American Marine & Cargo, Inc. Is Always on Call, 24/7
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By DERON SNYDER (as published by Port of Baltimore Magazine)
After spending 13 years as a seafarer, the last two as a captain, Alok Praharaj was ready to come ashore and raise a family. Life at sea was challenging, especially before cellular technology made communication much easier.
Now, 40 years later, Praharaj no longer spends months at sea. But as the owner of American Marine & Cargo, Inc. (AMC), the ease of modern communication has its pros and cons. He sleeps with his phone, and it can ring at any hour of the night.
“It’s a 24/7 job,” said Praharaj, who serves as AMC’s Principal Surveyor. “Our survey timings are very bad: holidays, weekends, snow, cold, heat. It doesn’t matter. Our phone is on; people call and we go. A lot of times it’s not per a schedule.”
He spent 19 years working for the independent marine surveying firm before the owner retired in 2004. Praharaj purchased and renamed the company, which provides vital services to shipping lines, terminals, cargo owners, charterers and insurers operating through the Port of Baltimore.
He said a tradition of honest service keeps AMC afloat.
“You might hire me, but I write a report based on independence,” Praharaj said. “We’re not biased to any particular party just because you hired us. We are totally independent. Our integrity is the main reason why we’re in business.”
Reliability is another pillar. Roughly 65% of AMC’s job requests come at night, or overnight, mostly due to wide-ranging international time zones. Unless AMC is already booked, they always answer in the affirmative.
“If we don’t respond, the person who’s calling will look for somebody else,” Praharaj said. “The ships are expensive; the ship is in the berth and has a problem. I’m sleeping and they say, ‘I need you right now. Can you do this job?’ I say, ‘OK. Give me five minutes.’”
Weighing in on High-Stakes Cargo
The bulk of AMC’s work involves draft surveys, measuring the weight and quantity of cargo that’s loaded or unloaded. The company uses standardized calculations to assess a ship’s draft beforehand and afterward, accounting for ballast, fuel, water density and other variables. AMC concludes each job by issuing an internationally recognized certificate that details the findings.
“Based on that, the buyer and seller will pay each other,” Praharaj said.
Fuel surveys are conducted when ship owners charter their vessels. AMC determines how much fuel is onboard upon delivery and return. “Just like when you rent a car,” Praharaj said. “But we don’t check the gauge. We actually have to sound the tanks — each fuel and diesel oil, gas oil tank — and calculate how much is on board.” The measurements matter, as ships can take 2,000 tons of fuel at $800 per ton.
Another type of survey assesses a ship’s hull and machinery. Insurance companies hire AMC to review damage from heavy weather and estimate the cost of repairs. Or sailors might’ve been injured while working on board. AMC will verify what happened and why it happened, and what might prevent future occurrences. The company also provides ship inspections for buyers and sellers, like when people buy and sell houses.
Cargo surveys take place for quality control and safety. “Say you are importing machinery, heavy-lift cargo where each weighs 100 tons, or 200 tons,” Praharaj said. “How do you safely discharge the cargo in good condition with no damage? We inspect it, take photographs and write up a report. Some of those jobs can take 16-17 hours on the vessel or the dock. With heavy-lift cargo, we talk to the ship’s captain about the crane and the lifting slings to make sure it’s adequate. When you’re loading 200 tons on the ship’s crane, the ship is going to tilt. You have to take ballast counterweight on the opposite side. We also do that type of survey.”
A Port of Baltimore Fixture
Praharaj settled in Maryland in 1985 to begin working for the company he now owns. As a result, AMC has established deep relationships across the Port of Baltimore.
“Wallenius Wilhelmsen is my oldest customer,” he said. Other customers include renowned U.S. coal exporters and major terminal operators in Baltimore “to whom we provide regular service with honesty and integrity.”
Aside from Praharaj’s wife Tonya Craft, who is the company’s Vice President and Office Manager, the six-person firm is composed of former seafarers like Praharaj himself. “We look for ex-captains or ex-chief officers or at least ex-second officers with a maritime background,” he said. “I prefer maritime academy graduates. I’m originally from India myself, and I went to the academy over there.”
Praharaj said turnover isn’t high, although some employees have left for different fields with “cushy timing, like an 8-to-5 job.” He tries to keep his employees happy because he knows the work is demanding. It was important that they continued to receive full pay and benefits when there was no work for three months after the Key Bridge collapsed. “I didn’t want to lose anybody because I knew one day the work would come back,” he said.
The Port of Baltimore “has been really, really great to me all my life. I must thank everybody in the Port, including all the terminals, all the shipping lines, everybody — and the state itself. It has given me a big opportunity to go ahead with my career and my family.”
