Interview: William P. Doyle - CEO, Dredging Contractors of America

William P. Doyle is the new CEO & Executive Director of the
Dredging Contractors of America (DCA). Twice a U.S. Senate
confirmed Presidential appointee to the U.S. Federal Maritime
Commission (FMC), Doyle has, over the course of a long and
celebrated career, worn many prestigious hats. Prior to his FMC
appointment, Mr. Doyle served on cabinet and executive level
boards and committees under both the Obama and George W. Bush
Administrations. Before that, he served as an officer in the U.S.
Merchant Marine as a U.S. Coast Guard licensed marine engineer
aboard numerous classes of vessels.
During his tenure at FMC, he participates in discussions on
certain bilateral shipping matters with other countries including
Canada, Panama, Greece, Netherlands and other countries in the
European Union. He represented the FMC and co-chaired the
U.S.-China Bilateral Maritime Consultations where he met with
officials from the People's Republic of China regarding maritime
shipping matters such as tax policies affecting U.S. interests in
the U.S.-China trade. Closer to home, Doyle has worked to address
port congestion matters, ocean carrier alliances, industry
consolidation and helping to find solutions that expedite the
movement of cargo through the transportation system.
A graduate of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy with a BS in
Marine Engineering, he is also an attorney and a graduate of the
Widener University Commonwealth School of Law. Doyle has, at one
or another worked from all sides - and at all levels - of the
maritime equation, and understands what it takes to make things
happen. Hence, his recent appointment as DCA's CEO and Executive
Director isn't surprising. Nor will anyone be surprised by what
he accomplishes in his new role. Listen in this month as he wades
into the complicated, but critically important world of domestic
dredging.
The Dredging Contactors of America's (DCA) recently named
you as its new Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer
(CEO) in December. Congratulations. Tell us about the new job and
your responsibilities.
I started on January 3, 2018. The DCA is a nonprofit trade
association that represents the interests of the U.S. dredging
and marine construction industry and its members for over 30
years. DCA members improve the quality and responsiveness of
dredging service delivery to the United States of America,
ensuring that America's ports, waterways, wetlands and beaches
are efficiently constructed and maintained in an environmentally
sustainable manner using innovative methods and American
ingenuity. DCA serves as a vital resource to various other
maritime industry groups for dredging expertise, both in
Washington and across the country. It is a respected industry
partner for its ability to bring together a broad base of
industry stakeholders and decision-makers to engage in open
forums and continue the discourse concerning policy issues
important to the industry as a whole. As CEO & Executive
Director, I am going to raise the profile of the dredging and
marine construction industry and help tell their story. The
member companies of the DCA are true American companies, who hire
American workers, buy U.S. manufactured equipment and build their
dredges, barges and tugs in U.S. shipyards.
You've had a variety of roles in the maritime industry -
a mariner, an attorney and as a federal regulator - arguably the
perfect preparation for your current billet. But, your tenure as
a Commissioner with the U.S. Federal Maritime Commission might be
the most valuable. Tell us a little about the insight you gained
at FMC and how you can leverage that in your new role.
The Federal Maritime Commission opened me up to the entire
international world of shipping. It was definitely a learning
experience. I did not know as much as I thought I did about the
maritime transportation and logistics system. It's a very complex
global system. At FMC, we regulated the international side of
shipping - foreign flag ocean carriers, ocean transportation
intermediaries, ports and maritime terminal operators. That said,
I was a Commissioner who made sure the U.S.-Flag operators and
American-based service providers in the U.S.-domestic trades were
not harmed by the ocean carrier alliances. I fought vigorously,
and won, in defending the U.S.-flag tug and barge industry from
being subject to the collective market power of foreign flag
ocean carriers joining together to drive down the rates of towing
and tug assist companies. I have built solid relationships with
CEOs and Executive Directors of the ports around the country. I
am going to work closely with Port Authorities and make sure the
DCA is a value added team player with all ports. With the states
providing more funding directly for dredging projects, it is
important to keep and continue developing relationships with port
CEOs and Executive Directors.
As you kick off your new role, you've been described by
DCA directors as "the right person to guide our industry
association on an exciting journey forward." Tell us about what
direction you intend to take DCA, and why.
I have a powerful voice. I can tell a story. I have spent my
entire adult life in the maritime, engineering and regulatory
sectors. When putting together that experience, a powerful voice
and a story that is true and one that I really believe in; the
sky is the limit. I am going to ensure that policy and decision
makers understand the economic, national security, and
environmental importance of the work performed by the U.S. Flag
dredging industry on our coasts and waterways at the federal,
state and local levels. When our coastal and inland waterways and
communities are decimated by hurricanes, super-storms and
Nor'easters, it is U.S. dredging companies that answer the call -
deepening and maintaining our channels and harbors, replenishing
our beaches, rebuilding our wetlands and barrier islands, and
allowing our ships to transit and our families to enjoy outdoor
conservation and recreational activities. The U.S. dredging
companies and their mariners are true patriots. When the 2017
hurricane season ravaged Puerto Rico, the Caribbean, Texas, and
Florida, the U.S.-flag dredging and marine companies immediately
made available their dredges to open our waterways and protect
our shores and their tug boats and barges to deliver goods for
humanitarian relief.
Give your sense of the state of the U.S. Flag dredging
and maritime community and the dredging industries role. What
will be Job 1 on your plate?
The U.S.-flag dredging industry is in the midst of recapitalizing
its fleet. That said; there are foreign flag interests who desire
to destroy the coastwise trade. The Merchant Marine Act has been
around since 1920. The U.S. dredging companies comply with the
Merchant Marine Act, and I intend to fight for their interests in
the coastwise trade. Our dredging companies invest in America.
Let's take a look at just a few of the recent capital investments
in the U.S.-flag dredging industry, happening in 2017 alone:
- On December 22, 2017, Weeks Marine's new hopper dredge the
Magdalen successfully completed sea trails. The ship was
built in Florida's Eastern Shipbuilding Group.
- On November 27, 2017, Florida's Eastern Shipbuilding Group
delivered Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Company's new dual mode
articulated tug/barge (ATB) trailing suction hopper dredge to
Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Company, the
Douglas B Mackie
- In October 2017, Conrad Shipyard of Louisiana announced on
that it has been
awarded a contract to build nine barges: four anchor
barges, two deck barges, and three crane barges for Great Lakes
Dredge & Dock Company.
- In July 2017, Weeks Marine announced that its new cutter
suction dredge, the JS
Chatry construction is underway in Belle Chase, Louisiana at
C&C Marine and Repair.
- In April 2017, Louisiana's Halimar Shipyard LLC in Morgan
City, launched Manson Construction's new cutter suction dredge
Robert M White.
- Weeks Marine built 12 scow sand barges this year in Corn Island Shipyard, Inc., Grandview, Ind., and C&C Marine & Repair, Inc., Belle Chase, La.
Does the USACE have the resources they need from Congress
and the Executive branch to accomplish their missions?
I cannot answer for the Corps. There is still a dredging backlog
around the country that additional funding could help resolve.
We're very pleased to see that President Trump's FY18 was 10
percent higher than FY17. The House and Senate also proposed
increases on top of the President's proposal, bringing the
funding levels up to around $6 billion. That said; everyone is
working under a continuing resolution right now with respect to
funding. The DCA works with Congress and the Administration
providing useful information in anticipation of an important
omnibus funding legislation.
Give us a few of the most pressing dredging priorities
that need to get accomplished here in the United States; soon
rather than later.
We need to continue with the port and channel deepening projects.
The ocean carriers have tripled the size of new vessels rolling
off the blocks over the past 10 years. With the expanded Suez and
Panama Canals now fully operational, larger ships are visiting
U.S. ports. We need dredging to allow these new and larger
vessels the ability to safely berth at the nation's marine
terminals. Separately, we have an ongoing and important focus on
coastal restoration in Louisiana. Beyond that, DCA members will
help repair (to pre-storm conditions) U.S. Army Corps projects
impacted by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria - and now perhaps
the Bomb Cyclone that hit Mid-Atlantic, New York and New England
in January 2018.
We give harbor and blue water dredging a lot of
attention. Let's shift gears and talk about inland waters. How
are we doing as a nation in allocating the necessary resources to
get inland dredging done?
The inland waterway system is a major focus for the Army Corps.
It's important and the budgets have hovered under a billion
dollars until 2018. The inland navigation budget includes
allocations for investigations, construction, operations and
maintenance (O&M), and the Mississippi River &Tributaries
(MR&T). If we take a look at the allocations over the past
few years, the Army Corps' agency budget for "inland navigation"
looks something like this:
Fiscal Year -- Allocation (Billions $)
FY 2018 -- 1.01
FY 2017 -- 0.917
FY 2016 -- 0.974
FY 2015 -- 0.834
FY 2014 -- 0.904
One of your most important duties, according to DCA, will
be to ensure that policy and decision makers understand the
economic, national security, and environmental importance of the
work performed by the U.S. Flag dredging industry. You know your
way around the Hill: how much time will you be spending there
going forward?
I am very comfortable working on Capitol Hill. I have a good
reputation as a straight-shooter. With that, the Jones Act has
come under heavy fire from outside interests this past year. I am
going to counter balance that notion with facts and the DCA will
be more involved as an association educating the House and Senate
on the dredging industry's role.
What's the most significant challenge to the USACE in
2018 - is that aligned with your biggest priority?
I am not in a position to actually speak about what the Corps
thinks is their biggest priority. However, the DCA can say that
the Navigation Program is the Corps' largest program.
Approximately 42 percent of the Civil Works budget is the
Navigation Program. Nevertheless, and at current funding levels,
the backlog continues to grow both in O&M and new work. The
U.S. dredging companies have more than enough capacity to meet
the needs of the Army Corps. If the budget were increased to
allocate funding for even more projects, our dredging companies
would certainly answer the call.
Digging out the Small Ports and Harbors that serve as the
on-ramps to the maritime super highway is important work. For
example, the 12,500 miles of the domestic inland system is not
simply the largest in the world - it is bigger than the rest of
the worlds' waterways combined. Do we need to be spending more on
inland infrastructure to complement all of that post-Panamax work
underway in deep draft harbors?
The DCA supports in investment in the inland waterway system. Our
companies are there to do whatever needs to be done by way of
dredging.
By the numbers, FY 2015 in the U.S. - according to the
USACE - 34 percent of all dredging could be attributed to Channel
Deepening. Has this number changed appreciably in 2016? If so,
why?
Actually in 2015 it was only 17.6 percent and in 2016 it was 7
percent. The decrease is due to a lot of new work being funded
directly by the ports at the state level rather than by the
federal government. A good example of this is when Florida
allocated state funding for the Port of Miami dredging and marine
construction work.
In contrast, and in FY-2015, (again according to USACE)
86 percent of domestic dredging was performed by private
contractors and 89 percent of that was deemed 'maintenance'
dredging. Has that metric changed much?
It was 78 percent in 2016, and Superstorm Sandy rebuilding
efforts and needs accounted for the slight drop.
Dredging and infrastructure may therefore be the most
important issue on the plate of any marine organization as
calendar year 2018 kicks off into high gear. Would you
agree?
Yes, I absolutely agree!
(As published in the February 2018 edition of Marine
News)
Feb 12, 2018