30 years of Scottish Aquaculture
n Norway in 1985 Nils L Sande from Storvik Stål merged ÅSV (now known as Hydro Aluminium), Grytnes Entreprenør- forretning and Sunndal Energi to establish an aquaculture equipment supplier called Aqua Produkter AS. The main reasons behind this move were driven by the well-known fish farming co-operation Akvaforsk, who had expressed a need and a desire to have a local supplier of technical aquaculture equipment.
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This decision 25 years ago led to the birth of the well-known company that today supplies so many products to the industry – Storvik Aqua AS. The original management of this company was done by Peder Andres Rød, who has remained an integral part of the organisation and developed the growth of what is today known as Storvik Aqua AS, and he still is actively em- ployed and working within the company – both on product and market development and as the role of director within the three subsidiaries of Storvik. Working very closely with Akvaforsk, Aqua Produkter went on to design and build its first disc feeder. A simple, yet extremely reliable, concept that perfectly met the demands of the cus- tomers, this feeder quickly became a hit, and has since been delivered in large numbers to over 30 countries. Although still a humble feeder company, the success of the original disc feeder opened Aqua Produkter’s eyes to the huge potential offered by aquaculture, and so it began to invest in more equipment which could be delivered to aquaculture producers around the world. In the early days Aqua Produkter concentrated their main activity on equipment for land-based, freshwater aquaculture – further developing and improving the disc feeder, but also introducing new and advanced technology to create a feed- ing robot. Like the disc feeder this saw sales grow and take the company beyond Norway and expand into new markets across the globe.
Not just feeders
As aquaculture grew so did the reputation of Aqua Produkter and it began to develop products for marine facilities too – with innovations such as the Biomass Estimator and the Appetite- controlled Feeding system becoming especially popular. These great solutions to feeding and sample weighing paved the way for the company to become a recognised supplier to marine sites. And, all these original products, although vastly improved and developed, are still included in the company’s portfolio today.
The product range has been greatly expanded in recent years as the market grows and farmers need to provide ever-higher quality fish – moving towards environmental control and monitoring has been a particularly big request. As farmers are increasingly concerned about looking after the environment they work in, they look to the company to provide the most up-to-date answers and solutions. This has led to an extensive growth in our product range over the last 25 years, all started from that small disc feeder. In the early days Aqua Produkter employed a workforce that varied from one to three people. By working hard they achieved a Turnover of 3 to 4 million NOK (£315,000- £415,000) – a healthy but humble beginning. In 1995 Aqua Produkter AS was bought by Storvik AS. Aqua
Produkter was now incorporated into Storvik as a special department, still under the management of Peder Andres, and continued its growth under the strong arm of Storvik. Storvik AS then went on to establish two new subsidiaries – Storvik SA in Chile (2000) and Storvik Ltd in the UK (2007). This gave Storvik a stronger presence in markets they had been involved with since 1999.
Each one of these subsidiaries is now operated as an inde- pendent company and covers the retrospective markets while also assisting in new markets in new countries. Both companies
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STORVIK
have close ties with the founding company Storvik, who remains the owner, and they all share a common product range. This global presence has grown over the last 25 years and makes Storvik Aqua a leading player in all markets around the world. In 2008 Storvik AS was split, allowing its many departments to operate as separate corporations. The owners are the same, and the same familiar faces known within the industry that are working within this newly structured corporation. Today Storvik Aqua AS employs 13 people and has an annual turnover of 40 million NOK.
The future for Storvik Aqua will, without a doubt, still be in salmon farming. However, as other species and forms of aqua- culture grow, so too will Storvik Aqua, thanks to their continued desire to provide solutions to this developing industry – just as they have over the last 25 years. Moreover, as of the end of June 2010, Storvik Aqua has signed an agreement, reflecting our beginning as a freshwater and land-based developer, to provide modern solutions to recirculation systems and complete solutions for land-based aquaculture.
There is no doubt to anyone involved in the industry that the company has seen a lot of ups and downs. But, as we enter the second half of 2010, we are in a great position as an industry. However, with 25 years of experience, Storvik Aqua is keen to look at the longer-term picture in order to ensure that the industry continues to grow, farmers continue to profit and the needs of each individual company is fulfilled as they strive to produce the best seafood in the world. Working together – for a better tomorrow.
Opposite page - Storvik’s original warehouse premises This page - Appetite feeders ready for installation; the Storvik team, (L-R) Gunner Kindsbekken, David Walker & Peder Andres Rod.
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