Contract Services News

The Watson-class vehicle cargo ship USNS Charlton (T-AKR-314) has arrived at Philly Shipyard for a scheduled repair program. The work scope is expected to be completed by the third quarter of this year.The USNS Charlton is one of Military Sealift Command’s (MSC) large, medium-speed, roll-on/roll-off ships. With a displacement of 69,000 tons and a length of 950 feet, the vessel carries prepositioned U.S. Army tanks, armored personnel carriers, tractor-trailers, and other equipment and supplies to potential areas of conflict around the world.

Philly Shipyard said it has been awarded a contract for the repair of the Watson-class vehicle cargo ship USNS Charlton (T-AKR-314). The repairs will be completed in the third quarter of 2021.The USNS Charlton is one of Military Sealift Command’s (MSC) large, medium-speed, roll-on/roll-off ships. With a displacement of 69,000 tons and a length of 950 feet, the vessel carries prepositioned U.S. Army tanks, armored personnel carriers, tractor-trailers, and other equipment and supplies to potential areas of conflict around the world.

Along the 1,600-mile, ice gray arch of the St Lawrence Seaway, the 2020 Great Lakes commercial shipping season will lurch back to life on March 25 when the Soo Locks at Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. reopen.The ceremonial opening signals a passage with passable ice and the 114th Great Lakes season for its fleet of 45 venerable lakers. Most of these huge self-loading freight haulers are at least 50 years old, rust free, and fit; American steel sailing on a freshwater sea.To handle Great Lakes cargo…

Patriot Contract Services, LLC (PCS) is celebrating the 20th anniversary of its operations as a completely U.S.-owned ship management company.   During the past 20 years PCS and its affiliate American Ship Management, LLC have provided ship management and other maritime services to valued customers such as the Military Sealift Command (MSC), the U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD), American President Lines (APL) and Schuyler Lines Navigation Company, while Patriot Maritime Compliance, LLC has provided expert regulatory guidance to both U.S. flag and international clients.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx today announced that DOT has awarded contracts with a total award value of $1.96 billion over eight years to seven U.S. maritime firms to manage, maintain and operate 48 National Defense Reserve Fleet (NDRF) vessels through January 2024. These Maritime Administration contracts are funded by the Department of Defense (DoD) National Defense Sealift Fund to support DoD’s strategic sealift mission. “Since 1946, National Defense Reserve Fleet vessels have facilitated U.S. strategic sealift, natural disaster response, and humanitarian operations all around the world,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx.

Crowley Maritime Corporation announced today that company veteran Craig Tornga has assumed the role of vice president of stakeholder relations for Alaska, and will coordinate with all of Crowley's Alaska business units to leverage relevant company relationships. Tornga will relocate from Houston to Anchorage, and continue to report to Rocky Smith, senior vice president and general manager, petroleum distribution and marine services. “Crowley has been serving Alaska for more than 60 years and we are deeply rooted in the state,” said Smith. “Craig is the ideal person to help us continue to build partnerships with government, regulatory agencies, native Alaska corporations, trade associations, citizen advisory boards and more.

Foss Maritime has opened a new office and the formed a project management group aiming to support its customer base headquartered in Houston. John Tirpak of Foss has been appointed Vice President of Business Development & Contract Services and will be relocating to Houston to develop business in the region and lead the business development function of the entire Marine Transportation division from the new office. There he will oversee domestic and international business development, sales and marketing.

Nonprofit maritime trade association American Maritime Safety (AMS) held its 25th Annual Membership Meeting at The Yale Club of New York City on Thursday, October 23, honoring five member companies with Maritime Safety Awards in recognition of their dedication to promoting safe vessel navigation, preserving the marine environment and for their proactive efforts toward achieving safe maritime working practices. Bouchard Transportation Company, Inc. received the Tug and Barge Safety Award…

The US Department of Defense informs that Patriot Contract Services, LLC, Concord, California, is being awarded a $58,642,752 modification under a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract (N00033-14-C-3210) to exercise the first option period of this contract for the operation and maintenance of eight government-owned Watson-class large medium-speed roll-on/roll-off ships. DoD explains that the ships will continue to support Military Sealift Command's worldwide prepositioning requirements. Work for this option period will be performed at sea worldwide, and is expected to be completed by Sept. 30, 2015. Navy and transportation working capital contract funds in the amount of $58,642,752 are being obligated at the time of award, and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year.

American Maritime Safety, Inc., (AMS), announced today that Bouchard Transportation Company, Inc., Circle Line Sightseeing Cruises, General Dynamics/American Overseas Marine Corporation, Patriot Contract Services and U.S. Shipping Corporation would be the recipients of the 2014 AMS Maritime Safety Awards. AMS is a nonprofit maritime trade association, which facilitates the maritime industry's compliance with international shipping protocols and U.S. Coast Guard regulations. The AMS consortium is comprised of more than 400 vessel owners and operators.

Helix Energy says that its Robotics subsidiary, Canyon Offshore, Inc., has reached an agreement with a subsidiary of McDermott International, Inc. to provide remotely operated vehicle (ROV) services and equipment for McDermott’s fleet of subsea construction and pipelay support vessels. The agreement is for a fixed term of three years with options to extend. Canyon will provide dual 3,000-meter ROV systems onboard McDermott vessels, which initially is expected to include the North Ocean 102, Lay Vessel North Ocean 105, Lay Vessel 108 and the Derrick Lay Vessel 2000. In addition Canyon will supply tooling, personnel and ROV project support to McDermott.

Patriot Contract Services LLC, Concord, Calif., has been awarded a US$63,346,311 firm-fixed-price contract for the operation and maintenance of 8 government-owned Watson-class large, medium-speed, roll-on/roll-off ships. The ships will continue to support Military Sealift Command worldwide prepositioning requirements. This contract includes four one-year options, which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $329,245,641. The US Department of Defense placed this Navy contract after more than 50 companies had been solicited via the Military Sealift Command…

America's Bay Shipbuilding Co. vice president and general manager, Gene Caldwell, has left the company for personal reasons. Caldwell’s leave was confirmed by Rachel Krummen, human resources manager for Bay Shipbuilding/Fincantieri in Sturgeon Bay. Bay Shipbuilding’s current director of contract services, Todd Thayse, will be acting vice president and general manager, she said. No further information regarding staff changes was immediately available. Bay Shipbuilding employs about 500 people. Fincantieri welcomed Caldwell two years ago on Aug. 2, 2010, as the new general manager after replacing longtime local manager Pat O’Hern.

Todd Busch: SVP and General Manager, Technical Services at Crowley Maritime Corporation. Todd Busch joined Crowley as an ordinary seaman in 1986, earning his masters’ license working aboard company tugboats before coming ashore in 1994 as a tug dispatcher. Since then, he has held a variety of positions with increasing responsibility within the firm. Today, the 24-year Crowley veteran is a member of the company’s senior leadership team, reporting directly to Crowley CEO Tom Crowley. Based at Crowley’s headquarters in Jacksonville, FL, he is responsible for several of the company’s business enterprises including the project management organization PMOrg (known as Crowley solutions), as well as subsidiaries Titan Salvage, Jensen Maritime Consultants, and Intrepid Ship Management.

Michael P. Gaffney, Alaris Companies Executive Vice President of Engineering, received the Outstanding Professional Achievement Award from the Alumni Foundation Board of the United States Merchant Marine Academy, Kings Point. Gaffney received the award at his 25th class reunion during the Alumni Awards Banquet on October 13, 2011. The Outstanding Professional Achievement Award is presented to graduates who best exemplify the finest tradition of Corps – Acta Non Verba – by attaining personal achievement in their chosen fields.

Zero spills and zero incidents is good news for Crowley, its customers and the citizens who rely on responsible companies to keep Alaska's waterways clean. In an informal presentation, Captain Jack Jensen, marine superintendent for Tesoro in Nikiski, presented crewmembers of Crowley's tug Vigilant with a third consecutive annual award recognizing their commitment to safety and the environment by concluding 2010 with zero spills and incidents. The Vigilant is on long-term charter to Tesoro and is stationed in Cook Inlet, Alaska, where it provides ship assist and escort services for Tesoro operated tankers moving in and out of the Tesoro Refinery dock (KPL) in Nikiski, Alaska.

Rich Habib has been appointed vice president of Titan Salvage with responsibility for the company's overall performance, including operations, administration, finance and commercial activities. He is domiciled at Titan's headquarters in Pompano Beach, Fla., and reports to Todd Busch, Crowley Maritime Corporation's senior vice president and general manager of technical services. Titan is a Crowley subsidiary. "I am very pleased to welcome Rich back to Titan," said Busch. "He began as one of our jack-up barge superintendents and then became a salvage master.

Hornblower Cruises & Events has appointed Bob Shaw, a senior executive with more than three decades of operations experience, to the position of chief operating officer. In his new role, Shaw will be responsible for day-to-day management of all Hornblower companies, including charter yacht and public dining operations and two National Park Service concession contracts. "Bob’s management and passenger vessel industry experience along with his accomplishments as an executive for several multi-million dollar companies give him invaluable perspective.

MarineNews spoke with Crowley Maritime Corporation executives for the company’s take on current markets and the outlook for the future. “Due to the global economic downturn, Crowley has experienced a decline in business, specifically in liner container shipping,” said Tom Crowley Jr., Chairman of the board, President and Chief Executive Officer at Crowley Maritime Corporation. “The company, however, has been able to mitigate those declines by offering additional value-added services and more robust logistics and technical services solutions.

Crowley announced the promotion of Eric Evans and Tony Otero each to the role of vice president, finance & planning, supporting several different business groups. In his new position Eric Evans will support Crowley's technical services, petroleum services, Alaska petroleum distribution and marine contract services business groups. His responsibilities include accounting, contract administration, budgeting, forecasting, analysis, and strategic planning for these business units, which encompass more than $1b in annual revenues and locations on five continents.

In 2009/2010, the Marine Highways Cooperative (MHC) conducted an MPO Information Needs Study. Based on this research, the MHC wishes to contract services to develop a user-friendly online calculator to help transportation planners determine the public benefits of new or expanded marine highway services. Specifically, the MHC wishes to determine the annual cost savings in congestion, pollution, infrastructure development & maintenance, energy (fuel), and highway safety improvements over the first five years for new or expanded marine highway services. You can request the RFP from Richard Lolich, MHC Program Administrator by emailing [email protected]. The MHC requests interested entities to submit questions by August 15, 2010.

Crowley Maritime Corporation announced that it has restructured its petroleum distribution and contract services group, consolidating all Alaska operations under Craig Tornga, vice president. Tornga, who will remain in Anchorage and will continue reporting to Rocky Smith, senior vice president and general manager, will continue to manage Alaska's petroleum distribution and fuel sales but will now also manage tanker assist and escort services in Valdez and Prince William Sound, Alaska, and energy support services on Alaska's North Slope.

Crowley Maritime Corporation announced a restructuring involving three members of its senior leadership team. John Douglass and Rob Grune will move to new positions, with Douglass taking over as senior vice president and general manager of Crowley's Puerto Rico/Caribbean liner services, and Grune taking over as senior vice president and general manager of Crowley's petroleum transportation group. Both executives will remain domiciled in Jacksonville and continue to report to Tom Crowley, chairman, president and CEO.