Today we are talking to Jean-François Taisne (AKA Jeff)  who manages special projects within Olivier Revel’s team.  

Jeff: tell us about your work-experience…

I joined the team in 1996, meaning that I have served our company for almost 30 years! When I joined the clan way back when I brought with me a wealth of experience and have since gone on to work with some of our biggest clients. I have held multiple positions: technician, maintenance manager on-site, methods office, asset manager as well as being a field engineer. All this experience within Serimax is now put to use working on our special projects’ unit. The special projects unit is headed up by me and requires studying all projects where the perimeter of services is extended outside of the Welding Procedure Qualification Test (WPQT) and welding operations.

What is the key to managing a successful special project?

One of the biggest and most important keys to the success of special projects is really listening to the client and putting ourselves in their shoes. We have so much welding experience across many various industries however we must take the time to listen and understand what the client needs and why they have come to us before we decided to make a decision based on what we already know from our own experience. So, I would definitely say that it is listening to the client.

What is the definition of a special project in Serimax terminology?

The definition of a special project is anything that goes above and beyond the scope of services extended outside of the WPQT and Welding operations. This could be anything from a pre-fabrication project, multi-jointing, wind farm welding project and so forth.

How do we add value as a welding specialist?

With our vast operational experience around the world working in various industries on projects based onshore, offshore and spoolbase we have gathered a wealth of knowledge ready to provide to our clients. We know that time is money and downtime is a serious cost to any business so working together early on in the project stage is beneficial for both the client and Serimax. We understand the specifications and most of the operational constraints having been in the industry since 1978 we know and have lived through some tough times and we have what it takes to guide our clients through the rough and the tough. But not only that, we have the right technology and the teams in place ready to deploy when needed. Serimax specializes in equipment but also has a huge team of welders and operational managers working around the globe. So where there’s a problem, there’s always a solution with us.