August/September 2010 THE PORT OF HOUSTON JAMES T. EDMONDS Leading Through Engagement Richardson 2010:Layout 1 1/27/10 10:42 AM Page 1 RICHARDSON STEVEDORING & LOGISTICS, INC. Customer Satisfaction is our number one priority! The most complete Service Company at the Port of Houston Privately owned push boats – barge service to Houston, Brownsville, Mobile 400,000 square feet of warehouse space – 100 + acres of outside storage areas Forklift capacities 5,000 lbs to 110,000 lbs – Lift crane up to 300 tons capacity Rail trans loading services for all facilities Locations – Port of Houston, Greensport, Port of Laredo, Port of Mobile, Greenville and Axis Alabama. Strategic alliance with the Port of Brownsville. For more information please contact our Houston office at (713) 673-1110 August/September 2010 A bi-monthly publication. CONTENTS In Their Own Words 18 Port Commissioners on their Leadership Vision New Leadership for Corps’ Galveston District 22 Colonel Christopher W. Sallese Calm Command of the Waterways 25 Captain Marcus Woodring Proven Strength in Cargo Security Leadership 14 27 Jeffrey O. Baldwin, Sr. COVER STORY James T. Edmonds Leadership on the Waterfront Leading Through Engagement 28 Clyde Fitzgerald IN EVERY ISSUE Guiding Force for the Maritime Industry 30 Nathan Wesely 6 A Message from Chief Executive Officer Leading Vessels Safely Alec G. Dreyer Captain Thomas C. Pace, Jr. 31 8 The Manifest PHA news highlights 37 Business Connections Man with a Mission Houston Citizens Chamber 33 Robin Riley of Commerce 38 Spotlight on Small Business Richard Ruchhoeft 2010 Petrochemical & Maritime 35 Outlook Conference Executive Office Port of Houston Authority 111 East Loop North P.O. Box 2562 Houston, TX 77252-2562 Phone: 713-670-2400 THE PORT OF HOUSTON Fax: 713-670-2429 Chief Executive Officer AUTHORITY Alec G. Dreyer Senior Vice President & General Counsel Erik A. Eriksson Senior Vice President, Engineering & Real Estate James B. Jackson James T. Edmonds Senior Vice President, Operations Chairman Jimmy M. Jamison Vice President, Container Terminals Roger D. Guenther Vice President, Finance & Administration Thomas J. Heidt Vice President, Public Affairs Argentina M. James Steve Phelps Vice President, Strategic Planning Commissioner Charlie D. Jenkins Vice President, Origination Ricky W. Kunz Vice President, Small Business Development Gilda Ramirez Vice President, Economic Analysis Olga L. Rodriguez James W. Fonteno, Jr. Vice President, Human Resources Commissioner Melanie Sherman Controller Maxine N. Buckles Harris County Auditor Barbara J. Schott Kase L. Lawal Commissioner Field Offices Central & South America Brazil (excluding Brazil) John C. Cuttino Arturo Gamez Brazil Representative Central & South America Representative Port of Houston Authority Avenida Aquilino De La Guardia y Calle 47 Av. Paulista, 2300-Andar Pilotis Ocean Business Plaza Building, Mezzanine Sao Paulo, SP Brazil, CEP: 01310-300 Panama, Republic of Panama Tel. +55 (11) 2847-4931 Jimmy A. Burke Tel.: +(507) 340-0205 Fax +55 (11) 2847-4550 Commissioner Fax: +(281) 754-4647 Houston Access (832) 239-5076 Houston Access (713) 491-4607 Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] Port of Houston Magazine’s editorial staff: Argentina M. James, vice president, 2010 public affairs • Lisa Ashley-Whitlock, director, corporate communications • Janiece Longoria Felicia Griffin, corporate communications manager• Maggi Stewart, com- Commissioner munications specialist • Edwin Henry, communications specialist • David Bray, photographer • Chris Kuhlman, photographer • Esther de Ipolyi, contributor • Bill Hensel, contributor • Gilbreath Communications, Inc. This publication is not copyrighted and permission is given for the reproduction August/September or use of any original materials, provided credit is given to the Port of Houston | Authority. Additional information, address changes, extra copies, or advertising specifications may be obtained by writing to the Port of Houston Magazine. The Port of Houston Magazine is published by the Port of Elyse Lanier Houston Authority, P.O. Box 2562, Houston, Texas 77252-2562, Commissioner and is distributed free to maritime, industrial and transportation interests in the United States and foreign countries. Visit the Port of Houston Authority online Port of Houston Authority www.portofhouston.com 4 @ A Message From PHA CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER ALEC G. DREYER I’m not a big fan of staring in the rear view mirror. I believe in setting challenging goals and striving to reach them. That requires focusing on the path ahead. So, when the opportunity to list my first-year accomplishments as port authority chief executive officer presented itself, I chose to focus on the pipeline of ideas ahead of us. I would like to share with you some things we’ve put into place during this first year with an eye on becoming stronger in the future than we’ve ever been before. Strategic planning is a priority. I’m a big believer in forethought. The timeless mantra of the maritime trade – carriers go where the cargo is – seems to suggest seaports can do little to influence cargo flow and, ultimately, their own destinies. I don’t buy into that premise. I believe strategic planning, prudent forecasting and targeted marketing, coupled with other sound business practices, can dictate a seaport’s course as dramatically as any radical event beyond one’s immediate control. our resources in the areas of market development and Consequently, regular strategy meetings are now a part small business development. 2010 of the port authority agenda. Goal setting, planning and Additionally, we have initiated a mentoring program to market analysis will be cornerstones of our operations assist our participant small businesses, to be a resource and model moving forward. advisor. It’s our goal to help the area’s small businesses get Our staffing reflects that commitment. We’ve placed over the start-up hurdle, to become viable entities unto August/September | unprecedented emphasis on our information technology themselves and then to thrive for the long term. That’s resources — an obvious necessity of the 21st century. real economic development! We’ve added a senior director of strategic planning and We are intensifying our capital investment program. a vice president of economic analysis. We have expanded We recently accepted delivery of three additional wharf Port of Houston Authority 6 Strategic planning is a priority…Goal setting, planning and market analysis will be corner- stones of our operations model moving forward. cranes at our Bayport Container Terminal — essentially this kind of cargo through our facilities better than any- bringing the terminal to the 50-percent completion stage. one else in the industry — ultimately to solidify this port’s We have committed ourselves to expanding Bayport at dominance in the breakbulk category of freight. the rate that market demand dictates. Why is the target of this focus so critical now? Because in For us, the strategic consideration is whether we’re the fast-paced, ever-evolving 21st century, the future truly building the remaining 50 percent fast enough. At present, is upon us now. It doesn’t really matter which economist completion of this terminal is earmarked for around 2020. you listen to, the most aggressive or the most conservative. Another focus is enhancing and reinvesting in our Sometime between 2030 and 2040, just two decades from Barbours Cut Container Terminal. This facility is almost now, Houston’s population is projected to more than dou- 35 years old and needs significant reinvestment to han- ble. If we are to successfully manage and serve that growth, dle the volume and size of ships that we expect over the we must begin preparing for it immediately. next few years as the container liner industry continues As this post-recession economy recovers and reshapes to mature. The completion of the Panama Canal expan- itself, we must be ahead of the typical planning curve in sion in 2014 will only add emphasis to these needed order to optimize the economic value that the taxpayers capital improvements. of Harris County have entrusted to us. Our venerable Turning Basin terminals, located at the navigational head of the Houston Ship Channel, are long overdue for modernization and expansion. Frankly, we are just now starting to do things at the Turning Basin that could have been addressed 30 years ago. We intend to make significant reinvestment in our existing breakbulk wharves; some of the first big changes are just now getting under way. As the nation’s leader in that category of cargo movement, Houston’s port must deliver nothing but the best. You’ll see us examine how we can increase the cargo-handling capacity of our breakbulk facilities by adding more wharf capacity, and by rejuvenating some of our outdated docks. We need to get our breakbulk wharves upgraded to better serve current and anticipated future uses. We’ll also focus on operational efficiencies — we need to move THE MANIFEST PHA NEWS HIGHLIGHTS EDMONDS TOUTS PORT’S GLOBAL IMPACT TO CITY’S INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS INITIATIVES GROUP Affirming the global impact of the Port of Houston, Port Commission Chairman James T. Edmonds testi- fied before the Houston City Council’s International Business Initiatives Committee on July 29 at City Council Chambers. Edmonds’ remarks focused on the Port of Houston Authority’s role in Houston’s inter- national business scene as well as how the port can contribute to the vision of a more global Houston. Commissioner Janiece Longoria and CEO Alec G. Dreyer were among attendees. Port Commission Chairman James T. Edmonds and Houston City Council International Business Initiatives Committee Chairwoman Jolanda “Jo” Jones. Noting that the Port of Houston is the largest port in the Gulf Coast and leads the nation for exports, The committee chaired by Jolanda “Jo” Jones, which Edmonds said, “Therefore, it isn’t difficult to assess the includes city council members Al Hoang, Jarvis Johnson, global impact of the Port of Houston.” Mike Sullivan, James Rodriguez, Edward Gonzalez and He said PHA staff aggressively promotes Houston C.O.