(NEW ORLEANS) — Pacific-Gulf Marine (PGM) has been appointed general agent by the U.S. Maritime Administration (MarAd) to provide full ship management services in support of the training ship General Rudder. The ship is part of the National Defense Reserve Fleet and is currently berthed at the Texas A&M Maritime Academy campus in Galveston, Texas.
Established in 1976, PGM is a privately held, full-service marine operating and ship management company servicing both commercial and government accounts. The company is certified to the International Safety Management (ISM) Code and the International Standards Organization (ISO) 9001:2015 and 140002 standards.
General Rudder will be used as a training platform for the United States Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA) in Kings Point, N.Y. As general agent, PGM will be responsible for all aspects related to the vessel’s activation, including engineering, maintenance, and operational oversight of the vessel during the cruise.
Working in close cooperation with the American Maritime Officers (AMO) and Seafarers International Union (SIU), PGM has commenced the process of manning the vessel. It is then anticipated that 41 midshipmen will join the vessel in preparation for the Nov. 21 training cruise.
PGM has a long history supporting both MarAd and industry training programs.
“We are extremely pleased to be involved with this project as we further our valued and longstanding relationship with MarAd. Although our team’s role is a small part of this critical training mission, the assignment has our full attention; after all, the founder of our company was a USMMA graduate and placed a great emphasis on supporting those future generations who will one day be leaders in our U.S. maritime industry,” said Todd Johnson, president and CEO of Pacific-Gulf Marine.
– Pacific-Gulf Marine
