International Maritime Associates, Inc.

Consulting Services Performed
in the Transportation Sector

IMA has provided planning and advisory services to a wide range of clients in the ocean shipping, inland waterway and land transportation sectors. Our clients include project investors, tanker operators, container carriers, cruise ship companies, ferry operators, public agencies and lending institutions. The following illustrate the range of assignments.

  • Honduran Land Bridge — developed the concept design of a trans-Honduran railway connecting the ports of San Lorenzo /Amapala on the Pacific coast with Puerto Cortes or Puerto Castilla on the Atlantic coast; benchmarked the economics of utilizing the land bridge vs. the widened Panama Canal assuming use of 20,000 TEU ships on the trans-Pacific leg and 4000 TEU ships on the Atlantic segment
  • Panama Canal Widening — assessed the likely impact of the Panama Canal expansion project on the global ocean shipping industry and future shipbuilding requirements
  • Tanker Company Strategy — evaluated strategic options for divesting or restructuring tanker operations of a Middle East national oil company, prepared as advisory assistance under the World Bank reimbursed technical assistance program
  • Fast Cargo Ships — assessed the technical and financial feasibility of initiating fast ocean transport service in Atlantic trade
  • Maritime Sector Management — advised the Ministry of Communications in Saudi Arabia on long term strategy for developing and improving the maritime transport sector servicing the Kingdom
  • Barge Transport — evaluated the economic role of coastal barge transportation in North America and forecast the industry’s outlook
  • Container Ship Business Plan — prepared a detailed business plan for establishing container feeder service in the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf, operating from transshipment hubs in Salalah and Aden
  • Ro-ro Shipping — evaluated options for utilizing ro/ro shipping as a substitute for truck transport to export Syrian fruits and vegetables to the European market
  • Cruise Line Strategy — assessed the near and long term prospects for the cruise ship market and profiled the business strategy of major cruise lines
  • Port Security Impact — analyzed the impact of additional port security requirements on the cost structure and competitiveness of transport companies
  • Ship Piracy — evaluated ship piracy incidents and profiled industry response for dealing with this issue
  • Container Shipping Strategy — developed a long term strategy and business plan for a Norwegian container shipping company operating in the trade between North and South America
  • Philippines Shipping — recommended a ten year plan for improving inter-island shipping in the Philippines and trained maritime agency personnel in planning activities
  • Madagascar Shipping — evaluated coastal shipping alternatives that could impact requirements for investing in port infrastructure in Madagascar
  • Haiti Coastal Transport — assessed requirements and developed a plan of action for utilizing coastal shipping in Haiti as an alternative to investing in improved road transport
  • Floating Coal Transfer — evaluated the feasibility of utilizing converted tankers as floating coal storage/transfer facilities positioned in coastal deep water locations accessible to large bulk carriers
  • Commuter Ferry Plan — developed the conceptual design for a ferry system between Manhattan and New Jersey, including assessment of terminal requirements, vessel designs, route structure and implementation phasing; service has been successfully implemented
  • National Park Ferry — evaluated alternatives for instituting ferry service to a protected seashore area on Cumberland Island, including potential vessel designs and terminal requirements
  • Potomac River Water Taxi — examined the feasibility of establishing water taxi service on the Potomac River, including identification of potential terminal sites, forecast of demand and system breakeven analysis
  • Fast Ferry Demonstration — assisted the US DOT in setting up a program to demonstrate the feasibility of using hydrofoils and air cushion vehicles for urban commuter service in Hawaii, New York, Boston, San Francisco and Seattle
Prior to forming IMA Mr. McCaul had been senior advisor to the Taiwan Railway Administration, where over an 18-month period he helped install and implement a management accounting system and train TRA personnel in capital investment strategy.

Earlier he participated in several major assignments involving rail mergers in North America, co-authored a major policy paper for the Urban Mass Transportation Administration on allocating capital transit grants and participated in several regulatory cases involving air freight transport.