Fugro / rovtech, Good idea??????

Member Joined: Aug 30, 2005 Location: Aberdeen

well now the dust is settling and the harmonisation is nearing a conclusion. whats the actual thoughts on the merger, buy out whatever it is?? how long before the rovtech name is dropped?? whats in it for AB, GC and co??£££££'s!!!! did they sell you rovtech guys up the river? will you stay??

answers on a postcard to AB and JS Wink

Member Joined: Jun 12, 2004 Location: Braziiiiil!

You guys will be fighting amongst yourselves for another few years, just like UDI/Thales.

Member Joined: Mar 31, 2006

aye, they'll still be bitching for a while yet. Bet some of the fugro punters aren't happy chappies.

piedpiper

Member Joined: Sep 01, 2005

actually quite a few fugro guys have left....

but anyway on the cynical side is it good, well yes it is fugro survey is exactly that and fugro rovtech is exactly that the 2 are split into lovely camps (easy for selling off in the future!... maybe).

did AB sell us up the river i dont think so there were rumours every year about a sell etc i for one rather the fugro deal to the oceaneering one (wether that was ever real and not just a ploy to get us happy about fugro).
again we forget we work for companies that are quite frankly in the game to make money for themselves and for their investors , noone set up a company thinking 'you know i feel sorry for my fellow man/woman i think i will start a company for them' yet again we hear all the time how poor we are , how unfair we are treated.

generally we are well paid would i accept more money if possible of course i would , do i think AB should have kept the company till he was 80 and handed over GC nah.... he and nearly all worked to make rovtech a viable and worthwhile company and that showed in the final deal they made , to get bought out and keep the name lovely .

from what i read about the harmonisation the fugro side realise the problems that they had to deal with from previous take overs and they are trying to accomodate , it will be better all round.
people will come and go as is the norm then it will all level out or there will be another crash and our cars will be worth more than our houses....

anyway this is 100th post!

Member Joined: Mar 31, 2007

Yes but most of them left before the takeover/buyout/merger call it what you will. Already the Fugro ROV based office staff have moved into the old Rovtech office in Loyang Base, Singapore.

I went through the Thales/Fugro deal and it made little if any difference to the guys offshore.

Member Joined: Sep 01, 2005

the asia take over is slightly different. and yes edmond is in loyang martin has space there as does stanley.

i would say that the asia market has been strengthened by it, but it is still called fugro survey and as a recent memo said 'it is a seperate entity to fugro rovtech uk'.

pay is different etc etc etc etc

Member Joined: Mar 31, 2007

The company office in Loyang is actually called Fugro - Rovtech.
The business cards being handed out are that as well.

It has all the signs of becoming a its own division if you want to call it that under the Fugro Survey banner. Other than the new builds being done at the main office/workshop all other ROV business/personnel can be found at the Loyang office.

Member Joined: Sep 01, 2005

ok my learned friend but as the forum question was :

fugro rovtech a good idea?

not the location of the personnel in singapore or the workshop or the office.
as i said the asia and uk merger is a totally different thing. that would be a whole different forum, in my humble opinion.

Member Joined: Mar 31, 2007

Good idea, probably if you are a shareholder. Employees are never asked nor considered if mergers or takeovers are a good idea.

But you obviously consider them two different companies with the same name just because of geographical location if you suggest that the UK and Asia mergers are different.

I'd be interested to know how that works?

Member Joined: Jun 12, 2004 Location: Braziiiiil!

[quote="misiuek"]actually quite a few fugro guys have left....

...generally we are well paid ...
[quote]

There have only been about 5 Fugro left since the merger and some of them were nothing to do with it. How many Rovtech have left so far, about the same?

You obviously weren't well paid or all of Rovtech wouldnt be whinging about how poorly paid they are and they are all leaving. Laughing

It is quite possible to have a company called ABC Limited in the UK and ABC Pte or whatever they call them in Singapore and they are still seperate. No matter what they are called, they are all seperate companies who all report back to Holland.

Its been a good idea to AB and the other Rovtech shareholders, in a few years time once his tie in finishes he wil go away and set up another company and do it all over again.

Fugro Rovtech a good idea? its one less ROV company in existance, less places to move to, less competition so less reason for them to keep the wages up. Bigger, non personal company, people become a number not a name. How often will you actually speak to/meet your new manager Mr McKay?

Member Joined: Sep 01, 2005

i was well paid!

i havent worked/even been back to the uk for 2 years even then it was 1 trip a year so in all 5 years i have been based in singapore.

all fugro companies report back to holland of course.

all i am saying is the fugro asia and fugro uk is so different ok for 1 contracts differ, for 2 nobody apart from the guys working asia on uk contracts have any involvement in the harmonisation (was 3 now 2 personnel)

fugro (rovtech) asia will be greatly better off reece has/will fight tooth and nail to get the rates up from the joke they were before and correct me if i am wrong has already succeeded greatly.

ok fact 1 fugro uk had much higher salary than rovtech uk
fact 2 rovtech asia was much higher than fugro asia

loads of difference in the contracts (ie the harmonisation) but what i have said is the basic layout.

Member Joined: Mar 31, 2007

Maybe the hardest part to accept for the Rovtech guys in Fugro is the fact that they now are employed by a company where ROV's are not the core business any longer.

They are now part of a larger and very impersonal company where ROV's and the operation of is just a little bit of the pie. It now gets harder to raise standards and pay because instead of asking for more and comparing the rates/conditions between ROV companies. The comparisons are now going to be made with what survey employees are being paid within the company and be assured they wont want to see ROV rates get ahead. Instead you will find parity between surveyors and pilot techs and supervisor and party chief positions plus all the other in between grades.

But whether or not you like the idea of a merger at the end of the day there are still jobs elsewhere if you don't like what's on offer with the new company.

Member Joined: Aug 30, 2005 Location: Aberdeen

cullain
disagree there, the rates between the fugro survey and fugro rov guys has always been vast in favour of the ROV people, taken theme long enought to grade the ROV people never mind coming in line with survey. pay difrences was always one of the biggest complaints by survey techs and party chiefs, besides the fugro survey fugro rovtech will now be run as diffrent company's and pay comparisons won't/shouldn't come into it

regards the merger buy or buyout does any one actually know what it was? Confused

If AB left tomorrow and started another company how many of you would follow? When do you think the rovtech name will be dropped?? Shocked

Member Joined: Mar 14, 2007

Truered

Heard a rumour that none of the Rovtech management can do anything for 2 years or they forfeit there well earned dosh,if they want to continue in ROV line of work.
Anybody who knows anything aout the company will tell you who they are and roughly what they got.
AB being top dog of course.

Member Joined: Mar 31, 2007

truered

I don't know about the UK setup but the supposed deal in Singapore is the contracts and rates are being set by Fugro Survey not Fugro Rovtech.

It isn't being run as a different company just a part of the overall company. The ROV management still answer to the main Singapore office who in turn answer to Holland.

From what I hear there is only one level of pay for each category on the salary contracts being offered, day rates might be a bit different though.