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The Norsemen
Marlow workforce is one of the finest in the world. We have been
fortunate to assemble a talented group of bright, young people, tutored
and encouraged by masters willing and able to pass on trade secrets and
methods that only artists may possess. The strong work ethic is evident
in every department and in every employee providing the vibrant
environment for the production of one of the finest yachts in the world.
All employees are encouraged to further their skill sets; to contribute
to the development of better methods; to continually monitor and improve
the workplace for safety, economy, ecology and beauty.
An outstanding
employee is selected and honored quarterly for their efforts in their
field. Along with the individual recognition and award, the entire
workforce is recognized and rewarded annually with a lavish company
picnic. |
June 2009
The Marlow
Norsemen employee of the quarter is the most difficult one to pick since we
began. This quarter’s pick works in the engineering department and, to be candid,
has some very strong competition from several of her co-workers.
She is responsible for quite a number of items related to the engineering
portion of building Marlow Explorer and Marlow Prowler Yachts. In addition, she,
like all in the department are assigned production QC oversight on individual
yachts under construction. These duties entail following the yacht through its
process beginning as a barrel of sticky resin, boxes of Corecel and rolls of
specially engineered and constructed fibers and ending when it goes over the
side of the ship where it is exported to the dealer.
Her tireless attitude, infectious enthusiasm and friendly, but persistent
demeanor endears her to her co-workers, project managers, section supervisors,
plant supervisor, COO and finally me as Chairman of Marlow.
She was born just 26 years ago in Zhang Zhou, located in Fujian province. She
has one sibling, a younger brother and likes to paint and sing karaoke with a
death grip on the microphone according to her fellow workers. Irene lives on
campus and on weekends sometimes goes by bus to Zhang Zhou to see her family.
It is with great pleasure that we present Irene with our Employee of the Quarter
award and Marlow Yachts will contribute another $500.00 to the employee picnic
fund to reward our workers and an employee of the quarter gift bag is on its way
to Irene.
January 2009
Michael Huang is named Chief
Operating Officer of Marlow Norsemen Shipyard. ..by
David Marlow
Huang Ming Chung, better known to us
as Michael Huang, has been with me since almost the beginning of Marlow
Yachts. My good fortune began when I flew to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to
inspect and interview a yacht building company owned by Volvo Asia as a
possible candidate to build the yet to be born Marlow Explorer lineup or
possibly to buy the company ourselves.
Michael was in charge of production at
Fadara Yachts, as it was called then. To limit his duties to that would
not take into account his value to the company when I observed his
"presence" in the factory or in the offices. It was obvious to me that
whenever possible, Michael made things happen.
I met Michael upon arrival and by the
time an hour had passed I had made up my mind that he could and should
be both an integral part of our plans and my friend as well. I liked him
immediately, finding him well versed in yacht building, customer care
and a host of other areas. Well versed in International politics, the
nuances of our industry and constantly trying to improve the area and
circumstances surrounding him. Michael is a perfect gentleman, polite
and good natured, while having the soul of a tiger.
Though I did not buy the company due
to a less favorable business climate than others offered, I did enjoy
Malaysia in general and found the Klang Valley region attractive. After
a road trip through Malaysia and onward to Singapore, New Zealand,
Australia, Taiwan, China, Thailand, Myanmar and India, I had several
possibilities under way but Michael’s talents kept coming to the
forefront. Upon making my decision as to where the first Marlows would
be built, I was pleasantly surprised to receive a communication from
Michael advising me that he had visited the beach on the eastern side of
Malaysia and the Northeast trades shouted to him that he should come
with me in my new venture, that it was to be his final place of
employment.
I hired Michael and he is Marlow
Yachts' first and therefore oldest employee. My initial appraisal of his
talents was very optimistic but he has exceeded that; in fact he has
continued to amaze me with his tireless work ethic and ability, while
keeping harmony among all. Michael is well liked by everyone who meets
him and most accommodating to any and all. Our customers tell us often
of how appreciative they are for his assistance in all matters. Many of
them refer to him as David’s Chinese son and I am proud to see it that
way. Our time together is always productive, fun and stimulating,
whether he is teaching me about the flora and fauna of Asia, making me
an exotic wild plant or animal dish in the wok, or discussing world
politics.
Many people see Michael and me
traveling about the world and I suspect that we have probably been
invited into more potential business partnerships than anyone else on
earth. The ventures range from plastics manufacturing, distribution
networks, real estate ventures, yacht building and numerous other areas.
Michael has since the beginning been
Head of Asian Operations, answering directly to me and he remains so
today but his duties have just become more diverse, as he has been named
Chief Operating Officer, or Managing Director of Marlow Norsemen
Shipbuilding as well.
I cannot imagine anyone more capable
as we move Marlow Norsemen into the future. Michael is a qualified
engineer, Naval Architect and a free thinker in business as well as
problematic minutia that would stop others. Michael has been with me
every step as we have continuously showed the fleet our heels in
technology and tomorrow’s yacht building.
Michael is married, with two children,
both of whom I enjoy visits with. One day I hope they too will decide to
mess around with boats.
September 2008
 Ah Shiang is our employee of the quarter at
Norsemen for her patience and diligence in making it a bit easier for us who
labor in production, management and other areas of our company. Ah Shiang is the
housekeeper at the VIP Center, where there are 13 apartments in a building
located on the Chi Hu River about eight miles from our factory. Her
responsibility is the management of the entire household for management and all
the guests who come to visit. These include the most important of visitors, our
customers, and range through the gamut of suppliers, vendors, and friends and
onwards to top Chinese governmental officials.
Her duties include all laundry, cooking, cleaning and financial management of
her budget. She has no set hours other than long. It is unusual for our group to
dine before eight p.m. with nine p.m. not unusual and midnight not out of the
question. The meals may go on for hours and Ah Shiang dutifully attends to all
our needs down to the last piece of fresh fruit as the nightcap.
Her humor is unassailable, with the most extreme reaction being one of pure
stoicism, devoid of facial expression. One cannot rattle or upset her. A
dignitary once spilled an entire one gallon crock pot of carefully made soup
containing dozens of carefully cooked and timely inserted ingredients on the
hard granite floors of the large dining room and Ah Shiang quickly and quietly
whisked away the mess and brought the next course with hardly a interruption.
Ah Shiang is married, with one child and like many of today’s Chinese of working
age, her mother is the caretaker of her child except on weekends where she
visits in the next valley over. Her husband works about one hundred miles away.
Her food preparation training was in a local eatery, though one would not
recognize it as such by simply passing by. She is expert at using a wok at
temperatures that if one hesitates for a second the meal is ruined. Cooking
primarily with a small amount of water and natural ingredients that produce a
variety of flavors in servings of water sautéed onions, cabbage and peppers
emerges in less than one minute, delicious beyond description.
June 2008
Hai Ming Huang is our employee of the quarter
for this period. Peter, as he is known, is the Lead Foreman of our FRP (Fiber
Reinforced Plastics) department. This takes in a huge area of responsibility and
carries lots of pressure with it, as Marlow Norsemen is known for continuously
pushing the envelope, especially in exotic fiberglass infusion and related
areas. For us to use the technology we must first develop it and then
destructive test it to prove its benefits. Peter is then responsible for phasing
it into the production cycle.
Peter comes to the job with some advantages in his genealogical background, as
his father was our first FRP foreman when we began the Marlow Explorer project
in Tainan many years ago. Peter’s father was named Dragon and he came by the
name honestly. He was much of a man and has passed on the good genes to his son.
Dragon moved to China with Marlow and worked in his usual productive fashion
until illness overcame him. Dragon passed away nearly two years ago and Peter
assumed the formidable task of following in his father’s footsteps. He has
proven to be up to the task growing at an impressive rate while carrying out his
day to day duties that are quite complex.
Peter has learned and embraced our RIVAT© infusion technology and manages a team
of 65 workers in his department. He is just 30 years of age but like many Asian
people of Chinese descent, he has wisdom born of common sense and hard work.
Peter loves to chew and offer Betel Nuts to visitors, smiling his infectious
grin almost constantly. He is about as upwardly mobile as one could imagine and
reliable as the day and night are long. His co-workers respect him and perform
for him. It is my great pleasure to have Peter with us, the second generation
Dragon at Marlow Norsemen.
January 2008
Pictured is Sun Yin of
Chi Hu Valley who is the Marlow-Norsemen employee of the quarter for this
period.
Sun is shown here with his usual bright smile assembling the Christmas gifts for
our Paint The Town Red Vinoy party.
The gifts were a beautiful dovetailed, ebony inlaid humidor with moisture
control for the gentlemen and the jewelry Trunk featuring beveled mirrors,
lovely detail work and abundant storage in an intricately designed, beautifully
built scallop shell like enclosure for the ladies in attendance. The black
radial lines are rock hard black ebony perfectly inlaid in Burmese Teak. The
lines are representative of the reinforcing ridges that radiate from the sea
scallop's shell, adding beauty and function.
Sun is 40 years old and heads the interior furniture division at Marlow
Norsemen. He is usually seen performing his artistry on the exquisite teak and
ebony steering wheels that are on all Marlow Yachts. His previous accolades
included building executive desks for VIPs that are considered works of art. To
date we have issued no challenge that he has not answered with skills seldom
seen in today's plastic stamped world.
Sun began with us on the first day of our grand adventure in Chi Hu Valley and
to my knowledge has never missed a day since.
Norsemen is filled with artists like Sun Yin and the job of singling one out as
exemplary when the total raw talent pool is appraised is very difficult. None
the less, it is with great pride that we award Sun the Employee of the quarter
award at Marlow-Norsemen Shipyard.
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