After taking you behind the scenes of the Dockmaster and QSE Officer jobs, Carenco, operator of the Port of Concarneau, Construction et Réparation Navales, gives the floor to Pierre Le Hecho, Maintenance Manager.
Pierre, a worker at the Port of Concarneau, CRN for 12 years
After gaining an Industrial Maintenance BTS, Pierre’s passion for general repairs and the maritime environment led him to complete a Port and Ship Maintenance Licence as an apprentice with Carenco (formerly SEMCAR), operator of the Port of Concarneau, CRN. As soon as he obtained his Bac+3, Pierre continued at Carenco as a technical agent in a team of 8 people. In 2021, he became Maintenance Manager at the Port of Concarneau, CRN. To keep up with the constant changes in the shipbuilding industry, the Maintenance Manager undertakes in-house training courses such as CASES for driving forklift trucks and aerial platforms, Occupational Health and Safety (OHS), Excel, Scaffolding and Computer-Aided Maintenance Management (CMMS).
What does it mean to be a maintenance manager at Carenco?
Pierre’s main role is to manage all of the port’s maintenance, by creating preventive maintenance schedules and responding to corrective maintenance, particularly on all the quays, as well as for its infrastructures. The maintenance work carried out in the field is very varied. For example, replacing scaffolding to gain access to the ships, keeping the various energy distribution points (water, electricity) operational, daily and annual maintenance of tools (ELS, CS, ASC, CAM, water treatment station), etc.
The multi-skilled Maintenance Manager also has secondary duties. He can assist the teams with a water outage, help with administration and invoicing, and much more…
Pierre is also leading the process to obtain ISO 140001 certification and is working with 4 other members of the team to improve the port’s ecological impact. Pierre’s tasks involve water management (consumption, improving consumption), the use of eco-bio products such as hydraulic oil paints, etc.
To carry out his tasks successfully, the Maintenance Manager needs to be organised and know how to prioritise. ‘At the Port of Concarneau, CRN, we work as part of a close-knit team, in a pleasant atmosphere, with good support and attentive management. What I particularly like about my job as Maintenance Manager is the diversity of the work we do – we never have time to get bored,’ says Pierre.
The specificity of the Port of Concarneau, CRN
The Port of Concarneau, Shipbuilding and Repair, may not be the largest, but it is home to a wide range of professions. The teams work hard to provide the best possible response to shipowners’ demands. The Port is also the only one in Brittany to have a unique set of industrial facilities. It has appropriate and complementary infrastructures, enabling it to accommodate and work on all types of ships up to 115 metres long. Concarneau is also the only port in Brittany to have three facilities for hoisting ships of up to 2,000 tonnes onto the quayside. It handles an average of 160 ship movements a year.
Another of Concarneau’s assets is the creation of its Port of Concarneau Interprofession. All the companies work hand in hand, without intermediaries. This proximity enables Carenco’s teams to react quickly and provide a complete response to their customers.
A typical day as Maintenance Manager at Carenco
‘My day starts with a handover of maintenance actions with the team. Then I go round the facilities, such as the strap lift, the dry dock and the boat lift, to check that everything is in order. If any work needs to be done, I plan my day accordingly. I also take a look at the water treatment plant. Then, depending on the urgency of the situation, I spend part of my morning in the office preparing the next maintenance actions, ordering the necessary parts, contacting subcontractors for certain jobs, entering data into the CMMS, invoicing the ships, etc.
My afternoons are spent in the field. I intervene as required, but we always try to work in pairs to avoid any risks. The port remains a dangerous environment.
In reality, I don’t have a typical day and my days are punctuated by the problems we encounter’, Pierre Le Hecho tells us.
An anecdote from a worker at the Port of Concarneau, CRN
‘My first day as an apprentice was marked by the arrival of the Abeille Languedoc, an impressive 63 metre long tugboat. Right away, I felt like a kid, gripped by passion and amazement at the immensity of the boats we usually see on television. We carried out her annual maintenance, during which I had the chance to visit her. I have very fond memories of this monster of the seas,’ says Pierre, Maintenance Manager.
Today, the Maintenance Manager of the Port of Concarneau, CRN, plays an essential role in the smooth running of the port and the reception of ships. This multi-faceted role enables the Carenco teams to respond quickly to shipowners’ requests, and contributes to the climate of trust that reigns in Concarneau.
