How did you get involved in Bilge Saver?
I’ve had an ongoing revulsion and overall dissatisfaction with conventional bilge pump systems for years. The resort which I own and manage here in Indonesia has 7 boats all of which need operational bilge pumps. Because the pumps, switches and fuses are all imported, they are expensive. Usually expensive is not a problem, as I always buy the best possible quality of everything that I need so that it lasts a long time. But when you buy something that is expensive, and the design of the thing revolves around planned obsolescence it can be very frustrating from a commercial point of view. I would pay twice as much if it would just last longer! For most boat owners, they just nip down to the local chandler to pick up spare parts, but living and operating this business in the middle of nowhere really requires good equipment.
Why did you get involved in Bilge Saver?
I’ve had a lot of design ideas for equipment, but they mostly just sit in my notebooks. However, when my friend Richard came to visit me and started talking about his 3D printer and his marine electronics experience, the classic little light bulb went off in my head and I thought “this is what we need to do”.
What is the skill-set that you bring to Bilge Saver?
I’ve worked on boats my entire life, and had both formal training and lots of in the field experience on many kinds of boats. I know the ocean and how merciless it can be. I’ve lost multiple boats through bilge pump failures, so I know what needs to be done. I’ve built my resort from scratch including all the marketing and customer relations, so I’m looking to replicate that effort successfully for this business as well.
What are your hopes and aspirations for Bilge Saver?
I want Bilge Saver to become an international standard for anybody who cares about reliability in safeguarding their assets, and our future clients are anybody who wants less water in their boats. I want the function and reliability of our devices to cut through the planned obsolescence wastage that currently pervades in this industry, and forces other manufacturers to make more sustainable products for the world.
What about you personally? Who is Christie?
I’ve been accused of being a workaholic, but the way I look at it if you enjoy what you do, it’s not work at all. I love nature and the ocean, and spend a large part of my energy trying to find and surf perfect waves. I love to travel and see new ways of doing the things that I like to do, and generally aspire to the cliche that if you’re not learning, you’re dead.
