8 minute read
For better or worse
Jan van der Tempel, CEO of Ampelmann, is involved in many more offshore-related activities.
Jan van der Tempel, CEO of Ampelmann
In the ofshore industry, the human factor cannot not be overlooked. Ofshore projects highly depend on people’s hands, skills, and knowledge. In Ofshore Industry Insights, we introduce individuals that made their bones in this market.
Many people in the industry know Jan van der Tempel as CEO of Ampelmann, the company of which he was one of the founders in 2007. However, this leaves him short, as he is involved in many more ofshore-related activities.
Mr Van der Tempel, our magazine Ofshore Industry was founded ffteen years ago. Can you tell us what you were doing at that time, back in 2007?
Mr Van der Tempel: “2007 was an exciting year for us, as in that year, just one year after my Doctors promotion at Delft Technical University, we were able to, supported by Shell and others, build and demonstrate the frst prototype of our motion compensated gangway. The demonstration at sea was a success and gave our company a good start. Throughout that year, we reached many milestones: the frst test in Rotterdam, the ofcial approval from one of the certifying bodies, and of course the test at a North Sea ofshore wind farm. Meanwhile we also had a business to run, as from a university start-up we were turning into a real company. So I remember 2007 as a razzle-dazzle year.”
You just mentioned your PhD promotion in 2006. Was the Ampelmann gangway topic of your thesis?
Mr Van der Tempel: “No, in fact it wasn’t. My doctoral thesis was titled ‘Design of Support Structures for Ofshore Wind Turbines’, so this had nothing to do with the gangway. Today I am still involved in the design of ofshore wind turbines in many ways.”
Can you give some examples?
Mr Van der Tempel: “First of all, there is the Delft Ofshore Turbine. For this project I founded DOT in 2014. Unlike regular wind turbines, the DOT wind turbine uses a waterhydraulic drive train directly driven by the rotor. This drive train includes a positive displacement pump that pressurises seawater, which is used for further power, water, or hydrogen production. Apart from this, the DOT turbine entails some other innovations, such as the slip joint. In my opinion, the slip joint is the fastest, safest, and most cost-efcient way to connect a turbine to its foundation. Next to DOT, I am still involved in the Oude Bibliotheek Academy (the Old Library Academy), which I founded in 2015. This is a training institute for ofshore energy professionals.”
Being a founder of DOB Academy, do you also teach?
Mr Van der Tempel: “Yes, I am still scheduled for teaching and I am very glad about this. I had to teach students as part of my PhD promotion, which was something I really enjoyed. DOB Academy was founded as we noticed a great need among ofshore professionals for ofshore wind related courses. Since I became involved in ofshore wind, I learned a lot about the subject myself as an engineering student, during my promotion, and as a professional. As part of my promotion, I was also involved in the creation of most of the university’s ofshore related courses. I still like to pass on my knowledge to others. And to be honest, while teaching professionals at DOB Academy I also learn a lot from them, which keeps me sharp.”
Just minutes before the start of this interview, you returned from a trip on the new Aqua Helix vessel?
Mr Van der Tempel: “Aqua Helix is Damen Shipyard’s new fast crew supplier. Ampelmann is closely involved in this project. Aqua Helix is the frst project with a gangway that has been integrated in the design of the vessel. With Damen we formed the joint venture OceanXpress, which will be operating the new service.” (also see page 40)
A lot has happened since 2007. What has been the most challenging for you in these ffteen years?
Mr Van der Tempel: “We have met many challenges in the past ffteen years, but it all started with convincing the market of our gangway concept. It was like the introduction of Sony’s Walkman. Nobody was waiting for this product, however when people learned the benefts they changed their tack. The problem with many innovations lies in fnding the frst customer that is willing to take some risk. No matter how good our concept showed, even during its frst ofshore test with Shell it surely was not an obvious choice, as the ofshore industry has the tendency to be conservative and prefers to stick to the tried and tested. Proof of this is also the slip joint I was referring to earlier. This is a project that needs long staying power. Although it >>
Photo courtesy of Ampelmann/Jorrit van de Eerenbeemt.
The Ampelmann electric A-type and E5000 in operation offshore.
has proven to be a good concept both on the DOT turbine as well as on the Borssele V ofshore innovation wind farm, the market still prefers to stick to bolted solutions.”
Meanwhile, other companies have also introduced motion compensated gangways. Does this not make the market less interesting?
Mr Van der Tempel: “With over 65 gangways operating all over the world, most of them rented out, we can consider ourselves market leader. This gives us a head start compared to our competitors. We have a good reputation and a reliable product. One of our strengths lies in not to look at what our competitors do, but to look at ourselves and our customers, and to keep on innovating. How can we improve our products and help our customers solve their problems? Right now, for example, our focus lies on electrifcation. We have introduced the frst electrifed A-type gangway. This gangway requires a proven 90% less energy compared to traditional gangways, which is a huge proft for sustainability. Based on the lessons learned from this gangway, we are now also looking at the electrifcation of our existing gangways. By doing so, we want to help our customers in their eforts to become more sustainable. Another improvement in this matter is the use of lighter materials such as composites. Making our systems lighter is not only more sustainable, it also opens new markets with other types of vessels for our products.”
What do all these developments mean for your organisation?
Mr Van der Tempel: Finding new markets for new products requires other competences. Simply said, for our existing lease feet our sales team needs to have the account management skills to be able to renew the contracts. For entering new markets with new products, we need people that are more blue ocean-minded. They are open to new, unexpected things, they can listen, but they also need to be a little stubborn every now and then, believing in the solutions we can ofer to new customers. This way, we have arranged an excellent team that knows precisely what we stand for. Compared to when we started, we have been able to rearrange things in such a way that we now do the things we do better with fewer staf. We are also highly promoting collaboration with partners. Like the aforementioned project with Damen demonstrates, working together with other companies and organisations can be proftable for everyone in various ways.”
You left Ampelmann in 2014. What was the reason?
Mr Van der Tempel: “The idea for the motion compensated gangway originates from 2002, which means that in 2014 I had been working on this project very intensely for more than a decade. The company had to deal with a lot of growing pains. As CEO, I became more and more involved in organisational challenges, but I also wanted to continue my role as engineer. Torn between these two roles, I thought it would be better for me and the company to step back and look for other challenges. However, in 2017, when it looked like things at Ampelmann were adversely turning, I was asked to rejoin.”
What have you learned from your three years leave from Ampelmann?
Mr Van der Tempel: “I certainly have learned to do things diferently than what I was used to. I know now that I cannot do everything all by myself, and that I sometimes need to distance myself from things.”
Next to expanding Ampelmann’s market, what are your expectations for the next ffteen years?
Mr Van der Tempel: “The production of hydrogen at sea will be a real game changer. This really is an intriguing development in which the oil & gas expertise and methods meet those of the ofshore wind industry as a combination of both. The Netherlands is really well positioned in this matter and I think that with the right eforts the development of hydrogen at sea will truly accelerate the use of green hydrogen in many ways.”
When looking back, can we conclude that you have become an entrepreneur for better or worse?
Mr Van der Tempel: “When we invented the motion compensated gangway, we frst searched for a company that wanted to produce and market the gangway. Things were going much too slowly for us, and that is why we ultimately decided to do it ourselves. And yes, this brought me in an unexpected role of businessman instead of engineer. Though I have no regrets. I like what I am doing, as I love the dynamics of the ofshore industry and the current challenges this entails.”
