Cruise and Ferry Review - Summer/Spring 2020

1 8 0 A successful double deployment of LSA’s 22-metre slide was conducted from the new Armas vessel, Volcán de Tagoro INTERV IEW Exciting times ahead Mollie Grainger tells Richard Humphreys about her new role as business manager for Liferaft Systems Australia and how the company plans to better serve passenger ship operators Can you tell us what your role at Liferaft Systems Australia (LSA) entails? My role includes everything from finalising the administration of contracts, managing accounts, legal advice, organising freight, or anything else to ensure that LSA runs smoothly. I work closely with the management team at head office. I also liaise with our dedicated offices in Europe and North America. Why do you like this role and what do you hope to achieve? I particularly like the international aspect of LSA as over 95% of our sales are for export outside of Australia. My immediate plan is to get to know the existing client base and improve services for all customers. We also plan to streamline our internal and external policies to be a more efficient business globally. I have university degrees in business and law which I intend to put to good use in my role as business manager. What does the future hold for LSA? We have a very full order book stretching out several years and we’re developing new marine evacuation products. To keep up with increasing demand from both new and existing customers, we’ve expanded our production capacity by 30%. We’ve also recruited the next generation of managers to reenergise our workforce. New and varied opportunities are being presented to us constantly and the long-term future of the business looks extremely positive. How will LSA improve its services for passenger ship operators this decade? We need to be innovative. It’s important to provide customers with a high-quality product, a high level of personal service and value for money. LSA pioneered inclined slide-based Marine Evacuation System technology and, after nearly 30 years of experience, we believe no company in this industry understands their customers’ requirements quite like LSA. CFR “It’s important to provide customers with a high-quality product”