GLDD Announces Partnership With Texas A&M
Houston-based Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (GLDD), the owner and operator of the largest dredge fleet in the United States, has announced a new agreement with Texas A&M University’s College of Engineering to provide funding and technical support for a forthcoming lab named after GLDD.
The future Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Laboratory of Dredging and Coastal Studies will build on the longstanding relationship that already exists between GLDD and Texas A&M. Lasse Petterson, president and CEO of GLDD, and John Hurtado, interim dean of the College of Engineering at Texas A&M, signed the agreement March 31.
“Our company has had a long and robust relationship with Texas A&M that has included research, participation in dredging short courses and advocacy for the ocean and coastal engineering professions,” Petterson said. “This agreement will allow us to formalize and build on that relationship.
“I noted two years ago that the proximity to Texas A&M at both the College Station and Galveston campuses was an important consideration in our decision to move our corporate headquarters to Houston,” Petterson added.
Besides Petterson, GLDD representatives attending the signing ceremony included Chris Gunsten, senior vice president of project services; Dave Johanson, senior vice president of project and area operations for the Gulf region; Dane Nelson, site engineering manager; and Bill Hanson, senior vice president of government relations and business development. Representing Texas A&M’s College of Engineering were Hurtado, Sharath Girimaji and Meredith Brown; professors David Ford and Autumn Leveridge; and Bob Randall, longtime ocean engineering professor and mentor to many Texas A&M ocean engineers.
“We have always enjoyed Great Lakes’ ongoing engagement with the College of Engineering and are excited to see our dredging and coastal studies program attract this attention and investment,” Hurtado said. “The Department of Ocean Engineering is an important part of our future as we support not only dredging and coastal challenges but also important natural infrastructure opportunities. Great Lakes has always been a major employer of our Texas A&M engineers, and we are thankful for their continued support and look forward to growing our relationship.”
Girimaji, head of the Department of Ocean Engineering at Texas A&M, said the partnership with GLDD comes at a strategic time for the industry and region.
“The ocean engineering department is very pleased to partner with Great Lakes in seeking novel solutions for a variety of coastal issues, including dredging, offshore wind and marshland/wetland resiliency,” Girimaji said. “Together, Great Lakes and Texas A&M can elevate the ocean and coastal engineering professions to new heights.”
