The lucky one who became our 100th member is Tony Uschanow! He picked up his gift at YoungShip Helsinki boardmember Antti Partanen's office in Turku. While there we thought to ask Tony a few questions on the maritime industry in Finland and why it is a great idea to join YongShip Helsinki.
How did you first get to know of YoungShip Helsinki and why did you decide to become a member?
- I found your page on LinkedIn and thought this would be a great chance to meet new people from the shipping industry. Also I see this as an opportunity to visit many different kind of places in events hosted by YoungShip.
What are you looking forward to experience through YoungShip Helsinki?
- I am looking forward to see people and get to know them.
What is your background within the maritime industry in Finland?
- I grew up in the Port of Turku and saw how passenger ships and cargo arrived and departed to and from the docks every day. Since, I have gained a great amount of experience and knowledge of the shipping industry, also from different levels and positions. I started as summer intern at Stevena Oy where I worked as a stevedore and learned how to handle cargo and drive a forklift/terminal tractor. Then I did some part-time job as a Port Agent at Baltic Line Finland. After this, I decided to get a better picture of the whole logistic supply chain, and spent almost two years at Freja Transport & Logistics Oy where I operated trailer import traffic from Europe to Finland, which gave me better insights to how road transport traffic works. Currently, I am at UPM Logistics (ex UPM Seaways) in Kotka and I am operating 5 UPM's T/C vessels. This period at UPM has given me a lot of knowledge of vessel operations and how paper/timber/pulp traffic works from Finland to all over the world. And last, the upcoming autumn will bring new challenges again in Turku...
I studied at Turku University of Applied Science (BBA, Logistics) and I did my thesis for Baltic Line, with the subject "Differences between owned vessel and T/C vessel". Antti Partanen from RABN was also a big part of the thesis. He teached me a lot on operating vessels and gave me the info about the vessel's maintenance/classification, costs, crewing and what is the process for a new building vessel project. A big thanks to him!
What do you wish people knew about the Maritime Industry in Finland?
- I think many young people or people not in this industry thinks the Maritime Industry is only cruise ships or Ferry traffic (Tallink Silja / Viking Line etc.). I think the same goes for the logistics industry, that it would only concerns trucks and containers, but it is so much more than that relating to the shipping industry. My hope is that we can improve the education and expand the netwerk creating new talents for the Maritime industry in the future.
... and at last... What would you tell someone who is thinking about joining YoungShip Helsinki?
- See you at the events!
Do you have a friend or a colleague that would like to join YoungShip Helsinki? Share the information to them about YoungShip and where to register! We have waived the membership fee for 2021 so there is no reason why not to join.