Salazar Approves Cape Wind Development
April 28, 2010
**ALERT** Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar traveled to Massachusetts today to approve the Cape Wind farm, the first of its kind in U. S. waters. U.S. shipyards standby to build, repair and maintain the fleet of new vessels required to install and service the U.S. offshore wind energy sector. This is the beginning of a new and exciting market for the U.S. commercial shipyard industrial base.
Salazar approves nation's first offshore wind farm
By Juliet Eilperin (Washington Post April 28, 2010)
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said Wednesday he has approved the first offshore wind farm in the United States, a move that ends a nearly decade-long political battle and could pave the way for significant offshore wind development along the East Coast.
In approving the Cape Wind project, a 130-turbine wind farm off Nantucket, Salazar said he would "strike the right balance" between energy development and protecting the area.
"After careful consideration of all the concerns expressed during the lengthy review and consultation process and thorough analyses of the many factors involved, I find that the public benefits weigh in favor of approving the Cape Wind project at the Horseshoe Shoal location," Salazar said. "With this decision we are beginning a new direction in our Nation's energy future, ushering in America's first offshore wind energy facility and opening a new chapter in the history of this region."
Gov. Deval L. Patrick, who pushed for the project as part of his plan to generate 20 percent of the state's electricity with renewable energy by 2025, stood by Salazar's side at a press conference in Boston.
"This day has been a long time coming," Patrick said. "We are on our way, and if we get clean energy right, the whole world will be our customers."
The Cape Wind project is hugely controversial. Unveiled in 2001, the roughly 25-square-mile proposal has soured longstanding friendships and opened political fault lines within the Democratic Party. The late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), whose family compound overlooks the sound, fiercely opposed it, while some Martha Vineyard residents and Massachusetts power brokers described it as an essential step toward weaning the nation off oil and other polluting energy sources.
A local group opposed to the measure, the Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound, and a company owned by Cape Cod landowner Bill Koch, Oxbow Corp., have spent millions on lobbying and advertising fees trying to block the project since 2002. Cape Wind has spent hundreds of thouands on lobbying during the same period.
After undergoing a series of state and federal regulatory reviews, which addressed everything from how the wind farm could hinder navigation and harm birds, it encountered another challenge this year when two local Indian tribes managed to qualify the sound for listing on the National Register of Historic Places, which could limit its commercial use.
The Aquinnah and the Mashpee tribes practice a sunrise ritual on the sound and say they may have artifacts buried beneath the seabed. Salazar traveled to Nantucket in February and got up before dawn to meet with tribal representatives and discuss their sunrise ceremonies.
OSHA Releases Spring Reg Agenda
April 28, 2010
OSHA Has released its Spring Regulatory Agenda. You can link to it HERE
Of Note: Combustible has been moved to long-term action despite the Agency declaring it a major priority. OSHA has stated that the complex rule requires significant, necessary research to support it. The next step, SBREFA Panel Review, is expected to begin in April 2011. You can find SCA's comments on the ANPRM HERE.
Two interesting additions in the Pre Rule stage are the following:
Occupational Injury and Illness Recording and Reporting Requirements--Modernizing OSHA's Reporting System
OSHA is planning to modernize its reporting system for injuries and illnesses. They state an updated and modernized reporting system would enable a more efficient and timely collection of data and would improve the accuracy and availability of the relevant records and statistics. As a first step, the Agency plans to hold stakeholder meetings in July 2010.
Injury and Illness Prevention Program
OSHA is developing a rule that would require employers to implement an Injury and Illness Prevention Program. It involves planning, implementing, evaluating, and improving processes and activities that protect employee safety and health. The Agency states the "i2p2 standard" is not a substitute for other OSHA standards, but would provide a mechanism to achieve the culture change needed in this country to effectively address workplace safety and health issues. Under the proposed standard, it would be the employer's responsibility to identify all hazards in their workplace, which may include ergonomics, falls, amputations, electrocutions, work-related respiratory disease, etc. The control of those hazards will be required by existing OSHA standards and the general duty clause, as is currently the case.
OSHA has not made a determination on what industries will be covered by an i2p2 rule. The first step in the rules development will be to hold stakeholder meetings later this year.
OSHA Maritime Industry Training - Portsmouth
April 23, 2010
OHSA has announced the opportunity to complete the classic OSHA Maritime Shipyard training recognizing career experience and accomplishment. Details on the
OSHA Course 5400 Details to be held in Portsmouth, Virginia from May 4th through May 7th.
OSHA Increased Sever Violator Penalties
April 23, 2010
OSHA will be implementing a new Severe Violator Enforcement Program and increasing civil penalty amounts. Please make sure to review all changes.
Severe Violator Enforcement Program
The Severe Violator Enforcement Program includes increased OSHA inspections in worksites that have had willful, repeat and failure to abate violations, including mandatory OSHA follow-up inspections and inspections of other worksites of the same employer where similar hazards and deficiencies may be present. This is expected to be implemented in the next 45 days. To view the directive click here: http://www.osha.gov/dep/svep-directive.pdf.
Increased Penalties
Several administrative changes to the penalty calculation system, outlined in the agency’s Field Operations Manual, are being made. OSHA expects that these changes will become effective in the next "several months" after the regional offices receive training on the changes. The penalty changes will increase the overall dollar amount of all penalties and will maintain OSHA’s policy of reducing penalties for small employers and those acting in good faith. OSHA expects the average penalty for a serious violation will increase from about $1,000 to an average $3,000 to $4,000. Please review the following memo outlining changes: http://www.osha.gov/dep/penalty-change-memo.pdf.
OSHA has stated that these administrative changes are not a substitute for substantial penalty increases included in the Protecting America’s Workers Act (PAWA). Take that for what its worth. Currently, the prospects are not bright for any movement on the legislation, nevertheless SCA will continue its efforts against the bill.
Crofton Diving Cleans Elizabeth River
April 21, 2010
What a dive: Crews clean up trash-laden river
By Scott Harper | The Virginian-Pilot
Scott Harper, (757) 446-2340, scott.harper@pilotonline.com
NORFOLK
THEY FOUND A WHEELCHAIR, three bikes, a baby stroller, a bag of laundry, a mop, tires, a garden cart, a sledgehammer, city of Norfolk banners, chairs, tables, a Ford hubcap, a ladder covered with oysters, hoses, cables, chains and a traffic cone – all covered with black mud and years of foul rot.
In just two hours, commercial divers hauled up all this junk Saturday and loads more from the bottom of the Elizabeth River, in a small cove near Town Point Park and Waterside in downtown Norfolk.
The cleanup, called the Town Point Trash Dive, was the first of its kind in Virginia and only one of a handful in the United States, done to commemorate Earth Day, which is Thursday.
“We wanted to do something different for Earth Day, and this definitely was it,” said Karen Scherberger, executive director of Norfolk Festevents, the outdoor-party group that sponsored the daylong effort.
Dozens of curious people strolled by the piles of junk on display along the city docks and marveled.
“Is this from a shipwreck?” asked Charlene Goggins, visiting from Oklahoma.
“My God, this is unbelievable,” said her husband, David . “It makes you wonder how much else is dumped in our rivers. It’s disgusting.”
The running joke of the day among the divers and crews was who would find the first dead body.
Then, about mid-morning, a team from Precon Marine Inc. discovered what appeared to be a shoulder or hip bone. Police soon arrived and took the bone away in an evidence bag. They gave it to a member of the medical examiner’s office.
The joke was definitely over.
The idea for the cleanup stemmed from a Festevents volunteer and photographer, Rosemarie O’Grady, who participated in a similar underwater cleanup last fall in a small town in Sweden.
“It’s all about awareness,” O’Grady said. “You look at the water and say how pretty it looks. But when you go look underneath, you see a much different picture. It can startle you.”
Charles Smith, a diver from Crofton Diving Corp. of Portsmouth, spent 45 minutes on his hands and knees on the bottom of the cove, feeling for junk.
“You can’t really see anything, it’s so dark down there,” Smith said. “It’s sort of like being in a closet.”
Among the items he recovered were the wheelchair, the oyster-laden ladder and a plastic fedora.
“It’s Freddy Krueger’s hat,” Smith said with a grin.
Kenny Crofton, vice president of Crofton Diving, sits on the Festevents board of directors. When the cleanup idea came up weeks ago, Crofton agreed to recruit other companies to pitch in. They agreed.
All of the trash was to be recycled or taken to a landfill, said John Paul Wright, of Weeks Disposal, a Chesapeake company that volunteered its services.
Tires and metal can be recycled, Wright said, and big chunks of wood can be shredded and made into landfill cover.
“It’s a good cause,” said a diver from W.F. Magann Corp. who goes by the name Pino.
“We should do this more often,” he said, “cover other spots. It should be beautiful down there, but too often it’s not.”
VICKI CRONIS-NOHE | THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
one dirty job Mike Bremus surfaces after about 45 minutes of searching the bottom of the Elizabeth River for trash Saturday. Several teams of divers took part in the Earth Day cleanup.
VICKI CRONIS-NOHE | THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Charles Smith of Crofton Diving spent part of Saturday in the Elizabeth River, clearing it of trash, foreground, for the Town Point Trash Dive. The event was a first for Virginia.
Earl Industries Announces New Variable Speed Drive
April 06, 2010
March 19, 2010 | EARL INDUSTRIES ANNOUNCES SUCCESSFUL QUALIFICATION TESTING OF ENERGY EFFICIENT VARIABLE SPEED DRIVE FOR SHIPBOARD MOTORS
Portsmouth, Va. – Earl Industries announced today the completion of a significant milestone in a multiyear development program for a new line of breakthrough technology, energy efficient Variable Speed Drives (VSD) for electric motors. The innovative design of this VSD is expected to provide 30% - 50% energy savings over traditional motor controllers.
Earl’s new 10-horsepower VSD, implemented with the breakthrough AC-link* power conversion and control technology successfully completed a series of qualification tests proving the drive meets the electromagnetic interference, power quality, and volume requirements of the Navy’s rigorous performance standards and specifications. These tests ensure the device can integrate into a ship’s electric power system without affecting power quality or injecting noise into other sensitive shipboard equipments and systems.
While the commercial marketplace has used VSD for many years, routinely realizing major energy savings, those legacy drives do not meet the Navy’s power quality requirements. Accordingly, they cannot be used in Navy shipboard applications without expensive and inefficient power conditioning and interference filtering electronics.
RADM (ret) Jeff Brooks, Chief Operating Officer, Earl Industries said “the Navy has been trying to put variable speed drives into ships for over 30 years but has been unable to find a drive that meets stringent shipboard requirements. This drive meets all those requirements and allows the Navy to immediately harvest significant energy savings by more efficiently powering shipboard systems.”
The Navy’s ambitious energy goals, recently established by Navy Secretary Ray Mabus, to reduce petroleum fuel use and adopt alternative and renewable energy sources can best be accomplished through innovative technology such as the AC-link VSD. Further, the AC-link technology implemented in this drive is applicable to the many engineering challenges presented by the Navy’s long-range shipboard electrification strategy, particularly those outlined in the Next Generation Integrated Power System (NGIPS) program.
Jerry Miller, President of Earl Industries said “We have been investing aggressively toward new technologies that address the Navy’s growing demand for alternative energy and energy savings products. This drive is the first in a full series of drives of various frame sizes under development by Earl and our team mate, Princeton Power Systems of Princeton, NJ.”
Earl’s drive is now cleared for installation in the Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system for the Flexible Infrastructure Space of USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) currently under construction at Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding, Newport News, VA. This next generation HVAC system is designed to support the variable ventilation demands of the rapidly reconfigurable Flexible Infrastructure space.
Earl Industries is a high technology, multidimensional company supplying world class, core competencies in complex ship repair and engineering, manufacturing, new technology coatings, and energy efficient electrical and control systems. Headquartered in Portsmouth, Virginia, Earl Industries boasts a 25-year history of innovation, exceptional customer responsiveness, and on-the-deck-plate service to our Nation’s military community. For more information contact Milo Hyde, Director, Integrated Power Systems at mhyde@earl-ind.com and visit us at www.earl-ind.com.
* AC-link is a trade name owned by Princeton Power Systems that represents a suite of technologies owned by Princeton Power Systems.
Shipyard Leader Passes - Titan in Ship Repair
April 01, 2010
By Robert McCabe
The Virginian-Pilot
NORFOLK
With the passing of John L. Roper III, the Norfolk waterfront lost one of its links to a time when families, instead of big companies, controlled local shipyards.
Roper, 83, former chairman and CEO of Norfolk Shipbuilding and Drydock Corp., which later became Norshipco, died at his Norfolk home on Sunday.
Sold in 1998 to a company owned by The Carlyle Group, the family enterprise became part of BAE Systems five years ago.
For decades, though, it was one of the moorings of the homegrown maritime community.
“The Roper family was really the shipyard family in Norfolk – not just John but his father and his grandfather,” said Richard Goldbach, chairman and CEO of Metro Machine Corp., a Norshipco competitor. “The family was extremely community oriented.”
In 1951, Roper joined the family business begun by his grandfather George W. Roper in 1914. Over the course of the next few decades, he helped recast it from a small ship-repair operation to a major ship-repair and shipbuilding concern.
A Coast Guard veteran, with degrees from the University of Virginia and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he began as a shipyard apprentice and worked his way to the top of the firm in 1983, after the death of his father.
Roper, however, had been running the company long before his father’s death, said Robert Twine, owner of Portsmouth based Collins Machine Works, who worked at Norshipco for 26 years.
“Mr. Roper put a lot of confidence in me at a very young age,” said Twine, who was made a vice president while in his 30s. “He was very intelligent; he could see the big picture. He didn’t major in minors; he did the things that true leaders do.”
One of those things was orchestrating a deal between Norshipco and El Paso Natural Gas in the 1970s that allowed the financing and construction of the largest floating drydock in the Western Hemisphere, Twine said. The deal positioned the company for further growth.
Though Roper was among seven shipyard executives convicted in a bribery scandal involving Navy inspectors in the mid-1970s, he rebounded to a respected place in community life.
“They had a reputation for looking after their employees,” Twine said of the Ropers. “He was a visionary.”
A short list of Roper’s charitable contributions and commitments include his work with the Mariners’ Museum, the Chrysler Museum, the Medical College of Hampton Roads Foundation and the Virginia Opera.
“He left quite a mark on this area during his lifetime,” said his son, Jack Roper. “He was involved in so many charitable things, so many business ventures ...
“He touched a lot of things in this area that made it a better, more vibrant place to live. He was a wonderful father; he was a wonderful person.”
Roper is survived by his wife, Jane Preston Roper, five children, 10 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
A memorial service is planned at 11 a.m. Saturday at Good Shepherd Episcopal Church, Norfolk.
Robert McCabe, (757) 446-2327,
robert.mccabe@pilotonline.com
2010 Annual VSRA Communications Survey
April 01, 2010
YOUR ASSOCIATION WANTS TO HEAR FROM YOU.
VSRA has accomplished incredible things with our members support and now is the time for YOU to TELL US what would make your Association better for your company! Please click on the link below to take a short 10 minute (MAX) survey and thank you for contributing your voice to our efforts!
Maritime Community Loses a Lifelong Leader
March 30, 2010
NORFOLK - John L. Roper III died March 28, 2010 at home. He was 83. He was the beloved husband of Jane P. Roper. John was born in Norfolk Jan. 19, 1927, the eldest son of the late John L. “Jack” Roper II and Sarah Roper. Growing up in Norfolk, he attended Virginia Episcopal School and the University of Virginia. In 1945, he served our country in World War II in the United States Coast Guard, protecting our shores from Nazi U-Boats, attaining the rank of lieutenant (j.g.) in the U.S. Naval Reserve (retired). In 1949, John graduated from the University of Virginia with a degree in mechanical engineering. Afterwards, he attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, graduating in 1951 with a degree in naval architecture I and marine engineering. On Sept. 29, 1951, he married his sweetheart, Jane “Jinnie” Preston, in Tazewell, Va., afterwards moving to Norfolk to join the family business: Norfolk Shipbuilding and Drydock Corporation, which was founded by his grandfather, George Wishham Roper in 1914. John began his career in the shipyard industry as a college student in 1946. In 1951, he enrolled as a shipyard apprentice, working his way up to the top executive position, and ultimately taking control of the company in 1983 upon the death of his father. The consummate businessman, John took great pride in building Norfolk Shipbuilding from a relatively small ship repair company into a large ship repair and shipbuilding enterprise.
John was an innovator in his field in the establishment of the “take and pay” contract with a major energy company, enabling the construction of the largest floating drydock in this hemisphere, the Titan. Constructed in Brazil and towed to Norfolk, the Titan, combined with the construction of a new 1000-foot pier, enabled the company to compete and win larger contracts to build and repair ships, enter into agency agreements, and to market to foreign customers. Changing its name to Norshipco, the company’s employment rose from approximately 1,000 employees to a peak of over 5,000 employees in the late 1970’s. In 1998, John retired from Norshipco after the sale of the company to Southwest Marine. At the time of the sale, the company employed approximately 2,000 individuals.
Mr. Roper’s business accomplishments were only exceeded by his generous record of charitable service to the community. Mr. Roper served on the boards of numerous non-profit organizations. In the 1960s, he was president of the Tidewater Chapter of the American Red Cross, a board member of the Independent Junior Colleges of Virginia and of the Old Dominion Athletic Foundation. He served as the chairman of the Virginia Port Authority, a trustee of the Chrysler Museum, a member of the Medical College of Hampton Roads Foundation, and a trustee of the Virginia Opera, only to name a few. He formed a company trust dedicated to giving to charitable organizations throughout the Hampton Roads area, giving to local hospitals, charities, institutions of higher learning, and the arts. Mr. Roper was a member of the Church of the Good Shepherd Episcopal Church in Norfolk. Mr. Roper was an avid sportsman and golfer, and enjoyed many good times with his friends and colleagues.
He is survived by his beloved wife, Jane Preston Roper, five children, 10 grandchildren, and one greatgrandchild. His children are as follows: his son, John L. Roper IV and his wife Ruth; his four daughters, Dr. Susan St. Clair Roper and her husband Dean Kuhne of Clearwater, Fla., Sarah Massie and her husband Gerry of Norfolk, Jane Van Sciver of Norfolk and Hayward Stout of Poway, Calif. His 10 beloved grandchildren are: Rachel Roper, Daniel Kuhne, Laura Kuhne, Sarah Kuhne, Katherine Tekamp, Austin Tekamp, Jessica Van Sciver, Robbie Van Sciver, Ryan Stout and Cheyney Stout. He is also survived by his lovely sister, Isabel Yates and her children, Maida, Ann, Isabel, and Cherie, and by his brother, George Roper.
A memorial service in celebration of his life will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, April 3, in the Good Shepherd Episcopal Church by the Rev. Charles Riddle. The family will receive friends in the Norfolk Chapel of H.D. Oliver Funeral Apartments Thursday from 5 to 7 p.m. Donations, in lieu of flowers, may be made to the Virginia Opera, Virginia Symphony or to the Mariners’ Museum. Online condolences may be offered to the family at hdoliver.com.
OSHA Authority in Maritime Employment
March 29, 2010
Last month, OSHA released a directive to its Regional and Area Offices titled, "OSHA Authority Over Vessels and Facilities on or Adjacent to U.S. Navigable Waters and the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS)." This directive explains OSHA authority over and jurisdictional issues related to maritime employment. The directive can be found HERE: http://www.osha.gov/OshDoc/Directive_pdf/CPL_02-01-047.pdf.
Significant updates include, among others:
- Provides policy guidance for the enforcement of the OSH Act with respect to towing vessels that on August 9, 2004, were added by legislation to the 46 U.S.C. 3301 list of vessels that require inspection by the U.S. Coast Guard.
- Provides updated guidance regarding enforcement on permanently moored craft (previously known as permanently moored vessels), such as craft used for gaming or entertainment purposes which do not have a practical capacity to get underway.
- Addresses the applicability of OSHA's General Industry Standards (29 CFR Part 1910) to maritime hazards, as well as the coverage of OSHA’s Shipyard Employment Standards (29 CFR Part 1915), Marine Terminals Standards (29 CFR Part 1917), and Longshoring Standards (29 CFR Part 1918), and address marine operations in the Construction Industry (29 CFR Part 1926).
- FAQ Section