Trimble Introduces Marine Equipment Interface to SITECH Dealers at Conference in Peru
At its SITECH® Momentum conference in Lima, Peru on January 30 through February 2, the Trimble Civil Engineering and Construction division introduced its new Advanced Marine Partner (AMP) concept to the assembled general managers and owner principals.
Shea Griffin, Trimble Marine Regional Sales Manager, Americas Civil Engineering and Construction Division, and Lou Nash, president of Measutronics Corporation, the first Trimble designated AMP company, presented on each of the three days of the conference. They explained the benefits of the Trimble Advanced Marine Partnership and how the program will enhance the SITECH dealer channels’ ability to provide needed marine positioning and guidance systems for customers requiring on-water construction systems. About 100 managers attended the conference, and Nash estimated that over 20 per day attended their talks.
The SITECH dealer channel is Trimble’s network of trained and well-equipped construction technology dealers for Trimble’s portfolio of Site Positioning Systems and machine control hardware and software. The channel’s services include customer training, installation and support needed for each construction operation.
Trimble has provided GPS hardware and software to the dredging and marine construction industry since its inception in the late 1980s.
In designating an Advanced Marine Partner, Trimble endorses that company’s ability as a marine systems integrator and solutions provider through which the SITECH dealers can provide a land/water interface on projects such as bridge building, terminal and berth construction, and other applications involving both land and water-based dredging and construction activities.
Nash On Board Since 1997
Trimble designated Measutronics an AMP in the fourth quarter of 2017. Established by Lou Nash in 1997 to support hydrographic surveying and dredge guidance operations, Measutronics became an official Trimble dealer and installer of Trimble’s marine construction portfolio in 2001. He works exclusively in water-based operations, and is known for his innovative systems integration. Measurtronics represents more than a dozen manufacturers of sensors and other equipment required for the dynamic positioning and bottom mapping involved in working on the water.
Discussing the move to create an Advanced Marine Partner program, Paul J. Thomas, director of sales and distribution in the Americas for Trimble’s Civil Engineering Construction and Marine Division, said that Trimble has always had a significant presence in the marine construction market and continues to look for and develop technologies for these applications.
“We see the marine construction opportunities as significant, and they tie directly to our core heavy civil construction technologies. Case in point, (Trimble systems are in use in the construction of) the new largest refrigerated container port in the world in Limon, Costa Rica. It is a massive construction project. Trimble thrives in these environments and now we have more to offer with the Advance Marine Partner program.”
He explained Trimble’s energetic marketing of its machine control and site positioning solutions by saying “Competition continues to arise all around us and will especially when they see the opportunities in developing a new market or capitalizing in an existing market. There continue to be local players all over the world that just specialize in each region or country. They do well, but we also see customers in marine working ALL over the world demanding a stronger worldwide technology presence and support channel.”
Scott Crozier, general manager of Trimble Civil Engineering and Construction, added: “There is alignment and overlap with the solutions we provide for civil construction so naturally expanding our reach and applying those solutions into marine construction, augmented by marine application software, provides us with a growth vehicle.”
“Trimble’s marine construction team will continue to evolve our solutions as we optimize and transform marine construction workflows. Primarily, this will be done through connecting project assets with the office, providing real time data and reducing rework, downtime and poor decision making. Further into the future we see increased levels of automation being brought into the total solution offerings,” he said. “Our approach is to provide global solutions and support that combines the strength of our global SITECH channel with the know-how and capability of our marine partners to satisfy contractors that span both civil and marine projects,” he said.
