Page 91: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (November 2017)

&O has been a dis- a squeeze on margins and the require- cited when times are good nor too down ness, the need for a strong coastal shipping tribution leader in ments for quality, project support and when business is bad. Looking ahead he business, the need for a strong defense the commercial ma- documentation. “In a competitive world predicts a “sluggish 2018 with the pro- (Military Sealift Command, Coast Guard, rine space for more already, all of those things can create an verbial light at the end of the tunnel in Navy) – and we believe there will be a

Wthan four decades awful burden, and then the question be- 2019-2021.” strong long-term demand for maritime.” for a number of reasons, but it all starts comes ‘how many people do you need to “Marine is a cyclical business, and it’s Looking beyond 2018 Hume is de- with stability at the top, in the form of the handle it and how do you make money down. But I believe in the economics of cidedly bullish, as there are a number leadership of Michael Hume, President & doing it?’” maritime. As long as there is a ? eet out of government and commercial drivers

Chief Executive Of? cer. Hume has been But Hume, having seen his fair share there working – and we believe in the in North America that promise to drive with the company since 1992, and on a of marine cycles, neither gets too ex- need for a strong inland shipping busi- growth forward fast.

recent visit to his of? ce in Jacksonville,

Fla., he discussed the challenges and op- portunities that lie ahead for his company.

W&O supply is a ubiquitous name in the business of marine supply, support-

TOP 20 MARINE DISTRIBUTOR ing 18 locations globally staffed by more than 330 maritime professional and hous- ing more than $50 million in standing inventory. But the story of W&O tran- scends the typical maritime product sup-

Mooring or Rigging EMERGENCY?

ply story, as the company stands out with its breadth of product and service offer- ing, its sole focus on the marine busi- … Call DCL Mooring & Rigging 24/7/365 ness and its ability – as a wholly owned subsidiary since 1999 of PON Holdings

For over 70 years DCL Mooring & Rigging has remained the premier provider

B.V., a multi-billion dollar privately held company based in the Netherlands – to

ŽIÐ?ŽE?Ðl???G?|sÐG?AYE?Žu?OŽY?lŽUGGÐŽ??ÐusGYl?wŽ|sYOIŽ??A?E? invest with the long term, big picture in mind.

SAFE – EFFECTIVE – EFFICIENT – INNOVATIVE “PON is a hands-on family company, they are involved in the business and they want to understand the opportunity that we see,” said Hume. “This affords us the opportunity to plan a program to triple the size of the company; they listened, they understood and they sup- ported us.”

W&O is well on its way to hitting its growth target, no small feat in the face of a historically tight maritime market.

When asked “how,” Hume was succinct: acquisitions.

“We are looking at two or three ac- quisitions as we speak. To get to a $250 million company it will be about ? nding the right acquisitions, domestic or inter- national.” Through PON, W&O has the resources and the wherewithal to move quickly when opportunity arises to “in- vest ahead of the trend. PON has a ‘buy and hold’ strategy; they don’t do any- thing temporarily just because it might look good,” said Hume.

The Market: A Slugfest “The marine market today is soft, some parts of it are as bad as we’ve ever seen,” said Hume. “The offshore space is terrible; the inland workboat piece is off too.”

But all is not bleak, as both the cruise ship segment and government/navy new

See DCL at WorkBoat, Booth 4027 construction business is helping the ? ll some gaps.

DCL Mooring & Rigging

In step with a tight market, Hume said

EG?K?uGAY??,Ž?wA?,Ž??lŽY that competitive pressures in the marine space are greater than ever, coupled with ????EÐu???A?ÐŽw?????????????

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