Published 17 Oct 2019, by charge Editorial Team

Celebrating 40 years of ABB Turbocharging in Singapore

Celebrating 40 years of ABB Turbocharging in Singapore
ABB Turbocharging has an incredible heritage that stretches back more than 100 years to the early 1900s, and September 2019 marked another important milestone for the company as it celebrated its 40th anniversary in Singapore.

ABB Turbocharging has an incredible heritage that stretches back more than 100 years to the early 1900s, and September 2019 marked another important milestone for the company as it celebrated its 40th anniversary in Singapore.

ABB Turbocharging first made a home for itself in one of the world’s most important transportation hubs back in 1979, when the company was still known as BBC Turbocharging. What started off as a small enterprise with just 15 employees would quickly grow into something far more substantial. It would do so in a city now home to one of the highest concentrations of international shipping groups and global maritime service providers.

Nick Yong, HUB Business Line Manager Turbocharging Singapore, explains: “Singapore is one of the world’s largest bunkering hubs as well as an arbitration centre for shipping. There’s a vibrant maritime industry that thrives not only because of location, but also because of strong government incentive to ensure the industry remains competitive for sustainability and growth. It makes up to seven percent of the country’s GDP, and with close to 150,000 people employed in the industry, it’s easy to see why the country is so important to ABB Turbocharging and its customers.”

Following a move to larger premises in 1981, allowing the business to expand and introduce more proprietary services to Singapore, BBC Turbocharging would become part of the newly formed ABB family in 1988. After the historic merger of the two European engineering giants, we’ve seen plenty of new milestones achieved across the following three decades.

1995 saw the introduction of a specialized turbine blade service in Singapore, with our trained engineers helping customers to recondition their turbochargers at a fraction of the cost of new part replacement. A round the clock refurbishment process within two to three days also helps to ensure minimum downtime.

Other key achievements for ABB Turbocharging in Singapore include the first 36,000 running hours service for the world’s largest turbocharger – the ABB TPL91 – while 2014 and 2018 saw ABB Turbocharging pick up an award for Local Business of the Year for new sales and service business, respectively.

Investing in people

ABB Turbocharging’s success in Singapore isn’t simply about numbers, but the people who’ve worked for us along the way over many years.

“We’re very proud of the dynamic team here,” says Nick, “and they’ve helped us to consistently achieve high market share for both new and after sales business. The focus is very much on our employees, and with a well-customized management training programme roll out every other year, we’re investing in the development of future talent.”

It’s been an exciting 40 years for ABB Turbocharging in Singapore, then, but things don’t look like slowing down any time soon. Nick explains: “We’re looking forward to more success when it comes to building long-term relationships with customers, and we’re also scouting for additional young talent to help us grow.”

Customers will also be better served as ABB Turbocharging looks to digitalize its warehousing and service operation in Singapore, improving efficiency and introducing more effective coordination, traceability and responsiveness, providing even better value.

At the gathering to celebrate the anniversary, Nick said: “We’re all so excited today with such a strong turnout from the shipping community and we look forward to celebrating our 50 years anniversary.”

Image credit: Swapnil Bapat/Upsplash