Manager promises superior quality, efficiency and innovation
THE GUYANA Logistics And Support Services Inc. (GLASS Inc.) was officially launched last Tuesday evening, and it promises to be “a name that is synonymous with superior quality, efficiency, and innovation”. Launching of the start-up, private limited Guyanese company, providing logistics and support services to foreign companies and professionals operating in Guyana was held in the Savannah Suite of the Pegasus Hotel, in Kingston, Georgetown.
The main target markets of GLASS Inc are expatriate companies that will be working specifically in the oil, gas and mining sector of Guyana, and expatriate contractors who are in the country to provide services to those companies.
The services offered are as follows: Corporate legal services; documentation and license processing; engineering and procurement; brokerage; travel and immigration; shipping agency and stevedoring; logistics, transportation, security, and accommodation; relocation and domestic support; IT security; labour services; equipment and vehicle rental; and office and residential rental.
Managing Director of the company, Mr. John Lewis, in addressing the gathering, which included Canadian High Commissioner to Guyana, Mr. David Devine, noted that international companies presently conducting business in Guyana obtain logistics support from local providers, and they tend to rely on these companies’ experience and knowledge of local business procedures. But while there are many logistics providers available, these are mostly specialists who focus on their strengths, thus offering one or two of the services that clients require. Clients will therefore need to visit more than one company to get what they need, which could be quite a hassle.
After careful research of the target market, and realizing the extensive demands of expatriate companies and contractors, the owners of GLASS Inc. took the initiative of setting up under one roof a service provider that allows easy access to all of the services that clients require.
He said the company’s current main target customers are expatriate companies that work specifically for the oil, gas and mining sectors, and the company is also targeting expatriate contractors in the country with the aim of providing services to them.
“However, our successes in providing premium services to our current customers, and based on the opportunities presenting themselves to also service local companies, GLASS Inc. is endeavouring to expand and evolve our services in the future to include both local and expatriate companies, including the local manufacturing sector,” he disclosed.
He said the company, which has been in operation for approximately nine months, has been growing exponentially since it began operating. “We had been privileged to be associated with, and provide support services to, the oil company that just completed drilling offshore Guyana. We were also able to provide local manpower to the rig, and utilized local service providers to provide certain specific services,” Lewis disclosed.
He revealed that the company was currently in the final phase of signing a representative agreement with MPX Geophysics Ltd, an internationally accredited company that offers a complete suite of airborne geophysical survey equipment, using either fixed-wing or helicopter platforms.
With significant investments made by expatriate companies in the gold mining sector over the past two years, he said, GLASS Inc., in collaboration with MPX, is poised to be the only in-country service provider of geophysical services, which are critical to the start-up of gold mining operations.
Mr. Lewis assured that the company was also equipped to meet any and all other service needs of the gold mining sector. GLASS Inc., he said, has a management team which possesses direct knowledge of the industry, extensive research experience, and unique administrative skills; and has also built, and continues to build, a broad-based network of professionals and service companies upon whom they can rely for the provision of expert services.
He underscored as the company’s goal its intention to utilize local service providers and local manpower as far as possible. Moreover, he said it was their intention to provide some free basic training in occupational safety and health to persons who may be eligible to work in the oil, gas, or mining sectors; and will also facilitate the training of persons in Guyana, Trinidad and other countries with special skills, as required by sector-specific customers.
The company also intends to cooperate with the University of Guyana to allow graduates and prospective graduates an opportunity to expand their job prospects by registering with its job bank.
He said the company’s Mission Statement speaks to its commitment to being a premier service company in Guyana, with its motto being ‘Superior Logistical Support’.
Lewis noted that for the remainder of the current year, the company aims to continue to reach out to its target customers in the oil, gas, mining and manufacturing sectors.
“We hope to add to our customer base, and to engage service providers and professionals in a broader spectrum of services,” Lewis expressed.
He added that the company was well aware of the current operational and compliance difficulties present within the sectors in which it operates, and this means that the company would need to get extra creative and aggressive in its methods of operation and implementation ideas.
“We intend that the company will be a name synonymous with superior quality, efficiency, and innovation. We hope that in starting this company we will be able to meet the demands of a burgeoning foreign investment climate,” Lewis stated.