As one of the largest specialized maritime planning and engineering firms in the world, Moffatt & Nichol has played a major role in the evolution of the modern port. The firm has an international reputation for providing innovative solutions to the port and maritime industry—from the advent of containerization to today’s complex goods movement trends and environmental regulations. From integrated in-house capabilities, we offer services that support virtually any port, maritime or freight transportation assignment worldwide. From offices and centers of expertise in North America, Europe and Latin America, Moffatt & Nichol can see a project through from conceptual analysis and feasibility study to planning, design, and construction.
We strive to hire the most talented and creative people possible, knowing that success will inevitably follow when our creative employees perform advanced work that leads to practical solutions to clients' problems. Practical solutions are ones that contractors can build, are cost-effective, or that help improve our clients' operations, enabling them to be more competitive and efficient. Our blend of imagination, high-end analytics, and decades of practical experience is a distinguishing quality of Moffatt & Nichol.
Our Values
Consistently holding to a unique set values.
Our values underlie our culture and reputation, govern our actions, and reinforce the essential beliefs that sustain Moffatt & Nichol.
Integrity is paramount. Be fair, honest and forthright with all parties.
Maintain a strong tradition of ethical conduct as the foundation of our business.
Never stand on past successes. Constantly improve our skills and approaches.
Overachieve on project assignments while understanding the important distinction between excellence and perfection.
Secure our future by constantly exceeding our clients' expectations.
Respect our competitors.
Share our earnings with employees.
Maintain a meritocracy in which employees' hard work, sacrifices and achievements will be rewarded.
Be good corporate citizens within our communities.
Our Vision
Working together to be the best in our core practices and supporting disciplines.
Our value to clients comes from our professional practices. We will focus on these, grow them and make them the best in our industry by adding value through technical excellence and creativity. In some fields, this might mean that we are the biggest. However, we see no value in striving to be the largest at anything for its own sake. Rather, we will strive simply to be the best. We do not have to be all things to all people to be successful.
Norfolk International Terminals South Wharf Renovation
Client/Owner: Virginia Port Authority
Location: Norfolk, Virginia
Practices/Services: Ports & Harbors
Norfolk International Terminals, the largest of the Virginia Port Authority’s facilities, was becoming functionally obsolete, so in 2002, the Port undertook a large-scale renovation of the South Terminal as part of its $3.2 billion Capital Improvement Plan. The first step in these renovations included the replacement of 4,230 linear feet of wharf with a new state-of-the-art one designed specifically to handle containerized cargo. Moffatt & Nichol provided wharf design, the design of an innovative stormwater management system that treated stormwater without impacting available land for container operations, and mitigation for environmental impacts to the Elizabeth River as well as nearby tidal wetlands.
To ensure that project didn’t impact terminal operations, the design team developed a phased plan that maintained three berths in service at all times. In fact, cargo amounts coming though NIT South actually increased during the wharf renovation.
In 2006, the Virginia chapter of the American Consulting Engineers Council (ACEC) awarded Moffatt & Nichol their Pinnacle Award for the expansion project.
Fairview Container Terminal Conversion
Fairview Container Terminal Conversion
Client/Owner: Prince Rupert Port Authority
Location: Prince Rupert, British Columbia
Practices/Services: Ports & Harbors
The Prince Rupert Port Authority, Maher Terminals and Canadian National Rail celebrated the official opening of the Fairview Container Terminal in the small northern British Columbia town of Prince Rupert. Located 25 miles from the southern tip of the Alaskan panhandle, the new terminal will transform the port into a word-class container port - North America’s newest gateway for trade with Asia. Moffatt & Nichol, which has been involved in the project since 2004, initially provided master planning for the terminal. In 2005, the firm was awarded a project management contract to oversee all tending and construction for the $170 million project.
To convert the existing 22-hectare terminal into a 500,000 TEU (20-foot equivalent units) per annum advanced container handling facility the work included extending an 1,180-foot wharf seaward 70 feet to accommodate three new 100-foot gauge container cranes, container yard services, all new utilities and pavements, approximately 20,000 feet of intermodal working and support track, maintenance and administration buildings and electrical transmission and distribution systems.
Moffatt & Nichol performed a market study for Hutchison Port Holdings as part of its bid process to assess the potentials and risks associated with expanding its shipping enterprise by developing a mega-terminal in the Port of Barcelona, a major European gateway port. The analysis identified historic, economic, physical, and political conditions and trends that affect expansion into the port, and provided market and cargo forecasts. The study highlighted the upside potential and downside risks of the investment. Merger and acquisition activity between major shipping lines was at the time of the study seen as likely to result in major changes to port call strategies, especially given the increased level of terminal investments being made by the leading carriers. Moffatt & Nichol was able to quantify how this might impact future traffic volumes via Barcelona. The study included a comprehensive competitive analysis of other facilities that serve the region and a thorough examination of existing and potential hinterlands, which looked at the modes of transport and carried out a sensitivity analysis on the least-cost areas to market.
Five-Year Strategy Expands Alabama Ports
Five-Year Capital Improvement & Integrated Added-Value Distribution Program
Client/Owner: Alabama State Port Authority
Location: Mobile, Alabama
Practices/Services: Ports & Harbors
Moffatt & Nichol provided program management for the coordination, investment programming and implementation of the Alabama State Port Authority's Strategic Development Plan for the Port of Mobile. The estimated cost of the program's initial phase is in excess of $300 million and includes projects at Choctaw Point, Monroe Park, Garrows Bend and throughout the main port facility to increase capacity and upgrade existing facilities. The authority's plan, completed by Moffatt & Nichol, proposed a series of five, year-long programs driven by short-term demand and long-term development objectives.
Master Plan Delivers Vision for GPA Terminals
James D. Mason Intermodal Terminal and Garden City Terminal
Moffatt & Nichol provided master planning for this near-terminal intermodal rail facility that serves international container traffic. The master plan provided for a throughput-driven development program to be phased in size, operational density and lift equipment. The track spacing and infrastructure will accommodate the transition from front-end loaders to rubber-tired cranes and automated rail mounted cranes. Moffatt & Nichol also provided queuing analysis and design for the 800-acre terminal's new gate. Critical issues included applicability of two-stage processing to the existing facility and local labor jurisdiction.
Long Beach Mega-terminal Designed for Future
Mega-terminal Development Program
Client/Owner: Port of Long Beach
Location: Long Beach, California
Practices/Services: Ports & Harbors
Moffatt & Nichol is providing program management services for the Port of Long Beach's 10-year, $1.9-billion Mega-terminal Development Program. As part of the port's comprehensive modernization program to better serve international trade, which is expected to double in the coming decade, the program will increase the port's container acreage by more than 900 acres through consolidation and expansion. Existing terminals will be expanded through land creation, redevelopment of adjacent land and facilities or development of vacant and underutilized land. Construction for these terminal expansion projects will be phased to minimize disruptions of ongoing operations and will give the port five, 300-acre or more "mega" terminals. A new 170- to 200-acre terminal is also in development.
Mukilteo Terminal Expands Ferry Service
Mukilteo Multimodal Ferry Terminal
Client/Owner: Washington State Ferries
Location: Mukilteo, Washington
Practices/Services: Ports & Harbors
Moffatt & Nichol is providing project management; ferry operations analysis; civil, structural and coastal engineering design; economic and financial analysis; and environmental services for Washington State Ferries for a $152 million ferry terminal and multimodal center on Puget Sound. The project includes construction of a new two-slip ferry dock, terminal buildings, fare collection facilities, two movable vehicle bridges and one movable pedestrian bridge; a new transit center; a 300-car parking garage; an overhead walkway for pedestrian access to the ferries and the planned Sounder Commuter Rail Station; and highway access improvements. Moffatt & Nichol is managing a team of 16 subconsultants and assisting in stakeholder interaction for the project as well as supporting the client's pursuit of federal funds for the project.
