REGULATOR MARINE CONTINUALLY IMPROVES WORKPLACE AND PRODUCTS WHAT DO YOU WANT TO SEE NEXT? In taking a deeper dive into the inner workings of Regulator Marine and what makes them tick, we decided to seek out a long-tenured team member rather than upper management. Although it is always a delight to discuss boats, business success and faith with owners Joan and Owen Maxwell, there’s something about capturing the perspective right from the shop floor we thought might be interesting this time around. Luckily, twenty-year employee Al Partin has served in several capacities at Regulator Marine since 2002, allowing him to provide a variety of insights into the boat brand. Recently retired, Partin allows us to capture a view from the production facility of Regulator Marine, based in the small town of Edenton, North Carolina, at the edge of Albemarle Sound. “When I was hired, Regulator was in a growth span, so I was brought on to manage the assembly shop,” Partin says. “My boating experience was withmarinas and growing up in Edenton, and if you’re in Edenton you’ve been around the water your whole life.” Partin spent several months with on-thejob training to learn all the processes, working from lamination all the way through assembly, helping him to learn the flow of how the boats are built. As Partin entered his position, they were building an average of 5 boats per week which grew to a clip of 8 boats per week before the great recession of 2008. Although production slowed, a new position presented itself when the Customer Service Manager signaled she was retiring. “Joan and Owen approached me with the opportunity,” Partin recalls. “If the customer or a dealer calls Regulator, my knowledge of the systems and assembly process would allow me to answer the questions on the spot without the need to visit the shop floor and get answers.” Partin held this position and excelled at it for the remainder of his time with the company. His stay in customer service afforded him the chance to meet and make friends with so many customers, salespeople, and dealership representatives. Partin reminisces, “Bluewater is an outstanding company. I have known them for years and really enjoy working with all of them including Scott James, Jud Black and so many others through the years.” Bluewater Yacht Sales Managing Director, Jud Black says, “Al worked for Regulator in what would seem to be a no-win job to some: customer service. In that capacity, sometimes he was forced to say ‘no’ to unreasonable requests. But fortunately, Regulator Marine and Al both were inclined to accommodate our mutual customer, the Regulator owner. So together, Regulator and Bluewater have always been able to keep happy customers. I wish him the best in his well deserved retirement, but we already miss him dearly. He managed to handle a difficult job with a great attitude and a smile on his face! The good news is that he had time to train replacements who have continued to represent Regulator Marine in the same manner.” “AL” ABOUT TEAM As much as Partin enjoyed his role in customer service at Regulator, his favorite part of going to work each day was the people around him. “We’ve always had a really good employee base,” Partin explains. “The team in the assembly shop are fun to work with and I enjoyed talking with them—we were all friends.” Partin’s role in customer service brought him closer to the management team and it was apparent the good values and mission of Regulator were instilled from the top down. Regulator Marine owners Owen & Joan Maxwell with Al Partin (center) 40 BLUEWATER
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