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Ugeavisen Esbjerg, Magasinet Vestkraft, March 2017
Crisis?
Not here.
STARTING OUT: Entrepreneurs defies headwinds in the offshore industry and starts a new business in Esbjerg with opportunities worldwide.
An offshore industry under pressure is also an offshore industry with possibilities
Ihis is how Esbjerg residents Allan Hundrup, 40, and 11 years older Allan Sejerup Kristiansen chooses to look at the current headwinds in the industry. And one of these opportunities is to start a business. So that is what they have done.
The company Seacabin, the two Allans’ new company, offers consultancy and project management within section of the offshore industry, which focuses on the renovation and new-design of accommodation units.
– The offshore industry is very specialized, and the requirements for competencies in each area are often quite extensive. When you have to furnish or rebuild an accommodation rig, the job itself is only a small part of the actual work. Beyond artisan work, comes the documentation and ensuring that you follow the procedures and all the safety regulations. It is comprehensive work, which can advantageously be outsourced to specialists, and that is what we are, Allan Hundrup says.
He has ten years’ experience in the offshore industry, both domestic and abroad, behind him at Maersk Oil Esbjerg & Qatar. Most of the time as a customer for the consultancy and project management industry, he is now a supplier in himself. This, supplemented by Allan Sejerup Kristiansen’s craftsman background and years of experience in delivering furnishing for accommodation to the maritime industry, cruise ships and the offshore industry, the two partners are confident that Seacabin will find its rightful place in the market.
– We have the skills and industry experience in a niche area that everyone needs. We want to offer turnkey solutions ranging from consultancy to the artisanal work, allowing customers to entrust us with the project and concentrate on using their own forces and means on something else, says Allan Sejerup Kristiansen.
Engineering company stands behind them
The two entrepreneurs from Esbjerg are not hunting for customer alone. Behind them stands the expanding engineering company BIIR who have purchased 60 percent of the company. This ensures the founders a crucial capital base and a fantastic support from a company that has 200 engineers in Denmark and another 100 in Ukraine.
– It gives us a very good starting point, having so many competent resources to draw from, from day one, says an optimistic Allan Hundrup and is backed by his partner Allan Sejerup Kristiansen.
In their new company Seacabin, there are three employees. That number, the two entrepreneurs want to see a steady increase in over the coming years. In five years, they would be like to be 15 employees, says the goal.
Lokalavisen Esbjerg, March 2017
In the midst of a crisis:
“We see an opportunity”
Two entrepreneurs have just founded a consulting firm, specializing in offshore living quarters, despite the industry crisis.
ENTREPRENEUR: “Nothing so bad, as not to be good for something”
It must be a saying, entrepreneurs Allan Hundrup, 40, Allan Sejerup Kristiansen, 51, like a lot. In any case, the two Allan’s have just founded a new company in Esbjerg, focusing on the offshore accommodation industry. And this is despite the fact that most people probably think that the industry it is in a great crisis.
“Yes. It’s a good question, why we do it now, and we have been asked that exact question many times. But we see an opportunity. We see a niche in the market that we do not quite see other companies utilizing,” says Allan Sejerup Kristiansen.
The two entrepreneurs’ new business is called Seacabin. It is a consulting firm specializing in helping their customers meet the requirements for accommodation in the offshore and marine industry. And here both Allan’s have thorough experience, accumulated through several years in the industry.
Wants to take advantage of the crisis
Therefore, they both know that the requirements of each area in the offshore industry is quite extensive. And that is exactly what the two entrepreneurs will make their money on, by taking advantage of the crisis’ opportunities.
“What is happening at the various companies in a crisis, is that they typically lay off some of their employees. But there is still some work to be done. Consequently, they choose to change some fixed costs to variable, and this is our opportunity, ” says Allan Hundrup, who also explains that Seacabin will be a variable cost for companies, as the two entrepreneurs’ idea is to be utilized in project-based solutions.
“Today, the jobs are often outsourced to companies like ours. They hire people to do a job, and then say ‘thank you’ afterwards. It is a cheaper solution because we have specialty and know what is exactly needed when consulting for accommodation, which is our niche,” Allan Sejerup Kristiansen adds.
Began with a coffee machine
The two entrepreneurs from Esbjerg are still in the company’s start-up phase. And they are not in a hurry.
“We are taking it step-by-step. We need to know how to crawl before we can walk, and we are trying to do things the right way,” Allan Hundrup says, while Allan Sejerup Kristiansen continues with a smile:
“We simply started off by buying a coffee machine, and not one of the best, so we’ll probably kick it to the curb soon.”
The website for two entrepreneurs is made, and the business cards are ready at the offices in the premises that Allan and Allan rented from Densen Audio Technologies, on Randersvej in Esbjerg.
“We have rented these premises until we find the right location on the harbor,” says Allan Sejerup Kristiansen.
Otherwise, the two entrepreneurs’ time is right now spent on contacting old contacts, customers, and finding projects.
“We have some projects that we are calculation on. Whether it results in concrete jobs, time will tell. But the first steps on the road is to localize projects and to tell the story to potential customers, ” Allan Hundrup says.
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