INSIGHTS: from Crowley’s Todd Busch

By Joseph Keefe

Friday, August 17, 2012

Todd Busch joined Crowley as an ordinary seaman in 1986, earning his masters’ license working aboard company tugboats before coming ashore in 1994 as a tug dispatcher. Since then, he has held a variety of positions with increasing responsibility within the firm. Today, the 24-year Crowley veteran is a member of the company’s senior leadership team, reporting directly to Crowley CEO Tom Crowley. Based at Crowley’s headquarters in Jacksonville, FL, he is responsible for several of the company’s business enterprises including the project management organization PMOrg (known as Crowley solutions), as well as subsidiaries Titan Salvage, Jensen Maritime Consultants, and Intrepid Ship Management. Collectively these technical services encompass marine salvage and wreck removal; naval architecture and marine engineering; vessel construction management; ship management; offshore support; vessel chartering; project management and government contract services.

The 2002 recipient of the Thomas B. Crowley trophy – the highest honor a Crowley employee can receive – Busch has additionally represented Crowley in the International Salvage Union (ISU), and served on the executive committee for the past 7 years. In 2009 he was elected to President of the ISU, a position he held until September 2011. Beyond this, he has also served as a director of the Clean Pacific Alliance and the Marine Response Alliance. Todd’s views are therefore particularly relevant and he brings MarineNews readers up-to-speed on all things “salvage” in this month’s version of INSIGHTS:

The heightened awareness for the marine environment and the role that salvage has to play in that equation are both important components to a happy ending in marine casualties. Where salvors make best efforts to contain an environmental disaster and the final salvage value does not reflect those efforts, making the salvor whole can be problematic. What’s the solution?
The International Salvage Union has promoted the idea of adding a component to Lloyd’s Open Form (LOF) to address these types of situations where the environment is threatened, and the response of the salvor has saved damage to the environment. You mentioned a happy ending; this is a win-win for all involved. It protects the environment, saves the responsible party from additional costs related to the environmental damage that could have occurred, and justly rewards the salvor for his efforts.

To read the full interview, check out the following link: INSIGHTS: From Crowley’s Todd Busch