When Dan André Aarsvold and Bjarne Mannes from UniSea boarded their flight to New Orleans for the International WorkBoat Show, they expected a busy week at a major trade fair. What they ended up getting instead was much more valuable than that.
Before they left Norway, they mentioned their plans to Sinem Ogis, Chair of IPC Norway, who reached out to the International Propeller Club President Joel Whitehead in New Orleans. Joel invited them to a reception for visiting Propeller Club members who were in town for the WorkBoat Show.
Instead of arriving as anonymous visitors to a large convention centre, they were on first name basis with dozens of new acquaintances in the established international maritime community.
A reception that became the real start of the show
The IPC reception took place at The Rusty Nail, where the atmosphere was informal but the conversations highly relevant. Local members from the Port of New Orleans chapter introduced Dan and Bjarne to people representing companies already on UniSea’s target list. Instead of a quick exchange of business cards in a noisy exhibition hall, they had time to get to know each other in an informal setting.
By the end of the evening, they had booked concrete meetings with potential customers for the days that followed. Some of the most promising opportunities from the entire trip came directly from that Propeller Club event, not from chance encounters on the show floor.
Why this matters for a company like UniSea
UniSea is a Norwegian maritime software company that has a comprehensive platform for shipping and offshore operators worldwide. Many maritime players in the U.S. still rely on legacy, on-premise systems that are slow to update and difficult to integrate. When solutions like Starlink made high-quality connectivity at sea more widely available, it opened the door for cloud-based, Software-as-a-Service platforms to be adopted much faster.
For UniSea’s American customers, moving from older systems to modern, cloud-based tools has, in many cases, been a real game changer. But even a strong product needs the right introductions to reach the right people.
That is where IPC membership showed its value in New Orleans. Through Propeller Club connections, Dan and Bjarne were able to sit down with decision-makers who were actively looking for better ways to manage safety, quality and operations. The conversations quickly moved from “what do you do” to specific challenges and how software can support change on board and on shore.
After the trip, the conclusion was clear: membership in the International Propeller Club of Norway is a fantastic tool for market development and relationship building. As the UniSea team put it, it gives them more legs to stand on.
IPC Norway: local roots, global reach
The International Propeller Club has its roots in New York in the 1920s and has grown into a global network uniting maritime professionals in more than 65 ports around the world, with around 8,000 active members. The name “Propeller” symbolises the propulsion of ships and, by extension, the drive to support and advance the maritime industry.
The International Propeller Club of Norway was established to bring this network closer to the Norwegian maritime community. From its launch, the Norwegian chapter has had a clear purpose: to provide a network for the Norwegian maritime industry and to foster trade and collaboration, locally and globally.
Looking ahead
The story from New Orleans is only one example, but it captures what IPC Norway aims to achieve. The club is anchored in Norwegian maritime communities and, at the same time, connected to a global network that has been supporting the industry for almost a century.
Membership in the International Propeller Club of Norway means you do not have to walk into international arenas alone. You have a recognised platform, both at home and abroad, where you can share your story, listen to others and explore new collaborations.
