YOUR PROPULSION EXPERTS
Whatever Julio Carrasquilla touches, he pursues with his full attention: once anchored in the maritime business, he acquired knowledge and experience at various companies in various positions, and uses it all to set up and expand SCHOTTEL de Colombia. When it comes to education, the 47-year-old leaves no stone unturned
Julio Carrasquilla’s start at SCHOTTEL is inextricably linked to setting up the establishment of the subsidiary in Colombia: “In 2015, SCHOTTEL de Colombia was founded with one employee to grant access to the markets of Colombia, Venezuela as well as the trade blocks of the Andean Community, Pacific Alliance and the Caribbean,” he looks back on the beginnings. “Since then, SCHOTTEL de Colombia has shown constant growth in terms of revenue and number of employees. I am extremely proud of all our achievements during this short period.”
The home of the subsidiary is the megacity of Cartagena on Colombia‘s Caribbean coast with the country’s most important oil and container port. It was here in his home town, where Julio gained his first professional experience in the maritime industry at Cotecmar, the largest Colombian shipyard, specializing in new builds, ship repair and conversions both for civil and naval vessels. Once affected with the maritime virus, he expanded his acquired knowledge in ship construction in Europe. In 2008, he gained further insights into ship construction in the European maritime industry at a renowned institute. In addition, as a PhD researcher at Delft University of Technology, he contributed to a number of projects focusing on improving ship construction efficiency. Before joining SCHOTTEL, he was working as project manager at Damen Shipyards Gorinchem, Netherlands.
What ultimately made Julio Carrasquilla want to work for the German propulsion expert? “With its heritage as the inventor of the rudder propeller, SCHOTTEL is one of the most important propulsion manufacturers worldwide. I wanted to be part of this great company.” Coming from a European company, in general, he was used to working in an international and well-structured environment. Once at SCHOTTEL, he was pleasantly surprised by the uncomplicated decision-making process and supporting initiatives. In turn, it is precisely these initiatives and creative freedoms that have favoured the growth of the subsidiary. “The most pertinent part of my job is to focus on what is important for all our customers – availability and cost efficiency. Overall, we aim to provide our customers with the benefits of being a long-term reliable partner,” he says, explaining his drive.
Unfortunately for the family man that he is as a father of two, his dedication to his profession also involves frequent absences: “This job is quite demanding, as I travel to customers in the LATAM region very often. Our entire sales territory extends to over 18 countries, so you‘re on the road and in the air a bit,” he laughs. “In addition, my responsibilities as General Manager include developing and implementing growth strategies, with all the associated tasks that have an impact on the day-to-day business. I am lucky to be supported by a very committed team of eleven employees distributed among three departments.”
With eight employees, Spares & Service is the strongest department in terms of personnel, followed by Finance (two) and Sales (one). In addition to the regular meetings at work, the entire team meets for a chat at the end of the week. From time to time, they also gather for social events and sports activities in their spare time. Sports also has a large impact on Julio’s life: “I go running and I do CrossFit. I am quite proud to say I have completed several 10K and half-marathon races.” However, his family – wife Ayda and twins Emmanuel and Jans – plays the biggest role in his life. Even though he is absent quite often, he loves to be with them every possible minute and enjoys activities like going to the cinema. Furthermore, the city of Cartagena, where they live, offers them a lot in terms of leisure activities with the seaside on their doorstep
When Julio tells us his plans to complete an MBA “to strengthen my knowledge in management and administration”, we start to wonder whether they have more than 24 hours in a day in Colombia. For the future of SCHOTTEL de Colombia, Julio also has ambitious plans: “We want to manage 80 per cent of the LATAM fleet by 2032. To achieve this, I plan to make a major investment in Cartagena for an own building and workshop.”
