Document q374JjpnjMxkk84Zmz1n9LKGM

Vol. 6, No. 9 April 30, 1964 Better Turnarounds at Baytown = "Tanker-Saving Time" If time is money, as the philosophers tell us, then time saved is money saved. And when we talk about saving a tanker's time (which means saving money) we are talking about big money-- $200 an hour and more, depending upon market rates, the season and size of vessel. During the past several months, a group at the Baytown Refinery has been working to reduce the time that ships spend at the docks. Ships' per sonnel have also been working in the same direc tion and in the middle, coordinating both efforts have been L. J. Fentiman, Baytown Dockmaster, and Captain R. F. Stap, of our Port Staff. In the first 3 months of 1964 this drive has shown very creditable results. Our 28,000-ton vessels (excluding the specialty ships Esso Bangor and Esso Huntington) loaded 47 cargoes in an average of 3.82 hours less than they did in the first quarter of 1963. The total time saved for the 47 loadings was 179.54 hours, which at $200 per hour, is something like $36,000. On 7 loadings in the same 3 months this year, the four 38,000-dwt. vessels averaged 4.14 fewer hours at the dock than in 1963--a total saving of 28.98 hours--another $7-8,0000 saved. How is all this time being saved? Part of the answer is in the Refinery's improved facilities-- some new pumps, an ultra-modern control center and improved loading systems. But one of the main factors responsible for the excellent results of the time-saving program so far--and we have a feeling that the progress has only just begun-- are first, we are really looking for ways to save time and second, closer cooperation is being de veloped between ship and refinery personnel. This closer cooperation has brought about some very efficient turnarounds during the first quar ter of 1964 and in April, too. Recently the Esso Dallas filled her tanks in 8 hrs., 5 min., taking on 3 grades at almost maximum rates. Kerosene was loaded at 4,900 bph. (5,000 bph. max.), diesel fuel at 2,364 bph. (3,000 max.) and heating oil at 22,709 bph. (23,000 max.). In a majority of cases, the ships have been able to take the cargo as fast as the refinery could deliver it. (Continued on next page) Sydney Wire, Assistant General Manager of the Marine Division (left center) presents a Certificate of Safety to Captain Clarence S. Lee in recognition of the Esso Ches ter's accident-free record in 1963. The Certificate is the Marine Divi sion's special award for operating a full year without a personnel injury resulting in lost time or sick leave. Four vessels earned the distinction last year. Left to right in the photo, taken on April 23, are: W. F. Robinson, Acting Manager of the Operations Dept.; First Asst. Engr. Joseph J. Cabral; Asst. Port Engineer H. W. Bradbury; Mr. Wire; Chief Engineer R. L. Argenbright; Utilityman Gaudencio J. Gibau; Second Cook De- metrios Georgiou; Captain Lee; Port Steward D. A. Hodges; Third Mate Frank E. Stoddard; Chief Cook Pris- EXX-MOR-006868 Problems arise though, when 2 or more ships are at the docks ready to load the same grade at the same time. This is where Dick Causey, Dock Dept. Coordinator, works with Wilbur Cottle, Baytown Agent, and the ships' personnel to "jug gle" the loading sequences so that the best turn arounds can be made by all the vessels involved. For example, there is one pipeline for Esso Extra gasoline and one for Esso Plus running to the docks. If 2 ships are scheduled to load Both, grades, it is possible (if no shipboard problems are created) to save time by giving the Extra to one ship while the Plus goes to the other rather than load both grades in one ship at a time. There are scores of situations of this nature that the Refinery, Agency and ship men try to work out through cooperation and coordination. They are doing it, too. "The ships' personnel are leaning over backward to cooperate," Mr. Fentiman said. Another area where hours are being saved is time spent at dock for other than loading cargo. A 38,000-tonner recently docked in 55 min., had only 40 min. between finished de-ballasting to start loading and 45 min. from finished loading to clear of dock. Getting back to the time saved is money saved idea--you might wonder when we cash in the money saved. It can be done in 2 ways. If those 179 hours saved by the 28,000-ton ships this year can be added to in the next 2 or 3 months, we will have saved enough time for an extra round trip from the Gulf to the East Coast. If the trip is needed, we haul an extra cargo on "tanker saving time"--very reasonably. This will avoid a cash outlay for a chartered vessel. If the trip is not needed, one of our ships could be chartered to haul a cargo for another account, ringing the bell in our cash register. Major Medical Insurance Pays Off There are a number of men in the fleet who have reason to congratulate themselves on their good judgment. One is a Seaman who took ad vantage of the offer to join the Major Medical plan last May (he had previously signed up for hospital-surgical-medical insurance with Health Service, Inc.) A couple months ago his wife had a serious abdominal operation. The hospital and medical bills came to $997.46. Of this total. Health Service paid $588.50, Major Medical paid $231.72, leaving only $177.24 to be paid by the employee. Last year, when Major Medical (The Travelers Insurance Co.) first became available to seagoing personnel, over 75% of those eligible joined. To have Major Medical for yourself and fam ily, you must first have the hospital-surgicalmedical insurance (Health Service, Inc.). May Carl C. Vella, AB in the Esso Lima, looks over 2 stacks of sil ver dollars, a silver dollar watch fob and another dollar mount ed on a belt bucklemementos of a pleas ant stay at Las Vegas on his last paid leave. Carl spent 5 days, off and on, around the famed gaming tables, losing $80 the first 2 days but finally coming out about even, including all expenses. Though he is no greenhorn with the ivory cubes, Carl admits "it's hard to come away a winner". Carl made a 4,500-mile trip in his Cadillac from Baytown to Los Angeles and back between March 6 and April 1, going by way of El Paso and Tucson and returning via Las Vegas and Phoenix. "It was 'Happy Motoring' all the way," he said, adding herefically, " `not a speck of trouble' ", and November are the months in which you can join. If you are already in Health Service, you may apply for Major Medical at any time. Or, you can join both at the same time in May or November. Monthly costs of both types of coverage (outside of what the Company pays) are as follows: Hospital-Surgical -Medical Employee Employee and 1 dependent Employee and family Extra for sponsor dependent* $ 5.44 9.42 10.62 5.44 Major Medical $1.46 3.24 3.86 .95 ^Unmarried child, aged 19-22 inclusive, dependent upon employee. Application forms are available aboard ships and at Branch Offices. Scara is First "Special" Second Mate To Get Master's License "April 15, 1964 was a momentous day for me," Albert M. Scara wrote to the Fleet News. "As 1 was happy to announce to Captain Sam Gardner (acting for Port Captain Frank Hooper), I passed my examination and received my Master's license in the Port of New York. I guess I'm the first ESSO FLEET NEWS is published for the seagoing em ployees of the Marine Division, Humble Oil & Refining Co.: Joseph Andreae, General Manager; Sydney Wire, Assistant General Manager. W. E. Gardner, Editor. Contributions and suggestions are invited and should be addressed to The Editor, Esso Fleet News, Humble Oil & Refining Co., P. 0. Box 1512, Houston 1, Texas. (correct) of the `Special' Second Mates to raise his grade to Master. I told Captain Gardner I was thankful for the opportunity to obtain the neces sary balance of my Second Mate's time. You need 2 years as Second Mate or one year as Chief Mate while holding a Chief Mate's license to qualify." Mr. (or should we say Captain) Scara had a word of advice for other Special Second Mates planning to sit for a Master's license. "Be thoroughly prepared," he said. "The exam is very intensive and demanding in all subjects. You must pass Navigation with a grade of 80 or better and Rules of the Road with not less than 90 before you can proceed. The passing grade for the other subjects is 75 and your overall average must be 75 or better. It's quite an ordeal, con sidering the total of 29 subjects. It took me 10 days of `sitting' to complete." Mr. Scara said the 7-part problem on great circle sailing was "a real buster" but only one radar plot was required if you hold a radar en dorsement, otherwise 4 plots and 20 questions. Esso Lexington's Panoma-FIorida Tow As previously reported, the Esso Lexington's propeller came loose and nearly slipped off the shaft at Balboa, C. Z. on a voyage from El Segundo, Calif, to Port Everglades, Fla. The vessel was handled as a dead ship through the Canal and towed from Cristobal to Florida by the Merritt, Chapman & Scott tug Cable. The tow started on March 25 and arrived at Port Everglades Seabuoy at 0330, April 8--a distance of 1,404 miles covered in 13 days, 19 hours at an average speed of 4.24 knots. After the Lexington discharged her cargo, the Cable towed her to Mobile for repairs, arriving on April 14. Jean Brower, Second Mate in the Lexington, wrote a 24-page description of the episode which, of course, is more than we can handle in these ort Anchor Unused in Tow ~ Ready To Eef Go if Needed .............. <'ck'<-d Wire Preventer to Ship's Bits -- --- Riding Pawl Remains in Place Strain Of Tow All on Brake ' TAFFRAIL TALK mmmmmm Richard Blue, son of Captain Albert Blue (ret. Jan. 1, 1958), has been awarded a Teagle Founda tion Scholarship to attend Cornell University. ** * Rafael Sanchez, who retired as Steward in May 1955, after 30 years in the fleet, visited Houston on April 20. He was on his way from California to New York and then to Spain, where he plans to stay until December. Mr. Sanchez is 72 years old, looks well and is en joying retirement. He and his wife live in Los Gatos, about 50 miles south of San Francisco. They have a fine home on an acre of land, with fruit trees, grapes, a beautiful view and pleasant climate. Alexander A. Andreca, who sailed in the fleet as Purser from Dec. 1947 to July 1959, is now Asst. Manager of the Timuquana Country Club near Jacksonville, Fla. He was recently featured in a 2-page Sunday magazine section article of a pages. However, we don't want you to miss the following extract and 2 of his sketches of the towing arrangement and propeller lashing. "The (Canal) transit takes about 12 hours, all interesting. Wild life is plentiful and colorful. Alligators abound as do birds and fish. We noticed an unusually large number of buzzards--probably because we were a dead ship. They don't get many of these." Balboa. Ripper's Lashings Eyes d- Eights Around Opposite S/de Blade Towing arrangement and propeller lashing sketches by Jean Brower Anchor Chain 1800' a" pi,,w Steel (7 Tons) J, .OJt- ^ o S' iW To w Line Connection Enl&ryed Jacksonville newspaper in connection with his long-time hobby of making fine violins. ** * AB William J. Cain, ex- Esso Bangor, was in terested in the Feb. 20 Fleet News item about Pumpman John Voigt's home town of Sheboygan, Wise, and the origin of the name. Bill writes that his state of Michigan has a Cheboygan, too (but spelled with a C instead of an S) and "they" say the name came about this way: "Many years ago, an Indian walked into a logging camp. The foreman greeted him and asked, `Joe, how is your wife today?' He replied, `Fine, she-boy-again last night.' So with the birth of this Indian baby, the place was named Che boygan." ** & A radio message from the Baytown-bound Esso Florence set the Marine Division offices "buzzing" on April 23. "ETA 23rd 0830," the message said, "arrange to have expert beekeeper remove beehive from vessel." It seems that a queen bee and a thousand or two of her loyal subjects had taken a liking to the Florence at a Jacksonville shipyard. At Baytown, 0. L. Kent, a Refinery employee who knows how to handle the busy buzzers, removed the swarm from under the forward catwalk. As far as we know, no one got stung--but no honey, either. No Lifeboat Race This Year Word was received April 27 that the Inter national Lifeboat Race, which has been an annual event in New York Harbor for many years, will not be held this year. There is reported to be insufficient competition. tmmmm WORDS OF THE WISE Anger is the wind that blows out the light of reason. -- Anon. SERVICE EMBLEM AWARDS it 20 YEARS ^ James D. Lawton Master November 15, 1960 Nello leavins First Asst. Engineer April 25, 1961 YY 10 tears Robert V. McQuillan July 21, 1963 Edward N. Payne July 23, 1963 Gilberto V. Ponce August 16, 1963 James R,, Sharp August 13, 1963 Jose C. Martinez Utilityman October 19, 1963 Yee Chee Siew July 27, 1963 William J. Somsky September 15, 1963 Esso Scranton on Sixth India Voyage The SS (stout ship) Esso Scranton is making a long haul to eastward again, sailing from Baytown on April 22, Beaumont on the 24th and Baton Rouge, the 27th for Bombay and Calcutta. Her complement is as follows: Roger A. Steward Neo H. Robinson Joseph M. Stultz Charles Zeman Master Ch. Mate 2nd Mate 3rd Mate John N. Outwater Ch. Engr. Richard E. Lewis 1st Asst. David A. Dolan 2nd Asst. George F. Miller, Jr. 3rd Asst. Hartwell A. Baxter Rad. Off. Francis E. Conroy John W. Wehman Anthony lazarezyk William G. Wasko John J. Seiler Louis E. Sabat AB AB AB AB AB AB Donald T. Robinson James A. Norton OS OS Jose Nieto OS Douglas T. Parker Pumpman William M. Gardner MM/2P Thomas Boyle Joseph J. Sokolowski Frank R. Ritchie Oiler Oiler Oiler Edmund F. Jutz John J. Forker Lloyd E. Mercer FWT FWT FWT Maurice Wishnoff Ch. Stew'd Ronald J. McLean Ch. Cook Jerry S. Lambertson 2nd Cook John Huntley Raymondo G. Dahilig Edmund R. Canion James P. Sibley OM CM UM UM OBITUARY p' ^ v% " 3 . : Fireman-Watertender Wil liam E. Bailey, 43, died of a jBwr" .M heart attack on April 26 at Ba^31, ton Rouge General Hospital, !'c. VvS1 where he had been a patient for SK ZSZjjjF 7 days. He had left the Esso 5 yW|'Gettysburg "not feeling well" If^ on April 18. He is survived by SwY. ` - his wife, Mary, a daughter, Ruth, 18 and a son, William, Jr.. 17. A native and resident of Norfolk, Mr. Bailey started going to sea in 1937 and joined the Esso fleet on Jan. 27, 1950. Most of his 14 years' ser vice was as Maintenance Mechanic/2nd Pump man until Aug. 1962, when he requested FiremanWatertender assignments. Henry R. Smith, 76, former Marine Agent at Boston, died April 12 following a heart at tack last December at his home in Springfield, Pa. Surviving are his wife, Julia; 2 daughters, Muriel and Mrs. Charles A. Krober. Jr., and 2 sons. Elmer H. and R. Douglas. Mr. Smith had 32 years of Company service and a seagoing career starting in the early 1900s with the Morgan Line. He was an engineer officer with Standard Oil of Calif, and Esso and Superin tending Engineer with Imperial Oil Co., Ltd. In 1927 he became Marine Superintendent for Colo nial Beacon Oil Co. at Everett, Mass, and con tinued as Company Agent until his retirement on Oct. 1, 1952.