Poseidon: Serving Flawlessly and Without Error

We sat down with Volkan Altan, General Manager of Poseidon Marine, to discuss his successful journey in the maritime sector. Altan’s passion and meticulousness for his work are evident in his words: "Even if my phone rings at three in the morning, I answer it immediately. My personnel know this, so they are also prepared. Everyone makes mistakes, of course. However, making a mistake in a job we know very well is, frankly, not acceptable." Altan emphasizes that their biggest advantages are their 24/7 service philosophy, their ability to perform flawlessly and without error, and their capacity to take action fast enough to save vessels from penalties, stressing that they never compromise on quality.

Mr. Altan, let's start by getting to know you, and then continue with the founding story of Poseidon...

"We are a family of seafarers. My father was also a seafarer and is now retired. My older brother studied mechanical engineering and also became a seafarer. As for me, I first started working as a driver in a large, newly established firm in the sector in İzmir. I can say that I entered the industry by starting in the kitchen of the business. I worked in Aliağa, İzmir, for five years. Afterwards, once I had developed myself sufficiently, I moved to the general directorate in Tuzla, Istanbul. I worked at that company for 14 years. After a total of 19 years, we established our own company by utilizing the knowledge and experience we had acquired. We founded Poseidon on January 6, 2017, and officially launched it. Coming from within the market was our biggest advantage. We had built a network. We succeeded because we knew the rules, came from the grassroots of the business, were involved in everything, and learned repair and maintenance from the inside out. We first built trust with our customers. Since then, we have developed ourselves over these eight and a half years to reach where we are today."

What is your perspective on your work and profession?

"Customer satisfaction is very important. Another very crucial point is minimizing errors. We are very meticulous about this because I believe it is indispensable for the work we do. Furthermore, it gives us an advantage in competition. Most of my personnel say I am 'too strict.' However, this stems not so much from strictness, but from my respect for my job, ensuring we minimize the margin of error. Even if my phone rings at three in the morning, I answer it immediately. My personnel know this, so they are also prepared. Everyone makes mistakes, of course. However, making a mistake in a job we know very well is, frankly, not acceptable. I was 22 when I started, first as a driver, then I filled gas cylinders. I worked at every stage of this job. I know every aspect of the service I provide. That's why I want to offer the best service to my customer. I want my personnel to both enjoy their work and be happy, both materially and spiritually. Prompt and full payment of my employees' salaries is another point I am sensitive about. They must be sure that their salary will be deposited exactly on time, even on the day and at the hour. Likewise, the maintenance of our vehicles, the flawlessness of technical equipment, and the currency of digital equipment are essential. All of them undergo annual renewal. The entire vehicle fleet is renewed at the beginning of the year. All this is for the comfort of our colleagues and to ensure they have the ability to provide the best service without any shortcomings in their work. Since the day we were founded, we have been a company sensitive both to the flawless delivery of our service and to our colleagues working in a secure environment. We have not compromised on these areas for all these years."

You have maintained a successful profile since your establishment and quickly entered the ranks of the best in the sector. Did you anticipate achieving this success so quickly?

"Frankly, we couldn't have predicted it would be this fast. We had no financial support. We reached where we are today only by using our knowledge and network. We started with small investments, bought equipment, attended training, and participated in international training. We acquired the distributorship of certain brands for this business. After that, by investing gradually, we first established the Fire Fighting division. Then we moved on to the life raft and lifeboat section, and then to weight testing capacity... Following these investments, we decided to purchase properties. We bought our own workshop. We follow the rules when making our investments, which has given us an advantage."

Could you tell us a little about your technical service team? Can you provide information about their expertise and certification processes?

"Our team has approximately 15 years of experience in the sector. Additionally, we send our team to both domestic and international training sessions. They are all trained and certified regarding life raft and lifeboat maintenance and testing. This, of course, enhances our quality. When we go onboard a ship, we can directly intervene if there is any fault. That's another advantage. Unfortunately, these jobs are also done in the sector by what we call unskilled personnel. Maybe it is cheaper, but any setback then results in a bigger expense for the shipowner because an inexperienced employee is dispatched. We are a company that constantly follows the rules and has its own internal training, as the rules change or are updated every year. One of the most important factors that brought us here is that our colleagues are both knowledgeable and experienced."

What are the most fundamental factors that differentiate Poseidon in the competitive maritime environment?

"The team is very important, but I always say this: We are always at the helm of our business. We intervene directly from here. We direct the teams. We do not involve the shipowner with any other personnel whatsoever. We are completely in charge, from A to Z; tracking everything from the vehicles to the whereabouts of the personnel is our biggest advantage. I can say that we have a flexible structure regarding pricing. However, we keep the quality we offer in mind. I can even state that when considering our service quality and price, we remain very attractive."

How do your collaborations with international manufacturers provide an advantage to customers?

"Because we entered the sector relatively late, we lost the distributorships for all European-origin products. So, we started with China. We took on the representation of major brands in China. Of course, selling the product is important, but we also need to stand behind it and develop the service network. Because when a shipowner buys a product from us, for the next year’s service, they ask, for example, 'Is there an authorized service station in Europe?' That's why we first signed an agreement with a major Chinese brand. We continued with them for a while. And now I’m announcing it here, nobody knows yet. Last week, we signed a service and sales agreement with 'LSA.' I would like to announce that here."

You are an organization that makes significant investments in life safety. For this reason, we want to ask: Did you face any difficulties while or after making these investments?

"I bring this up everywhere. Too many people have been given authority. There is no standard for this. Currently, there is no effort being made to raise the quality, neither at the Directorate General of Maritime Affairs nor at the classification societies. This saddens us greatly. Because we are a large company. It is very difficult for us to compete with newly established firms. We employ 30 people, and that involves separate expenses. But there are companies that set up shop in three days and offer prices a third or a quarter of ours. This disturbs us greatly. A standard for the sector is important, first and foremost, for the quality of the sector. Standards that are introduced will lead to the closure of most of the so-called ‘under the counter’ firms. This will raise the quality of service. Otherwise, if it continues like this, the quality will not improve on its own."

As part of an international industry, how do you structure your 24/7 service philosophy and your logistics operations in the port of Istanbul?

"We provide 24/7 service with our ready team. For example, something happened last week: We urgently needed to intervene on a ship from an outside port. We were ready on the ship within 45 minutes and performed the services and tests. The ship was also short on time. We intervened very quickly. We saved the ship from incurring a penalty. This was very well received by the shipowner. They called me personally and thanked me. This is the happiness and pride we derive from doing our job well. We know that our service must be 24/7 because the ships' time is valuable. It is very important. We performed these services this way and continue to do so. We also go to other ports outside Istanbul. Travel to those places is via the earliest flight. We have contracted companies there. We can intervene immediately, at once, in those places too. I can say that we have a solution-oriented approach in this regard."

What are your goals for the coming period?

"The path we have followed since the day we founded the company is to avoid heavily leveraging the company for the future. This path we have drawn is, frankly, one of the points that has brought us here today. As Poseidon, we want to maintain our current structure and operation until the end of 2026. The impact of the markets is significant in this decision. We don't want to make sharp movements without a clear vision of the future. However, we aim to expand to Europe in the later stages. Currently, we are already intervening here with our own team using our existing structure. Abroad, we provide services through our contracted companies. Essentially, we can deliver services anywhere in the world."

Source: 7deniz Magazine