Hartmann AG: History
The beginnings
After sailing with well-known German shipping companies for many years, Captain Alfred Hartmann became independent in 1981 – with a second-hand 1,500 tdw cargo ship and his wife as the only on-shore employee. Already 1983 the increasing fleet demanded further administration and thus office space and employees. Together with other shipping companies the “House of Shipping” was built in Leer, and the company moved in during the autumn of 1985. In the beginning Hartmann Shipping occupied only half a floor in the three-storey building. Today the entire building, now extended and remodeled, is used by the Hartmann Reederei alone.
Growth under the sign of globalisation
Incipient globalization and the related expansion of the shipping business made it necessary to establish further sites. In 1988 “Intership Navigation Co. Ltd.” was founded in Limassol, Cyprus. Like the Hartmann Reederei in Leer, Intership offers the complete range of ship management services.
A third ship management company was added in 1995 with Feederlines BV, based in Groningen in the Netherlands, also offering the complete management of vessels. Financing is predominantly achieved by following the CV model, comparable to the German limited partnerships. In the Netherlands alone around 8,000 private investors currently have a share in closed shipping funds initiated by the Group.
Commercial managment as a core responsibility
From early on the in-house chartering of the fleet was at the centre of Alfred Hartmann’s activities. Direct access to cargo is a core strategy of the Hartmann Group. It started in 1990 with GasChem in Hamburg, responsible for the commercial operations of the gas carrier fleet. In the meantime a large number of commercial management companies specialising in different kinds of cargo and/or ship sizes have joined the Group.
Qualifications and training
The initial qualification and training of seafarers is central to the success of the Hartmann Group, which was the reason for the Group opening its own maritime school in the Philippines in 1994. Here there is a fully equipped training centre, complete with simulators, engines, pumps and cranes. In September 2007 the navigation simulator SUSAN was put into operation in Leer. Students of the maritime school in Leer as well as already experienced captains, officers and crew profit from this training centre, which is co-financed by Reederei Buss. The latest element in this strive for highly qualified and motivated personnel is the “Web Academy.” Since 2008 the Magellan Academy of Shipping and Transport has been the ideal way – next to static training - to boost the qualifications of the seafarers by computer courses, which are also available on board. In addition to this, Alfred Hartmann, in conjunction with other ship owners in Leer, finances three professorships at the Maritime University in Leer.
The management holding
At the beginning of the 21st century the Hartmann-Group had reached a size which made it necessary to adapt its organisational structure. This led to the founding in 2001 of the Atlas Reederei AG, which, as a management holding, shapes the strategic direction of the Group and coordinates investments. Risk management, participation control, personnel policies and business communication are the further core responsibilities of the holding, which changed its name to Hartmann AG on 1st August, 2008.
Hartmann Offshore
Hartmann Offshore was founded in 2004 by Dr Niels Hartmann. As the fourth ship management company within the Hartmann Group, Hartmann Offshore concentrates on the offshore sector. After intensive market studies 12 ultra-modern, powerful anchor handling tug supply vessels (AHTS) were ordered. The first tug entered service in February 2009.
Worldwide success in service
Today the Hartmann Group offers a wide range of services in the maritime sector. Starting with the first shipping activities in the north of Germany, over the years an internationally successful company group has grown up, acquiring an established position in the world of ship-owning and -management. Today the worldwide Hartmann-Group several thousand people at sea and on land.
