Whatever happened when one of the world’s top manufacturers of fish filleting machinery discontinued some popular products — it meant business for Petur Larsen, a leading international specialist in used Baader equipment.
Ask Baader, a world-renowned manufacturer of seafood processing machinery, for used equipment and they’ll point you to, guess where—the Faroe Islands. There, in the small town of Fuglafjørður, you’ll find the company Petur Larsen, long time Baader agents with their own workshop for repairs and maintenance.
Named after its founder, mechanical engineer Petur Larsen, who took care of Baader filleting machines in Greenland for just about a decade before returning home to start his own company in 1971, and run it for the next 36 years, Petur Larsen today is fast becoming a recognized name in the world of Baader fish processing equipment — not least used machinery.
A niche market in its own right, used Baader machinery is in high demand around the world, according to Petur Larsen managing director Rógvi Róin.
“The international market for used Baader machinery has become significant,” Mr. Róin said, “as many of the old filleting machines remain in demand.”
Baader discontinued a series of products for whitefish processing back in the 1990s to focus more on equipment for salmonoids and pelagic species, said Atli Larsen, who, together with his brother Mr. Róin, took over the ownership of his father’s company in 2007.
“They came up later with a new generation of highly advanced and computerized equipment for whitefish,” Mr. Larsen said, “but a good number of clients prefer the older models. Whatever the reason, we’re getting more and more busy repairing, maintaining and delivering such machinery. But mind you, we also provide new equipment — we’ve just delivered a fully computerized filleting line for a major fish farming company.”
But in the international marketplace, used machinery is the company’s stronghold.
Mr. Larsen added: “Our expertise in this particular area is such that even Baader themselves recommend us, both because they do not sell used equipment and because even they do not have the necessary expertise in-house anymore when it comes to repairs and maintenance of such equipment.”
While most of the engineers and assemblers that were around in the heyday of the machinery that now makes up the used market have retired, Mr. Larsen himself, on the other hand, was among the youngest back then.
‘Strict test’: Today, with more than 25 years of experience in Baader seafood processing machinery, Mr. Larsen is believed to be one of world’s foremost experts in his field. Having completed his training as mechanical engineer and gathered relevant work experience at a local fish processing plant in the early to mid 1980s, he went to Lübeck, Germany, to work with Baader for a year. The specialist training and experience he received there made a world of difference, he said.
“It was a great experience and I learned many things that I would never have learned in the Faroes or anywhere else for that matter. The Germans have a saying, ‘Ordnung muss sein,’ which literally means, ‘There must be order,’ and I got a whole new understanding of what that means.”
True to their code as laid out by Larsen senior, the company founder, who was known for his commitment to meticulous repair and maintenance, Petur Larsen employees take great pride in delivering top quality work. With several Baader trained engineers in the workforce, the company is in a unique position to handle used Baader machinery.
“We get calls from all around Europe, everywhere,” Mr. Larsen said. “I just came back from Denmark where I checked a filleting machine that is bound for France in a few days. Once it arrives in there, either myself or someone else from our company will go to the location to assemble it. We have delivered machinery to many places — Belgium, Holland, France, Sweden, Denmark, Greenland, to name some. We work closely with Baader in Germany to help them serve clients who enquire about used machinery.”
For Petur Larsen, servicing and selling used Baader machinery usually involves dissembling and reassembling the equipment to make sure it’s in good condition before final delivery.
“Many people may sell used equipment,” Mr. Róin said. “In some cases, though, I’d rather not like to see such equipment arrive at a processing plant; because if you cannot ensure it’s in good working condition, it will spell problems. We simply do not deliver unless the equipment is in good working condition. Every item has to pass a strict test and there are three specific levels we refer to in that respect — Mechanically Good, Refurbished, or Fully Refurbished.”
