Page 28: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (July 1973)

Dravo Completes Acquisition

Of A.L. Mechling Barge Lines

Dravo Corporation has announced comple- tion of the acquisition of A.L. Mechling Barge

Lines, Inc., Joliet, 111., and the consolidation of that firm with Union Barge Line Corpora- tion, a subsidiary of Dravo.

The resulting new company will operate as

Union Mechling Corporation, a subsidiary of

Dravo, and will be headquartered in Pitts- burgh.

Consolidation of the two barge lines was au- thorized by the Interstate Commerce Commis- sion in an order released March 28, 1973.

Terms of the acquisition of A.L. Mechling

Barge Lines and relaited companies were $3,- 960,924 in cash and 165,514 shares of Dravo

Cumulative Convertible Series B Preference

Stock. 'Chief executives of Union Mechling Corpor- ation are C.E. Walker, president; F.A. Mech- ling, executive vice president; A.J. Brosius, vice president-administration; Dudley Coles, vice president-marketing; Alan H. Edwards, vice president-engineering; F.R. Markland, vice president-finance; H.G. Mechling, vice president-maintenance; John W. Oehler, vice president-sales, and A.D. Osbourne, vice presi- dent-operations.

The new firm has 535 employees.

Mr. Walker said the consolidation would be carried out smoothly and with no interruption in present operations.

Combination of personnel, floating equip- ment, terminals and other facilities of both firms will result in better service to the ship- ping public, he said, through improved utiliza- tion of equipment and closer coordination of schedules.

SERVICE*^*

GILLEN BACKS EVEBY JOB ...with over 100 years of . the best in service fS —

WEST END AVENUE, OYSTER BAY, NEW YORK, N.Y. 11771 • 212-895-8110

Mechling, which was established in 1920, had a fleet of eight towboats and tugs and more than 260 barges. It operated primarily between the Illinois area and (the 'Gulf Coast, including

Tampa, and with full common carrier rights for immediate points and certain tributary wa- terways and specific commodity rights to the

West Coast.

Robert Dickey III (seated, right), president and chief executive officer of Dravo Corporation, signs the agree- ment for the acquisition by Dravo of A.L. Mechling Barge

Lines, Inc. and its related companies. The Mechling assets were then consolidated with those of Union Barge

Line Corporation, a Dravo subsidiary, to form Union

Mechling Corporation. Looking on from A.L. Mechling

Barge Lines are A.L. Mechling (seated, left), chairman;

H.G. Mechling, vice president, and F.A. Mechling, execu- tive vice president; from Dravo, L.P. Struble Jr., group vice president; and .from Union Barge Line, C.E. Walker president.

Mechling also operated a public terminal and warehouse in Chicago; terminal, repair and drydock facilities in Joliet, and barge painting and fleeting facilities in Lemont, 111. It also owned a 514-acre area for industrial develop- ment along the Illinois Waterway at Seneca, 111. Sales offices were maintained in Chicago,

Houston, Joliet, New Orleans and Tampa.

In 1972, Mechling and related companies re- ported revenues of $15,165,403.

Union, founded in 1928, owned a fleet of nine towboats and about 400 barges. It operated principally between the Ohio Valley and the

Gulf Coast, with full common carrier rights on certain tributary waterways, including the

Arkansas Waterway. Union reported revenues of $17,587,990 in 1972. Union's sales offices were in Pittsburgh, Houston, Memphis, New Or- leans, New York City and St. Louis.

Union Mechling will maintain sales offices in all cities where its predecessor companies had offices. /OC-HAHPLt^ "..AT7H6 OWSZ &VP OF 7Ht IT

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