Master Divers celebrates four decades of marine experience
Master Divers (Pvt) Ltd, the renowned marine services company, also the company behind W. A. Tucker, recently celebrated four decades of marine experiences and pioneering speciality in underwater projects, under the theme ‘Greater Together’.
The event was attended by an esteemed gathering of Master Divers’s value chain including maritime stakeholders, services stakeholders, business partners, staff and other dignitaries.
In a media release, Master Divers said it engages in offshore and harbour based marine activities and maritime construction activities and maritime construction work in Thailand, Maldives, India, Singapore and Saudi Arabia.
It owns its own fleet of vessels and equipment, and is the only marine organisation in the Asian region with such facilities. It owns the largest salvage tug in the region and the largest hull cleaning machine in the world.
“As the oldest and most prestigious underwater services and salvage company our mission is to deliver a full range of industry standards compliance nautical maintenance and value added services to Sri Lanka. We have been focusing on saving the Sri Lankan shipping industry and our next step is to service the demand in the remaining parts of the South Asian region, which we have been serving since 1978,” said Ariyaseela Wickramanayake, Founder & Chairman, Master Divers and W A Tucker.
“I hope we would achieve our vision of becoming South Asia’s foremost diving and marine service provider. Hence, each year we keep on raising the bar higher for optimal work efficiency. This has been the key ingredient in our results. Hopefully, with that we may be able to extend our horizons and reach beyond the shores of South Asia, with innovative technology and enhanced services in the coming ye a r s,” added Mr. Wickramanayake.
Master Divers established in 1978 has been a part of many historical moments of Sri Lanka like for instance when the professional divers from Master Divers carried out an emergency dive at Victoria Dam when it was completely flooded when its outlets were jammed and helped preserve the Victoria Dam for future generations. Master Divers also transported the 390 megawat t Muthurajawela power plant as well as the Puttalam power plants from the Colombo harbour to their present locations.
The company is the owner of two self-elevating maritime platforms, which are capable of working in the open sea in exposed areas. These are utilized for deepening the port canals, creation of yacht marinas and deep water ports in rocky coastal areas. The Master Divers shipyard located in the Colombo Port has also developed major capabilities in dry docking ( medium to small crafts), ship repair and conversation of ships, and afloat repairs. It is also equipped with 11 sea going supply and services vessels, two large deck barges, anchor handling barges and water barges.
Sri Lanka’s fastest-growing life insurer Softlogic Life has made it to the Forbes ‘Asia’s Best Under A Billion 2019’ list, a business ranking which spotlights Asia’s 200 top-performing listed companies with less than US$1 billion in revenue with consistent top- and bottom-line growth. Softlogic Life is the only company in Sri Lanka and one of the only two insurance companies in the Asian region to achieve this momentous feat.
Forbes has shortlisted Softlogic Life from 1,400 finalists, which was based on a universe of 19,000 candidates, for passing their criteria for profitability, growth and modest indebtedness. Softlogic Life was placed in the final 200 for producing the highest sales and earnings per share growth for both the most recent fiscal year and the last three-year period, as well as the strongest one- and a five-year average return on equity, the local company said in a media release.
“During the last financial year, Softlogic Life executed a superlative financial performance by achieving its highest-ever top line and bottom line. In the previous five years, the company has consistently doubled its market share and reached 12.5 per cent at the end of 2018 and a revenue growth of 33 per cent compared to the average industry growth of 12 per cent. By consistently delivering outstanding financial results, Softlogic life has earned the distinction of being the fastest to cross the milestone of recording GWP (Gross Written premium) of Rs. 10 billion within just 19 years of operation. Softlogic Life recorded a compound annual growth of 35 per cent over the last five years against an industry figure of 16 per cent reflecting the efficacy of their systems, processes and people,” it said.
Commenting about Softlogic Life’s world-class recognition, Chairman Ashok Pathirage said: “It is indeed a great pride to be included in this year’s ‘Best Under A Billion 2019’ by Forbes which places us among the most respected organisations in Asia. The company’s ability to grow at more than double the industry growth and our efforts in the industry as a leading innovator to harness the power of technology to uplift our processes to deliver speed, efficiency and convenience to our valuable customers have been recognised by Forbes. This is a testament to all the hardwork we have put towards excelling on all fronts for years.”
Forbes’ Annual ‘Best Under A Billion’ list spotlights 200 small and midsized publicly listed enterprises in the AsiaPacific region with sales under $1 billion and a track record of strong earnings growth.
The company is the owner of two self-elevating maritime platforms, which are capable of working in the open sea in exposed areas.