November/December Edition of The Maritime Executive Has Hit the Street!

Offshore Vigilance and Excellence

The events surrounding the Deepwater Horizon were not only devastating to the companies and people involved but also represented a sea-change for the U.S. offshore industry. Today, in the North Sea, Emergency Response and Rescue Vessels (ERRVs) are a mandatory requirement for offshore rigs due to the Piper Alpha explosion and spill in 1988. Vroon Offshore Services (VOS) is the largest purveyor of ERRVs in the North Sea, but it also has a modern fleet of anchor handlers and PSVs as well and a total offshore fleet of about 100 vessels. It was our great pleasure to have worked on this edition with Jan-Piet Baars, Managing Director of Vroon’s North Sea operations. So VOS is a great ending to our editorial calendar for 2011.

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Mark Bishop, President of Southern Transformers and Magnetics (STM), is a prime example that diligence and hard work can pay dividends in a career. He began at Electronic Power Design (EPD) in the early 1990s and learned about power systems and controls. He succeeded in each and every endeavor he was charged with including the establishment of the engineering department at EPD Asia. He has now been charged with building STM into a world-class manufacturer, and he likes the challenge, so enjoy.

The MarEx closing edition of 2011 will keep your attention, we promise. Even as Congress slashes budgets, the restoration of the Gulf Coast after the Deepwater Horizon incident has not been pushed aside by lawmakers on the Hill. Washington Insider columnist Larry Kiern runs the gauntlet of politics for rebuilding the valuable Gulf Coast region. Meanwhile, Michael Economides and Peter Glover take us on a geopolitical ride between Russia, Germany and the European Union over the tangled web of gas pipelines. It’s another beauty by the “professor of oil.” There’s been a whole lot of shaking going on in the workboat industry, and Senior Editor Jack O’Connell’s Upgrades & Downgrades column names the winners and losers. While there is optimism in the air and things appear to be improving, caution and vigilance are still the order of the day.

Kathy Smith continues her excellent contributions with a Special Report: State of the Offshore Market. It’s timely and a must read for workboat operators around the globe as Smith reviews equipment, operators and markets. First-time contributor Wendy Laursen takes on emission rules and changes confronting the shipping industry. It’s a global issue that Laursen handles with vigor and panache. If you own a vessel with an engine, it’s a must-read. And speaking of vessels, ongoing contributor Barry Parker reviews “condition-based maintenance.” Not only is CBM the new industry buzzword, but “Fix It Before It Breaks” is another must-read for ship owners and operators alike.

“It’s a buyer’s market for satcom,” says Art Garcia as he follows up on last year’s story on satellite communications. Garcia spoke to a host of vendors, and not only is there a price war but customers are more demanding as well. Consequently, there’s been a lot of consolidation. In order to keep customers, satcom manufacturers are turning up the heat with lots of great new products and services. Garcia also took on the subject of dynamic positioning. Can you believe it’s been around for 50 years? It’s an incredible report on a technology that appears to be new and vibrant but simply took a while to become as technically important as it is today. “Renaissance on the Lakes?” by Jack O’Connell turned into a pleasant surprise. When Jack approached us with the idea of writing about the Great Lakes, we were a little hesitant. But reading about new vessels and a revitalized shipping industry there, I think you’ll agree it’s full speed ahead for the “lakers.”

As this edition ends the MarEx editorial calendar for 2011, we would like to wish all of you a great New Year and some very Happy Holidays. We’ve done our best to meet your expectations on our commitment to provide intellectual capital for the maritime industry, and hopefully we’ve kept you apprised of changes impacting your businesses and the ways in which you’ll do business in the future. Thanks, and we’ll reconnect in 2012! – MarEx