William Morris
July 23, 2007
Barracudas make waves at state meet
July 25, 2007
Diamond Services Controller Dr. Tim Tregle said his company expects to have the new $31.5 million shipyard near Gibson operational by Nov. 16, 2008.
Tregle said this date is a conservative estimate with a “cushion” built into each function of the project to account for possible delays like hurricanes.
And he expects the new shipyard will create 50 to 60 new jobs at the start of the project.
“We have a lot of unique things that we have to do while conducting business over a 12 or 14 month process. It’s quite involved,” said Tregle.
The development will span 250 acres in Gibson, leaving behind another 1,650 acres of land owned by the Diamond Services owner, Wallace Carline.
While Tregle said the company expects to create 50 to 60 jobs at the start, it wants to add more jobs to reach 200 new jobs to qualify for more tax breaks.
But Tregle voiced concerned about the availability of trained workers.
“I could foresee the facility maybe having difficulty finding 50 employees,” said Tregle.
Terrebonne Parish Councilwoman Arlanda Williams attempted to allay Tregle’s concerns about the available workforce by pointing out a possible push for employees from the L.E. Fletcher Community college by running a job fair and training program.
“If you don’t have a job in Terrebonne Parish when we finish with this assembly, it’s because you just don’t want a job,” said Williams
Terrebonne Economic Development Authority CEO Mike Ferdinand also expressed the advantages of Diamond Services potentially partnering with L.E. Fletcher.
“By partnering with Fletcher, you’re also able to access the underemployed. By offering a broader workforce development program – those who are looking to better themselves in way of employment – they have an opportunity for training and then moving into a higher-skilled, better paying job,” said Ferdinand.
Tregle answered the question as to whether Diamond Services would draw employees from its competitors.
“I know, when I would get that question as the mayor of Morgan City, I always answered by the fact I’ve never seen McDonald’s not open across from a Burger King at an intersection on the highway,” said Tregle. “I think when you have a clustered development and you get known for that type of skill set, then it becomes cool to join that group and it causes more folks to want to get into that environment and get into that skill set and job class. It flourishes.”
Tregle shared his concern about whether or not the project will qualify for a Go Zone grant.
Ferdinand updated Tregle on the possibility of receiving a policy exemption to help Diamond Services qualify for a Go Zone grant, as the company won’t be able to get the site operational before the grant deadline.
“Since you have already placed the order and there has been a coastwide delay in delivery of similar equipment, because of the incredible demand at this time, they [the Congressional delegation] are trying to clarify whether they can get an exception to current policy,” said Ferdinand.
But Tregle said his company is committed to going forward, even without the Go Zone grant, as it will save four percent by getting a rebate on the state sales tax, as well as possibly qualifying for other tax credits and exemptions.
“We have committed to move forward regardless of the Go Zone. That would just be another nice thing to have,” said Tregle. “You take four percent of $6 million, that’s right there, a good rebate for sure.”
Tregle referred to the twin lifts with the $6 million figure. The lifts are the stars of the new shipyard.
The twin 640-ton lifts are designed to service wide vessels like large commercial barges, which are of the dimensions of 210 feet-by-60 feet by 16 feet.
Diamond Services will be responsible for putting the lifts together after they arrive by truck in pieces contained in a minimum of 40 shipping containers.
The Italian company ASCOM designed the lifts and will provide an engineer to oversee the erection process.
Tregle said the lifts are going to cost a little more than the originally estimated $3 million per figure, but wouldn’t be more specific than that.
The lifts are designed to work in tandem and when combined they create one of the largest lifts in the world.
The new lifts will have 32 tires each for a total of 64 tires. And each tire, without the air or rim, weighs 16 tons, and requires a specialized forklift to be moved.
Tregle said the company plans to keep one or two spares, as well.
The lifts are capable of rolling along at a blistering 1.5 mph on these super monster truck-sized treads.
Remarkably, the lift retains 100 percent of its lift capacity all the way down to about 47 feet. At about 38 feet, the lift goes down to just 92 percent of its lifting capacity.
“The vessels that are going to be in this four, five, six, seven hundred ton range are going to typically be wider than 37 feet,” said Tregle.
The lifts were originally designed to be 75 feet in width, but Tregle said his company decided to make the lifts 65 feet in width to make them more functional and cost efficient.
Like some cranes, Tregle said the lifts will probably be equipped with a wind speed monitor that will automatically limit the size of the load the lifts will be able to heft in wind.
The lifts actually hoist ships into the air with multiple polyacrylic straps. Nylon straps are not used to prevent stretching.
These straps were produced in Italy and are capable of bearing seven times their rated load in the event another strap fails.
The straps are fitted with a replaceable sleeve to prevent them from fraying.
The lifts will be painted red with white lettering, the reverse of the Diamond Services logo. The fender guards will be white, as well.
An application has been filed to start developing the slip for the lifts. The slip will be 200 feet wide to allow small tugboats can configure wide vessels, so if they get wind blown, they won’t smash into the sides of the slip.
The company plans to forgo the use of concrete pylons for the slip and use 1 inch or thicker steel pylons.
The company made changes to its original fixed-building structure plans and is looking at the possibility of using mobile buildings.
A proposed landing airstrip, designed to allow Diamond Services to receive quick deliveries, still remains in the planning phase.
Williams voiced concerns about the potential environmental impact the expansion will have.
“I am for economic development,” said Williams. “Everybody wants economic development, but we just want to make sure we keep the sanctity of these neighborhoods.”
Tregle reassured her it would have an impact similar to other shipyards in the area, but reminded her of the economic development it will generate for the area.
“It’s going to be just like any other shipyard. Shipyards nowadays are required to maintain all sorts of regulations from OSHA to EPA standards. I think it’s the best thing in the world for this port,” said Tregle. “And I think it’s a tremendous economic development project, not just for Terrebonne Parish, but for St. Mary Parish and Lafourche Parish.”
Williams looks forward to the economic development the lifts will bring to the area.
“McDermott and Avondale were almost a source line down there when they were active and running,’ said Williams. “You had a lot more traffic in and out. And they had so many little small restaurants, if you passed down there, that were open and now closed, because there’s not enough active traffic through there. This type of energy anywhere, though, will definitely boost up the energy that is needed in that area.”
McDermott and Avondale Shipyards used to be located on the land owned by L-M Management president Porter Baron.
“I’m hoping this will be the start of other eyes on that area,” said Williams. “You do things like this and then other people will begin to start shopping that area.”
The land along the navigational canal is mandated by Congress to be 20 feet deep and 400 feet wide.
Tregle said he couldn’t comment on what Carline planned to do with the remainder of the 1,650 acres of land, but people have approached him expressing interest in buying or leasing the land.
Tregle said the selling points for the surrounding land are the fact it is hurricane resistant and does not flood and it is a fresh water port, removing the corrosive effects of saltwater at other ports.
“If you’re storing vessels, it’s much better to be in the Bayou Black area than the saltwater area,” he said.
While the shipyard is being designed to service mostly commercial vessels like barges, the idea of operating a private, small boat repair service is being tossed around said Tregle.
“In the old days, people would pick up shrimp boats and you would go work on your own shrimp boat. That has been concepted, but don’t hold me to that one,” he explained. “It would just be a little piece of the area set off to the side.”
Tregle said some folks just like doing that, work on their own boats, just like some like to work on their own cars.
Even though the company does not expect to be operational for another 15 months, it is already receiving requests for its shipyard services, he said.
