Jimmy Staal Damsgaard clearly remembers the beginning of the offshore growth adventure – the beginning of what is today Seasight Davits. The company, which produces davit cranes for offshore wind turbines from Ringkøbing, is part of the Seasight Group with its home base in Hvide Sande. When the journey began in 2011 together with Hvide Sande Shipyard, where the CEO at the time was HP Kristensen, father of the current CEO, Carl Erik Kristensen.
- It was in September 2011 that I started with HP, Carl Erik's father. HP said he would rather own 50 percent of a success than 100 percent of a failure, Jimmy Staal Damsgaard tells us about the beginning.
Last year, the now 60-year-old Jimmy Staal Damsgaard sold the last of his ownership shares to Carl Erik Kristensen. The founder is no longer CEO of Seasight Davits, but instead head of development and design in the company. But the journey began twenty years ago for the engineer and Odense native Jimmy Staal Damsgaard. That was before offshore wind had really taken off.
- I became service manager at ACTA in Hjallese, which made various cranes for ships. I built up the service department, and we had a lot to do because of new rules from the International Maritime Organization (IMO). So we serviced ship cranes worldwide, he says.
But in 2007 Jimmy Staal Damsgaard got his first experience with cranes for offshore turbines.
- In 2007 DONG Energy came to us. They needed some cranes. So we ended up delivering 90 cranes to Horns Rev 2, and I learned a lot from that, he explains and elaborates:
- It's different because the cranes on an offshore wind turbine are only used twice a year. There was quite a bit of development work involved.
There are no people to lubricate and service the davit cranes on the wind turbines in the exposed maritime climate. It takes a toll on the cranes – but there was a solution for that.
- We wrapped it all up, and it was a development, says Jimmy Staal Damsgaard.
With Ørsted out into the world
It was a development that was also noticed by the customer, who came with several assignments.
- We moved with Ørsted out into the world with projects such as Gunfleet Sands Offshore Wind Farm, Walney Wind Farm I and II. But we also sold to EnBW's Baltic I and to Vestas, it is said.
It was already very important back then to have cranes that are always reliable and work.
- The crane is the weakest link, because the wind turbine cannot be serviced without the crane, he explains.
But even though ACTA had made good money along the way, one project ended up going wrong.
- ACTA went bankrupt due to 45 million DKK in a single project, so ACTA was acquired by NOREQ, says Jimmy Staal Damsgaard.
At that stage, an interim director was hired at ACTA, who happened to be from Ringkøbing.
- That's how I got in touch with HP, and we started up. We created our own company based on my experiences, because I knew what not to do, explains the entrepreneur.
His former employer ACTA wasn't exactly happy with the new start - but there's not much you can do about the experience you've built up.
Built it all together
It was an experience that quickly led to a result.
- We packed the things up, and everything was built together from the start in the crane, because then there is a much lower chance of error. That's how we were able to do our first offshore commissioning with Vestas, who was our only customer until 2015, he says.
Until then, Seasight Davits had tried in vain to get through to DONG Energy – but in 2015 it was to succeed for a specific reason.
- The fifth time we bid for Ørsted, we came in with a small project called Burbo Bank Offshore Wind Farm, says Jimmy Staal Damsgaard about a path in that has a history.
The appearance of the crane model at the time did not suit the large customer.
- "Can't you make it look sexier," they said. I didn't care at all, says Jimmy Staal Damsgaard, but partner HP Kristensen had some wise input:
- HP hired an industrial designer, and then Ørsted brought us in. It could do the same thing, but it was more expensive to produce, he says, and makes a realization:
- I learned something new there. It has to look a little good.
However, it paid off with new customers, including Siemens in 2019.
- It opened a lot of doors that Ørsted became a customer of ours. Today, they all copy us, says Jimmy Staal Damsgaard about Seasight Davits, which today has branches in the UK, Taiwan, the USA and Denmark.
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