“The Engine is my one and only Priority” - Interview with Daniel Peukert

Daniel Peukert isn’t a big talker. Instead, he prefers to work on engines, pumps and even an old moped. But, below, he still shares why he thinks communication is essential, how he is developing his own leadership style, and what grilled guinea pig tastes like.

The first meeting with Daniel Peukert took place in March, just a few days before the shutdown. The young crew on the “Santos Express”, berthed at Hamburg’s Container Terminal Burchardkai, is in good spirits. They have just completed a round voyage to South America that went off without a hitch. The route was interesting, and they enjoyed shared evenings at the bar as well as entertaining foosball tournaments. “Everything just clicked,” says the jovial second engineer. On the following day, the 29-year-old returned to his home in the tranquil city of Flensburg in north-western Germany. But then came the shutdown.

Peukert is a genuine product of Hapag-Lloyd. Between 2007 and 2010, he completed an apprenticeship to become a ship mechanic in Elsfleth, a town on the Weser River between Bremen and Bremerhaven. Then he returned to Flensburg to study and earned his certificate to become an engineer officer. In 2012, he took his first voyage, on the “Frankfurt Express” headed to Asia. Since then, he has worked at sea for Hapag-Lloyd.

Except for those in Australia, he has seen almost every port in the world – including those on the east and west coasts of South America, in Asia, the US and Canada. He has even already sailed on the Hamburg-South Africa route. When asked to name his favourite port, the man with the typical seafarer’s beard responds: “I don’t have one. I can actually find something to like about all routes and ports.”

Stopping in pirate-infested areas: Not an easy decision

Northern Germans have a reputation for not being the most talkative types. And even though Peukert keeps his answers short during the interview, he strongly believes that communication on board is the key to working together well. “Interacting, dealing openly with crisis situations, and making sure that everyone understands everything clearly, that’s the most important thing about the job,” he says. When asked for an example, the engineer recounts: “It was 2018, and we were sailing in pirate-infested waters off the Horn of Africa on our way from Hamburg to Asia. That’s when I discovered that the seal of a cylinder cover was leaking. Combustion gases were escaping. And if that happens, you usually have to stop immediately because the cylinder liner can be damaged.”

But was it safe to stop the voyage out in unsafe waters? Especially when there had just recently been a resumption of attacks by Somali pirates? “So, I immediately informed the chief engineer and the captain and, following a brief discussion, we decided to stop the ship despite the potential dangers.” While the captain halted the main engine, Peukert rushed to assemble all the oilers, wipers and fitters. “We took care of everything in less than two hours, and we were then able to continue our voyage on the ‘Sofia Express’ without any additional complications,” he says.

When asked whether keeping calm and still acting decisively is something that can be learned, he responds: “I’ve learned a lot from my higher-ups. That’s the good thing about our small floating towns: You have different crews and leaders at different times, and then you pick and choose what you think is best. That’s how you gradually develop your own leadership style.”

In addition to cultivating his own leadership style, Peukert is also a DIY enthusiast and tinkerer. When not working at sea, he likes to spend time in his own workshop in Flensburg, where he builds furniture – ranging from shelving units to living room tables. “And I’m also restoring an old moped, a 1959 NSU Quickly given to me by my future father-in-law.”

His fiancée, Jana, is a teacher – and she isn’t always excited about his long absences from home. “But we deal with it well on the whole,” he says, adding that it also helps that he “can coordinate vacation planning with his employer quite well.” The two plan to get married next year.

Finally back at sea after six months ashore

It’s now the end of August 2020, and I receive a call from Flensburg. My first encounter with Peukert was almost six months ago. He just found out that he will finally be going back to sea. “We’ll be sailing on the ‘Valparaíso Express’ on exactly the same route as last time, meaning to South America,” Peukert says with excitement in his voice.

“Due to the coronavirus,” he adds less cheerfully, “we will probably have to wear a mask every now and then, and we won’t be able to go ashore in South America.” That will mean no exotic dishes, such as grilled guinea pigs in Lima. “But that’s no big deal, and they taste like chicken anyway,” he says with a laugh.

Once on board, he wants to do more to stay in shape, such as by using the treadmill more often. "But only if the occasionally exhausting work below deck allows it,” he notes, saying: “The engine is my one and only priority.”

When asked whether he harbours any ambitions to someday become a captain, Peukert responds: “Nope. Down here, we don’t have any bad weather, and it’s always nice and warm.” Or, as his colleague Till Mentzel puts it: “When it comes to mechanics, no one can beat him! That was already the case during his apprenticeship – and now that he’s an engineer, you can ask him anything!”