Gazocean
Working at Gazocean
Working at GAZOCEAN
Working at GAZOCEAN means working in a challenging international sector where every working day is unique.
All GAZOCEAN employees are at the service of the Company’s customers in order to transport cargoes under optimum safety conditions.
As a company on a human scale, we are committed to :
- Valuing all our employees by eliminating all forms of inequality between men and women in the workplace;
- Combating all forms of harassment and discrimination;
- Develop employees’ skills through training or assignments;
- Implement appropriate tools to improve work both at head office and on the vessels
- Monitor employees’ careers and enable them to progress.
- Work on conditions and quality of life at work.
Interviews
What was your initial educational background before joining GAZOCEAN?
My background is very literary. After passing my BAC L, I went on to do a degree in Foreign Languages, Literature and Civilisations: English Studies.
Having worked in a number of different professions (events management, sales, teaching, etc.), I decided to take a skills assessment which steered me towards international trade. I took a professional qualification as an import-export assistant.
Can you tell us about your career at Gazocean since you joined?
I joined Gazocean as a temporary administrative assistant for a 2-month assignment from September to October. I’d just come back from a year as an expatriate in Portugal and I had no idea that this assignment would become my permanent job.
I’m in charge of entering documents for all the departments on their new platform: NiBiKi.
My assignment has been extended until March. I’m lucky enough to be in a company where your curiosity isn’t put off. I ask my colleagues in different departments questions to find out more about their tasks, I ask to learn and I’m taught without refusal. I felt privileged, I had this feeling of working and being like a student at the same time, but learning on the job. Before the end of my assignment, I was asked if I wanted to stay with the company on a permanent contract for a completely new position, which made it even easier for me to see myself in the future.
Can you tell us about your current job?
I’m currently the Marine QSSE coordinator and my tasks are varied.
I have to monitor and manage the administration of files (such as incidents/accidents, for example), update the various dashboards, produce the department’s various reports and prepare the annual review, organise meetings, travel for audits and occasional events, manage the team’s diary, ensure the flow of information and the link between departments and ships, etc.
What do you like about your job?
The variety of tasks. Every day is different and I learn something new every day. There’s no time for boredom.
The tasks I do every day are not meaningless. I know the purpose of my actions and that purpose is far from superficial. The sense of responsibility is important and very rewarding; it motivates us to be rigorous and to do things consistently. I know that as I gain experience and knowledge, I’ll be able to progress and take on even more varied tasks, which makes me even more eager to learn.
How would you introduce GAZOCEAN to a new recruit?
It’s a place where you’re given a chance, whatever your initial training and background. Integration is easy and natural. Before being contacted by my temp agency for my first assignment at GAZOCEAN, I didn’t know what an LNG carrier was, or even that gas could be liquefied. I didn’t have a background in QSSE either, and yet they believed in me and I have developed and continue to develop my skills within this company.
What is your current position? What are your duties?
Polyvalent officer. The tasks are very varied depending on what you do on board.
On deck, when the vessel is at sea, you have to stand watch for 8 hours a day (steering the vessel, collision avoidance, watchkeeping, etc.), as well as being responsible for one of the three deck departments. The first department is navigation (plotting the ship’s course, weather watch, maintenance and testing of navigation instruments, etc.). The second is the commissariat (administrative management). The third is the safety department, which is responsible for maintaining and testing all the vessel’s safety equipment (fire, abandonment, etc.). On arrival in port, you have to supervise the mooring manoeuvre on one of the two manoeuvring beaches. This is a very sensitive operation because it is dangerous, and you have to ensure the safety of the crew. Then, on the quayside, the watches take place at Cargo HQ, where the ship is loaded and unloaded.
On the engine, each officer is responsible for a dedicated department. This involves operating the equipment (propulsion, production of electricity and fresh water, refrigeration systems, management of effluents, refrigeration circuits, etc.), looking after their maintenance, and sometimes troubleshooting.
All these tasks have a supervisory dimension, as we are usually responsible for one or more crew members.
Why did you choose to work in the Merchant Navy?
It’s a job that calls on a very wide range of knowledge, so it’s very rewarding. You get to travel all over the place, see a lot of the country (less and less, to be honest) and meet very different crews. Experienced sailors are very interesting people, and you learn a lot from them.
It’s a job in which you’re given a lot of responsibility at a very young age, and which combines both intellectual and practical tasks. A lot of the knowledge you acquire is transferable to everyday life.
Of all the different types of sailing, why did you choose ocean racing?
It’s the one that best corresponds to the life of a sailor as we imagine it: going far, for a long time, all over the place. The slower pace of sailing allows a real crew spirit to develop. The ship benefits from greater autonomy, even if on the other hand the demands are greater because support from land is further away.
This type of sailing is particularly suited to younger people and single people, but for others it can get a bit tiresome over time!
Why GAZOCEAN?
When I joined GAZOCEAN, the company had a reputation for being a good place to live (secure jobs, demanding and interesting work, good atmosphere), but where career development prospects were only conceivable in the very long term.
Now the company is expanding at breakneck speed. If the spirit continues despite the success, there will be nothing but good reasons to come to Gazo!
What do you get out of this job?
A wide range of skills that are transferable to many other aspects of life (social life, dealing with pressure, responsibilities, high standards, rigour, skills in mechanics, plumbing, electricity etc).
My greatest joy in this job is meeting very different and enriching personalities.
It’s a well-paid job, with long periods of leave, even if the absences are just as long. There’s a very good balance between intellectual and practical tasks, and there’s still room for personal initiative.
What qualities do you think you need to sail on LNG tankers?
The most essential qualities are human (concern for others, ability to understand and manage, living in a community, politeness, respect for hierarchy, etc.).
Next, you need to have a sense of responsibility, be rigorous, curious, adaptable and have a concern for a job well done. It’s best not to be impressionable and to know how to handle stress and pressure, even if this can be learned.
Finally, it’s good to be fairly handy.
Have you done any work ashore? If so, what have you learnt from them?
Yes, first of all it’s the best way to meet our colleagues at head office. Secondly, it gives us a good insight into their day-to-day work, and so facilitates mutual understanding and future exchanges. Finally, it’s a good way of broadening your range of skills and knowledge.
How would you introduce GAZOCEAN to a new recruit?
GAZOCEAN is a company specialising in the transport of liquefied natural gas. It’s a fast-growing company, with a bright future ahead of it with the arrival of new ships and the addition of a fleet of LPG (petroleum gas) tankers. So there are great opportunities for development.
It’s a company with a very family spirit, even if maintaining this fine characteristic will be a challenge given the large expansion.
What is your background (initial training)?
I joined the ENSM (Ecole Nationale Supérieure Maritime) in 2000 to train as a Merchant Navy Officer 1st Class. It’s a multi-purpose course: Deck and Engine. At the time, we did 3 years at the school with on-board training, then 2 years at sea (1 year as a student and 1 year as a Lieutenant) and finally a final year at the school to take the Commandant’s diploma.
Why did you choose the Merchant Navy?
In my final year I was looking for practical training, not just theory. I heard about the Merchant Navy. I didn’t live near the sea and it wasn’t a passion, but the unusual side of this profession attracted me. What’s more, it was very easy to find work when I left school (which is still the case today). I did a work placement on board an ammonia tanker a few months after I started school and I loved it. I found the job very rewarding both professionally and personally. It’s a varied profession in terms of the types of shipping (cruise ships, gas carriers, cable-layers, oil tankers, etc.) and the positions on board (deck, engine).
What were your positions as officer ?
I started working for a ferry company as a student, then as a deck officer in charge of safety and navigation. In 2007, I joined GAZOCEAN as an engineering officer, first on steam turbine ships, then on dual-fuel diesel-electric ships. I then held the positions of navigation officer and chief officer, in charge of loading and unloading operations and LNG carrier safety.
Why did you end your career as an officer?
I decided to stop sailing for family reasons and GAZOCEAN offered me a place ashore, enabling me to reconcile a professional activity with family life.
What job do you do now?
I’m a Project Manager in the BDCT department, where we provide consultancy and training services for external customers. I use my operational experience gained on board GAZOCEAN vessels for projects involving conventional LNG carriers, FSRUs or LNG fuel vessels. I’m also in charge of the training we give to external customers (LNG fuel users, port authorities or staff working in the LNG industry). We have a partnership with ENSM for all GAS training courses (LNG carriers and LNG fuel).
How would you introduce GAZOCEAN to a new recruit?
Our strength is the business (type of vessel) within the business (Ship Manager). The operation of gas tankers has its own particularities: the product, the technical nature of the vessels and the safety requirements. GAZOCEAN remains a company on a human scale, even with the current expansion.