Maritime International would like to introduce our new mooring bollard specification generator. As a leading manufacturer of mooring bollards, we understand that a clear, concise specification is the starting point to ensure the product meets with the end user's requirements.
To utilize this tool, click here, and simply fill out the form. Your completed specification will be emailed to you immediately along with PDF drawings for your requested bollard model and associated mounting hardware. If you have any questions, or if you require a customized specification, please email or call us for an editable Microsoft Word document. CAD design blocks are also available upon request.
This is a great book for those of you truly wanting to create, structure and demonstrate a solid, integrity-based business environment with principles that apply to customers, vendors and maybe most importantly, your own personnel. It is written by Stephen M.R. Covey, co-founder and CEO of CoveyLink Worldwide. Mr. Covey is a sought-after and compelling keynote speaker and advisor on trust, leadership, ethics, and high performance, he speaks to audiences around the world.
We have highly encouraged the reading of this book to our employees as a resource, despite that fact that we have always managed our business with the basic principle of Trust. However, The ‘Speed of Trust' definitely has brought into focus the actionable behaviors that inspire trust within not just our ‘key' relationships....but all of our relationships.
Within our company, Trust is not just a measure of honesty (although that is obviously part of it), but moreso an all encompassing virtue adhered to from our workers on the shop floor, to the highest executive level. We feel that all employees must be held to a standard of trust that employs honesty, integrity, character, humbleness, work eithic and a 'do the right thing' mentality. We monitor these attributes in our people and firmly believe it contributes to the success of our business.
As stange as this sounds, we apply this same analysis to our vendors and clients in the marine fender business as well. You cannot do business with someone that you do not trust to do their part in a project. That means doing what they say they are going to do, when they say they are going to do it, the first time, every time. In other words if you have trust, you have confidence and that makes the business process easier and likely more profitable for everyone. The Speed of Trust has helped us further integrate this concept into our company. Our business is better for having read this valuable resource.
If you'd like to hear about how Maritime uses these principles as a business guide, contact our Quality Manager Erik Reutling.
At Maritime International, our engineering staff takes the time to understand the needs of your project, and if possible we'll provide you with an alternate design for your marine fender system, giving you a more affordable, and more efficient option. To facilitate this process, we can provide you with clear, easily understandable documentation including a high-quality, interactive 3D rendering of your project. You more than likely have Adobe Acrobat already installed on your computer, so there's no need for additional software.
The most commonly accepted practice for calculating hull pressure is to calculate the average hull pressure by dividing the reaction of the marine fender over the entire frontal flat area of the marine fender panel. While this calculation normally serves as a good parameter for sizing fender panels often times it does not truly depict the true loading scenario between the hull of the vessel and the panel.
Non symmetric fender arrangements, hull belting, and hull flare are just few examples of obstructions which cause the panel loading to be anything but evenly distributed. However, even in the case of a flat hull berthing against the face of flat panel, the loading cannot truly be considered fully distributed. Since the hull of most vessels are commonly designed with an external plate membrane supported by an internal structure of stiffer gussets, the high berthing loads will be more directly transferred into the internal frames of the vessel rather than the membrane of the vessel. As the hulls external membrane is loaded, it will deflect slightly until the loading is almost completely transferred into the frames of the vessel. Due to this loading phenomenon fender panels must be designed such that they are capable of bridging the gaps between adjacent hull frames. If properly designed this is actually a favorable loading condition for the vessel since the hull; which is not meant to handle high compressive loads, will be somewhat spared as the panel bridges the girders and imparts most of the fender reaction directly into the frames of the vessel designed for high shear loads. More and more vessels are being designed with gussets that are farther and farther apart. While panel systems are good at bridging these gaps, this condition is starting to cause problems for marine fender systems that do not use a panel such as foam and pneumatic fenders. Such fendering system impart a truly hydrostatic load into the hull of the vessel which is likely to deflect the hulls external membrane so greatly that there exists the potential for permanent deformation on the hull of the vessel. As vessel design evolves designers must always be cognizant of the true load transfer between panel and vessel.
THE RACE TO THE BOTTOM
Is it really worth buying products on the ‘cheap' when there is a good chance that you really will ‘get what you pay for'?
We here at MI use the term in the title of this blog to describe companies that operate with low integrity, honesty and trust, who are in the constant state of driving the market down. From lowering the quality of goods, to simply offering pricing that cannot be justified in any practical matter, these companies have entered the ‘Race to The Bottom'. The marine market often contains a little of all the above, but especially when times are tough, a ‘Race to the Bottom' is a typical result. We define this ‘Race to the Bottom' as an environment whereas suppliers are cutting corners, diluting supply chains and not always providing what they say they are. Additionally, these companies will defensively reduce margins, and therefore compromise profitability which contributes to a weakening of the vendor that may prevent them from supporting problems financially if needed later. When done in combination with cuts in quality, this can endanger the financial health of the supplier. Thus the effect could ultimately have an extremely negative impact on a client with severe financial impacts that the client is left to handle.
Most markets thrive on the concept of free-market competition, but with the caveat of fairness, honesty and playing by the rules. There is a difference between a ‘good deal' given due to production flow, pre-payment, or an order given today rather than tomorrow. But dramatic differences in pricing between vendors of similar products in a competitive market should raise serious questions. Simply put, in competitive markets, price differences cannot be overly dramatic for essentially the same items unless there is a huge market shift or product/material breakthrough. In mature markets with equally mature products, the primary cost advantages typically come to companies that exhibit high quality processes that reduce costs and mistakes, with excellent customer service, faster deliveries and the establishment of a reputation of trust. It is proven that increasing quality in all areas indeed ultimately saves the client money.
Provide more, do more, increase quality, and increase customer service......create a foundation of trust from your clients and watch your business grow. Do not participate in the ‘Race to the Bottom', whether you are a vendor or a customer. Take the time to get to know the vendors you are dealing with and gain the confidence in them needed to ensure your project runs smoothly.
