Samson Rope Technologies News

January of 2017 saw the retirement of one of the veterans of the Samson family. Tony Bon, CEO through 2015 retired as of December 31, 2016. Bon shares his impressions of the time he’s been with Samson and the high points of both the company and the industry it serves. In the Navy they have an expression to describe a captain that moves up through the ranks: “He came up through the hawse pipes.” Bon’s journey to the corner office at Samson is a similar story. In 1974, after leaving Berklee College of Music in Boston, Bon needed a job.

The introduction of new and larger vessels, Q-Flex and Q-Max, and new, often more exposed terminals becoming operational have changed mooring dynamics. The need to maintain workers’ safety at all times, whilst delivering maximum operational efficiency through lower costs and faster turnaround times remains unchanged. DSM Dyneema, a close partner to the LNG industry, has done a study which concludes that these industry trends are changing the performance demands for LNG mooring lines. In parallel to DSM Dyneema’s investigation, in 2011 members of the LNG community created a Users Group to further investigate HMPE mooring line failures which TTI (UK) was asked to facilitate. DSM Dyneema is part of the Users Group, while at the same time continuing its own investigation program.

Puget Sound Rope announce that Michael Greenwood has joined Cortland/Puget Sound Rope as Technical Sales Manager. He has more than 34 years in the rope industry, beginning with the family rope company, Tubbs Cordage Company of San Francisco in 1976. For the last 24 years he has been in sales and sales management with Samson Rope Technologies. Greenwood’s past positions included, Western Regional Sales Manager, National Sales Manager, Director of Sales Commercial Marine and finally Director of New Product Development.

With the introduction of three new double-hull petroleum barges in 2005, Paul Tregurtha, chairman of Moran Towing Corporation, announced that the company is on track to achieve its goal of operating an all double-hull fleet by the end of 2006. In the first seven months of 2005, Moran introduced two newly built double-hull petroleum barges, New Hampshire and Georgia, both built at Bay Shipbuilding in Wisconsin, and a newly converted double-hulled barge Massachusetts, delivered from Gulf Marine Repair in Florida. The three barges, with a combined cargo carrying capacity of 360,000 barrels, were matched with ocean-going tugs from the Moran fleet, all with articulated (ATB) coupler systems that allow the tug to remain permanently in the barge notch when underway.

JHRG has teamed with Samson Rope Technologies in the design, development and marketing of chafe gear products. The new product line made of patented materials offers significant advantages over other chafe gear materials currently on the market in terms of extending the durability of high-performance ropes, in-field installation and reduced weight.