Erika News

Erika Graziuso, Chief Information Officer, Crowley, brings a breadth and depth of non-maritime experience to bear in her quest to drive Crowley’s digital transformation in the name of decarbonization, holistic transportation efficiency and crew attraction and retention.Emulating best practices from industries outside of maritime has been a mantra in boardrooms and conferences for decades, as traditional maritime mindset has, at times, been seen as an impediment to achieving next-level efficiency.Enter Erika Graziuso…

Crowley has named Erika Graziuso as its new Chief Information Officer, tapped to lead the company’s information technology and digital transformation strategy with a key focus on digital solutions, cybersecurity and responsible data management.“Erika brings a demonstrated track record of driving innovation that helps corporations prepare for the opportunities and challenges of today and tomorrow,” said Tom Crowley, Chairman and CEO. “As Crowley expands its technological capabilities to exceed the demands of a constantly changing landscape…

The Sri Lankan navy said on Tuesday an oil slick had been spotted a kilometer from a loaded supertanker carrying roughly 2 million barrels of oil that has been engulfed in intermittent fires since an explosion on September 3.Oil from the engine room of the 20-year old New Diamond tanker “appears to have leaked out to the sea” following regular bouts of water-dousing by fire-fighting vessels, the navy spokesman said.The oil slick has raised concerns about the potential of further leakage from the cargo holds…

Kalmar, part of Cargotec, has signed an agreement with Mexican ferry operator Baja Ferries to supply 20 terminal tractors for use in RoRo port operations.The order, which was agreed through Kalmar’s Mexican distributor Tracsa/Sitsa, was booked in Cargotec's 2019 Q3 order intake, with delivery scheduled to take place during Q1 2020.Baja Ferries is a leading provider of cargo and passenger ferry services in Mexico, offering integrated and multimodal logistics solutions. The company’s routes connect Baja California Sur with the rest of Mexico via two routes in the Sea of Cortez.Baja Ferries has been operating Kalmar terminal tractors for…

Kalmar has concluded a deal to supply a total of three Kalmar Ottawa Electric Terminal Tractors T2E to the Mexican bakery product manufacturer Bimbo.Kalmar, part of Cargotec, said in a press release that the order was booked in Cargotec's 2019 Q1 order intake, with delivery of the machines scheduled to take place during Q3 of 2019.Bimbo is the largest baking company in the world, with 199 plants and more than 1,800 sales centres across 32 countries throughout the Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa.The company has one of the largest direct distribution networks in the world, distributing products including fresh and frozen sliced bread, buns and cookies. The Kalmar Ottawa electric terminal tractors will be operated at Grupo Bimbo's new distribution centre in Azcapotzalco, Mexico City.

Erika Hamrick, Cat Marine Regional Sales Manager Americas officially recognizes Robert “Bobby” Webb, CEO at Louisiana Cat as the first Cat Propulsion Dealer in the Americas (left) Official document signing at the Reserve, La headquarters by Erika Hamrick and Bobby Webb. An official signing of the Cat Propulsion Dealer Agreement with Louisiana Cat commenced on August 22, 2016. Louisiana Cat has become the first Caterpillar Dealership in the Americas to reach all requirements for training and technical sales and support to become a Gold level dealer for the full line of Cat Propulsion equipment.

The ill-fated U.S.-flagged El Faro cargo ship sunk by Hurricane Joaquin was sailing at near full speed into the center of the storm before it lost propulsion amid mountainous waves and brutal winds, according to ship tracking data. The data on Thomson Reuters Eikon raises questions about the ship owner's assertion that the vessel's captain had chosen a "sound plan" to pass around Joaquin "with a margin of comfort" but was then thwarted by engineering problems. It shows that even…

Hurricane Fred strengthened early Monday in the eastern Atlantic as it approached the Cape Verde Islands, while the remnants of Tropical Storm Erika brought flooding to parts of South Carolina, according to U.S. forecasters. The center of Fred is expected to pass near or over the northwestern Cape Verde Islands, an archipelago off the west coast of Africa with a population of 525,000. Fred had maximum sustained winds of 85 mph (137 kph), but was expected to gradually dissipate after passing the Cape Verde Islands, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.

Effective 9:30 a.m., Saturday, Capt. Jeffrey Janszen, Coast Guard Captain of the Port, reopened Key West, Florida, ports, terminals and facilities due to Tropical Storm Erika dissipating. All port facilities in South Florida may resume normal operations, including waterfront facility and vessel transits, subject to prudent seamanship and safe working practices. All mariners are reminded that remnants of the storm can cause dangerous conditions at sea. All boaters should monitor weather forecasts before taking to the sea.

Tropical Storm Erika lashed Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands with heavy rain and fierce winds on Friday, moving across the Caribbean and apparently heading for the Dominican Republic, northern Haiti and eventually South Florida, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. Due to some likely weakening over the Dominican Republic, Erika was no longer forecast to make U.S. landfall as a hurricane. It could still smack the Miami area with sustained winds of 60 miles per hour (97 kph) on Monday, however, before sweeping northward up the Florida peninsula, affecting Orlando's popular theme parks.

Thousands of conservation experts from around the world, including environmental scientists from BHP Billiton, are in Sydney for the 2014 World Parks Congress (WPC). WPC is the preeminent conservation forum and is held every 10 years to share best-practice knowledge in managing protected wilderness areas. BHP Billiton Senior Manager Environment, Erika Korosi joined partnership organisations Conservational International, Tasmanian Land Conservancy and The Nature Conservancy to showcase their collaborative approach to conservation projects. Ms Korosi said she was excited by the opportunity to share knowledge and outcomes from BHP Billiton’s programs at this globally significant event.

Though maritime transportation is unequivocally proven as the safest and most environmentally benign means to move goods from ‘point A to point B,’ it is a given that accidents do happen. When they do, having a qualified, competent marine salvage company around can be the difference between minor incident and major tragedy. For insights on the maturation and future of marine salvage sector, MR reached out to the leadership of the American Salvage Association (ASA) for answers. What are the major missions, objectives and challenges ASA has on its top line agenda today.

The history of marine safety is soaked in water and written in blood. “I think that most people will tell you that changes in marine safety are almost exclusively disaster-driven,” agrees Dr. Josh Smith, a professor at Kings Point and interim director of the American Merchant Marine Museum. It hasn’t always been that way. Actually, it’s been worse. Despite some efforts early on to exert some control over shipping practices, going to sea has been accepted as a risky undertaking as long as man has floated vessels.

ClassNK Chairman and President, Noboru Ueda, served as Chairman of the Council of the International Association of Classification Societies from July 2010 until June 2011. In so doing, he became the fourth ClassNK chairman to complete a term at the head of IACS since the association was founded in 1968. Noboru Ueda set three important goals for his tenure at the helm of IACS - to complete the transition to a more transparent and robust IACS structure and restate IACS commitment to the European Commission…

At a recent Senior Maritime Forum held in conjunction with Marintec China 2011, Clay Maitland called for marine environment protection as “an essential strategy for corporate risk management”. As NAMEPA’s (North American Marine Environment Protection Association) Founding Chairman, Maitland told the over 400 senior Chinese leaders that “Clean seas are good business”. “In these times of economic pressure, rising insurance costs, and growing regulatory pressure, no shipowner, or charterer, should neglect its risk management procedures,” urged Maitland.

The commander of U.S. Transportation Command honored U.S. merchant mariners, past and present, May 19 during Military Sealift Command's (MSC) annual National Maritime Day memorial service and wreath-laying ceremony at the historic Washington Navy Yard in Washington, D.C. National Maritime Day, officially May 22, was established by Congress in 1933 and is observed each year to honor the contributions and sacrifices of U.S. merchant mariners in defense of the nation. These dedicated men and women are frequently considered the unsung heroes of the nation's defense. MSC is the largest employer of U.S. merchant mariners with more than 7,000 civil service and contract mariners deployed worldwide providing critical support to U.S. and allied warfighters around the world.

The European Commission (EC) summarized the opinion of the Advocate General in litigation involving the damages arising from the discharge of heavy fuel oil from the tanker ERIKA. A complaint seeking damages was filed by a French commune against the Total Group on the basis that it was involved in producing, selling, or carrying the heavy fuel oil without actually carrying it. The advocate general, in an advisory opinion to the European Court of Justice, stated that, in accordance with the Waste Framework Directive, the financial burden of the disposal operations should be on the persons who cause the waste, whether they are holders or producers of the waste.

In line with the EU co-decision procedures both EU Member States (Council) and the European Parliament have to agree on proposed rules before final adoption. Last week the proposals of the Erika I package passed their last hurdle, and are now only subject to formal rubberstamping before entry into force in early 2003. After successfully bringing the phase-out of single-hull tankers to resolution in the IMO, the concept of separate rules in European waters was abandoned by the EU. The current EU Regulation will fully reflect the changes to the MARPOL 13G adopted earlier this year. The revised EU directive on port state control will be considerably sharpened.

News from BP, the world's largest oil company, that it plans to have "close control" over 50 percent of its tonnage by 2005 may bring a wry smile to more than a few old timers. It was not very long ago at all that oil majors were systematically divesting themselves of vessels that, they said, tied up capital unnecessarily and were not a part of their core business. At the time, they contended that they could rely on others to provide maritime transport more cheaply. Has the wheel turned full circle? Last month BP's CFO Byron Grote revealed impressive results - BP's second quarter profit was $3.1million, up 42 percent year on year while its first half figures, at $6.8 billion, were up 81 percent.

The role of vessel classification societies continues to change dramatically. As the role and relevance of class is hotly debated, MR/EN picked the brains of the industry's major classification societies to analyze both their individual and collective future. If class is to remain relevant, it must remake itself for the modern world, says ABS president and CEO Robert D. Somerville. He recently told delegates to the World Maritime Forum in St. Petersburg, Russia that "self regulation will continue to provide an effective method for establishing and enforcing standards only if all elements of the industry recognize that substantive overhaul is needed." Somerville highlighted the remarkable…

International classification society Bureau Veritas and French shipowner Services & Transport have developed an Ecomax tanker design intended to address all the major causes of large oil spills. gear, increased hull scantlings, reduced high tensile steel content, duplicated navigation equipment with off-track monitoring and full inerting of all ballast spaces. "While smaller oil spills are getting less frequent, the occurrence of large spills due to tanker accidents is remaining constant," says Philippe Anslot, technical director of services & transports. "When we looked at the underlying causes of those spills we saw that the four main factors were machinery failure, navigation error, fire and explosion and hull damage.

International classification society Bureau Veritas and French shipowner Services & Transport have developed an Ecomax tanker design intended to address all the major causes of large oil spills. gear, increased hull scantlings, reduced high tensile steel content, duplicated navigation equipment with off-track monitoring and full inerting of all ballast spaces. "While smaller oil spills are getting less frequent, the occurrence of large spills due to tanker accidents is remaining constant," says Philippe Anslot, technical director of services & transports. "When we looked at the underlying causes of those spills we saw that the four main factors were machinery failure, navigation error, fire and explosion and hull damage.

Leading international classification society Bureau Veritas and French shipowner Services & Transport have developed an Ecomax tanker design intended to address all the major causes of large oil spills. The Aframax design has two independent engine rooms, power supply systems and steering gear, increased hull scantlings, reduced high tensile steel content, duplicated navigation equipment with off-track monitoring and full inerting of all ballast spaces. The Ecotanker design is based initially on an Aframax vessel, but studies have also been done for larger and smaller vessels. same. The possibility of machinery and systems failure is addressed by duplicating the engine rooms, stern tubes, propellers, steering gears and rudders.