Page 42 - Port of Baltimore Magazine January/February 2016

PORT BUSINESS
Marine Technologies
Dives In at the
Port of Baltimore
FIRM READY TO CELEBRATE 25 YEARS OF SUPPORTING INFRASTRUCTURE
Commercial diving, also known
as “hardhat diving,” is a difficult and dangerous profession. Divers work below the surface welding, pouring concrete and doing other construction tasks while tethered to the surface by a hose, called an umbilical, that delivers air and communication from the surface and sends video. Workers are often doing complex tasks in zero-visibility conditions. MTI even works in such unlikely places as gasoline storage tanks, where, and Clarke chuckles as he says, “There’s nothing like doing
the backstroke in three million gallons of gasoline.” In these high-stakes situations, Clarke and his team seek to minimize risks with careful preparation and planning.
“We try to strategize and prepare for whatever challenges we may encounter,” said Clarke. Divers will simulate conditions and practice working around hazards.
One of the company’s most challenging projects was also high profile. “Back in 2002, the main water supply pipe below the Patapsco River
at the Key Bridge corroded and blew apart,” said Clarke. MTI took on the emergency repairs to the 6-foot- diameter pipe that is buried 20 feet below the bottom of the river and across the ship channel, where it is some 80
STORY & PHOTOGRAPHY BY KATHY BERGREN SMITH
Terry Clarke started
his career in road construction, but it didn’t last long. “I didn’t want to spend my working life choking on dust,” he said.
The southern Maryland native loved the water, so he decided to
go to school in Houston to train as
a commercial diver. Today, Clarke (pictured above) owns a fast-growing firm that has expanded from diving right back to heavy construction, without the dust, since most of the work is on the water.
Marine Technologies, Inc., known as MTI, is a commercial diving and
marine construction contractor based in Baltimore. The firm will celebrate 25 years of serving the Port of Baltimore and beyond this summer.
Currently, Clarke’s team at MTI
is working with the Maryland Port Administration (MPA) to maintain and enhance the Port’s infrastructure. The company won a multiyear project to inspect and repair the subsea structural parts of the many MPA-owned piers and bulkheads. This project requires a crew to be on alert 24/7 in the event
of an emergency. But, according
to Clarke, that is nothing out of the ordinary at MTI. From nuclear to wastewater, MTI performs work around the globe and must be ready
to respond to any emergency within
24 hours anywhere in the world.
MARINE TECHNOLOGIES AT A GLANCE
HEADQUARTERS:
6604 Fort Smallwood Rd, Baltimore
PRESIDENT: Terry Clarke
EMPLOYEES: 110
SERVICES: Ship Husbandry, Civil Engineering, Commercial Diving, Inspection Services, Maintenance and Repair, Marine Construction
marinetechnologiesinc.com
[40] The Port of Baltimore ■ January/February 2017