem, member of the Export and Promotion team of the Topsector Water. “We have a vast maritime sector, which we show to the world during trade missions and trade fairs. But what happens when you lengthen that promotion for more than a couple of days?” Bloem explains that the creation of the governmental high potential industry, Top Sector Water, brought along strong water-related ideas, but with many unrelated to the maritime cluster. When offered the opportunity to produce a plan to enhance the Dutch export, the Trade Council of Maritime by Holland, the Nederland Maritiem Land branch organisation for the maritime cluster (formerly known as the Dutch Maritime Network) along with various partners, were quick to respond and as such the idea to engage Maritime Hotspots was developed.

High-density maritime cities

“Maritime Hotspots are places in the world with high-density maritime clusters”, smiles Bloem. “We are not talking about actual countries, but cities that have a rich maritime industry, such as St. Petersburg, Shanghai or Rio de Janeiro. The idea is to trade knowledge within these hotspots, not only with shipping companies, but also knowledge institutes and shipyards. From large to small companies, the whole maritime sector must get involved. The aim is to learn from each other and stimulate internationalisation.

Perhaps we can also exchange high potentials?” The possibilities are endless when considering this idea. What could be better than building on existing maritime relations? David Anink, sector manager at Holland Shipbuilding Association, also part of the Maritime Hotspots concept, adds: “Our aim is to bring longstanding international maritime relations up to a higher level. We already have our Holland Marine Houses all over the world that support companies abroad commercially. The Maritime Hotspots will allow for greater capacity to assist companies varying in size, with more opportunities for training and activities.” Four Maritime Hotspots have been identified as potential regions by the Trade Council: Singapore, St. Petersburg, Shanghai and Rio de Janeiro/Sao Paolo. With St. Petersburg leading the way, which has to do with timing, as next year the Netherlands will celebrate 400 years of trading with Russia. Anink: “We are also pleased that the Dutch government supports our hope to engage the Maritime Hotspots as we need their backing to make this successful.”

Launch of the concept

The initiative has yet to come into effect, though it is almost ready and will be presented to the maritime cluster on 26 September 2012. Anink: “We want to get a feel for what people think about the Maritime Hotspots. Do they think this is an interesting approach? Are companies enthusiastic? What are their ideas about the Maritime Hotspots and how can we build on these ideas?” The programme for the presentation on the Maritime Hotspots is still taking shape. Several of the key players will be present during the day, such as Arie Kraaijeveld, head of Maritime by Holland and Frank Heemskerk who leads the Export and Promotion team of Top Sector Water. Bloem comments: “Arie Kraaijeveld will open the afternoon. I, myself, will present the initiative alongside Arjen Uytendaal, director of Maritime by Holland.”

After an explanation of our ideas and goals, a couple of diverse companies will explain their experiences with working within the different hotspots. This information will allow the participants to discuss the challenges and benefits of working together with these hotspots. After a short break the group will be split into a number of teams, each focused on a hotspot, where they can discuss what can be done and how they feel about this. Each group will have a company guiding their parallel sessions. The day will be concluded with presentations from the five teams and the actual launch of the Maritime Hotspots initiative. Maritime by Holland and the Top Sector Water Export and Promotion team expect to welcome 150 to 200 people during the kick-off meeting of the project.

Creating necessary dynamic

“This idea is not new and it is not as if people don’t know the Dutch abroad”, says Bloem. “So, somehow it is strange that we have not tried to test this type of cooperation sooner. We are a strong maritime country, why not exchange knowledge internationally and learn from other countries? Countries like Singapore and China are developing so fast regarding, for instance, maritime technology. It would be very interesting to learn from them.” The next step is to set up two pilots by the end of the year. Anink concludes: “This is a real challenge, but the speed at which we are trying to realise the Maritime Hotspots also creates a certain dynamic necessary to making this initiative successful.”

Rebecca McFedries