Originally a loom manufacturer, founded in 1920 by Michio Suzuki, the Suzuki Loom Manufacturing Company gradually expanded its business to include motorcycles, automobiles and outboard engines under the name Suzuki Motor Corporation. The group employs over 65,000 people worldwide. Established in 1984 and based in Trappes, Suzuki France has been managing the outboard engine business for the metropolitan market since 2012. In this entity, Jean-Baptise Romora holds the position of Technical Inspector.
What training, what diploma, what skills are needed for the job?
A professional bac to learn and practice to understand
Between mechanics and navigation, the common point is the sea, so, to combine these two interests, Jean-Baptiste chooses a technical course in high school and goes for a professional Baccalaureate in nautical mechanics in 3 years at the Lycée Professionnel la Coudoulière in Six-Fours-les-Plages.
"Then, as there was no BTS in marine maintenance and I didn't feel like going for a BTS in automotive internal combustion engines, I chose the navigation option and embarked on a 4-month training course to obtain the Captain 200 yacht certificate, a training course financed by my own money and the first step towards a mechanical merchant navy profession with the aim of obtaining the certificate of chief mechanic yacht 3000 kW. The fact that I was certified as a Captain 200, opened up both the navigation and the mechanical options", says our technical inspector.
"To validate the diploma of Captain 200, it is necessary to have completed 12 months, at least of navigation. But after 6 months on a passenger boat from Bandol specialising in tourist excursions, I realised that I preferred mechanics and gave up this course, which nevertheless validated the offshore licence, and found a job as a marine mechanic in Monaco in a ship repair and maintenance company: ADEM", explains Jean-Baptiste.
"I was trained by Franco, boss of ADEM, a 70 year old senior with a lot of experience and a real talent for mechanics, then I met Peter, also hired by Franco as a mechanic, a Dane with whom I really learnt to speak English as he doesn't speak French, and to improve my practical marine engine training with him," he says with respect and tenderness.
"Thanks to all the experience shared with Peter, I was able to join Eneria at the end of 2013: representing Caterpillar for France in La Ciotat, first in the Yachts business and then in the Generators business still on the same engine bases as a maintenance technician. I was on my own or in a team, I learned how to manage yards doing overhauls of complete engines. From these experiences, I was able to enrich my skills, first of all to refine my knowledge of engine mechanics and electronics, to speak English, to learn to work independently and above all to have developed a methodology for searching for unknown mechanical faults in order to solve them", he insists.
What is the daily life and responsibilities of this profession?
Be available, train and assist distributors
"I take care of the technical and after-sales service aspects for the Mediterranean area, the Alpine lakes and Corsica, which is quite a large area for a little more than 50 distributors, and I make myself available for every request. Each distributor is visited at least once a year", says Jean-Baptiste.
"Activities to which we must add the preparation of boat shows and especially the technical training of the network to prepare, create the materials and deliver. The aim is to interact with the group of technicians, but also to imagine new training courses to improve the technical competence of the distribution network," he continues.
"To sum up, I do a lot of telephone assistance, preparation and network contact. Managing the after-sales service remains my main activity, as well as technical reporting to my manager", summarizes Jean-Baptiste.
What are the possible developments in this profession?
Continue in the marine engine after sales service
"The reality is that there must be 8 of us in France with this function of outboard engine technical inspector, the evolution may be to replace my manager's position in the long term", says Jean-Baptiste, and finishes "For my level of study and the position I have, I consider myself very lucky, and for the moment if I have to project myself, my choice would be to stay in the after-sales service for the engine"... sailor obviously.
