OAK BROOK, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation (NASDAQ:GLDD) ??? the largest
provider of dredging services in the United States and a major provider
of commercial and industrial demolition services ??? today announced
changes to its executive management effective immediately. Douglas B.
Mackie, President and Chief Executive Officer, has decided with the
Board of Directors to resign his positions and become Chairman Emeritus
and Senior Advisor to the Company. Mr. Mackie will remain a director of
Great Lakes.
The Board has appointed Jonathan Berger as Chief Executive Officer of
the Company. Mr. Berger has served as a member of the Company???s Board of
Directors since December 2006 and served as Chair of the Audit
Committee. Mr. Berger will remain a director, but will no longer serve
on the Audit Committee.
Mr. Berger was a Partner in KPMG???s Corporate Finance practice from 1991
thru 1999 and was a Managing Director and Co-head of Navigant
Consulting, Inc. (NYSE:NCI) Corporate Finance practice from 2001 to
2009. Currently, Mr. Berger is a Director and Chair of the Audit and
Compensation Committees of Boise, Inc. (NYSE:BZ). He is a Certified
Public Accountant and holds an MBA from Emory University.
Deborah A. Wensel, Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and
Treasurer, also has decided with the Board of Directors to resign her
positions. Ms. Wensel will assist in the transition as a consultant to
the Company through the end of the year.
The Board has appointed Bruce J. Biemeck as President and Chief
Financial Officer. Mr. Biemeck has served as a member of the Company???s
Board of Directors since December 2006 and most recently served as Lead
Director, Chair of the Compensation Committee and a member of the Audit
Committee and Nominating and Corporate Governance committee. Mr. Biemeck
will remain a director, but will no longer serve as Lead Director or on
any Board committees.
Mr. Biemeck has deep institutional knowledge of Great Lakes??? business,
having served as the Company???s Senior Vice President, Chief Financial
Officer and Treasurer from 1991 to 1999. Since 1999, Mr. Biemeck has
been a private real estate investor and developer and has acted as an
independent consultant. He received a B.S. from St. Louis University and
an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago. He is a Certified Public
Accountant.
Commentary
Newly appointed CEO and Director Jonathan Berger commented, ???With
these changes, Great Lakes is poised to take advantage of market
opportunities and execute on the strategic plan being developed by the
Board and Management. With these moves we have been able to provide
experienced, familiar leadership, while enhancing management with strong
skills in strategic planning and mergers and acquisitions to grow Great
Lakes. We recognize the strong and steady leadership Mr. Mackie has
provided this Company over the last 15 years. Under his leadership,
Great Lakes has experienced growth in revenue and profits, grown its
fleet to respond to market needs and enhanced the Company???s safety
record. Doug led the transition of the Company to private equity
ownership in the 1980s as well as back to public ownership in 2006. In
the early 1990s, Doug???s foresight led Great lakes to expand into foreign
dredging markets, which have accounted for over 20% of annual revenues
over the last five years. This has proven to help immensely with the
cyclical nature of the domestic dredging markets. We are pleased Doug
has agreed to stay active with the Company as a senior advisor and Board
member for Great Lakes and look forward to continuing to work with him.
Mr. Berger continued. ???I also thank Deb for her many contributions to
the Company while serving as CFO since 1999 and previously, in
increasingly responsible financial roles. During her years of service,
Deb effectively managed the Company???s finances, including the
administration, successful negotiation and financing of numerous
transactions, through both private equity ownership and the transition
back to public ownership through its 2006 initial public offering and
listing on NASDAQ. We wish her well in the next stage of her career and
look forward to working with her in the coming months during our
transition.???
Doug Mackie stated, ???I am grateful to the employees of Great Lakes, who
through their dedication and efforts, have helped make our growth and
leadership the pride of the industry. I have great confidence in the new
management team and look forward to working with them in an advisory
capacity to meet our goals for the future.???
Mr. Berger concluded, ???Great Lakes recently announced a strong first
half with the expectation for full year results which exceed 2009
results. We have experienced solid results in recent periods, reduced
debt and generated cash which will provide for future plans and needs
for our dredging and demolition operations, as well as enhance our
ability to finance expansion. Our strategic vision remains to seek
growth opportunities in our existing businesses as well as outside of
our existing business base. Our new management team will serve a
critical role in executing our strategic plan that is being developed to
meet our growth objectives. Our team looks forward to exploring future
growth opportunities both inside and outside our core markets.???
Conference Call Information
The Company will conduct a conference call to discuss the executive
management changes, which will be held Wednesday, September 8th at 10:00
a.m. C.D.T. The call in number is 866-314-5232 and passcode is 27303656.
The call can also be heard on the Company???s website, www.gldd.com
under Events and Presentations on the investor relations page.
Information related to the conference call will also be available on the
investor relations page of the Company???s website. The conference call
will be available by replay for two weeks, by calling 888-286-8010 and
providing passcode 56413875.
The Company
Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation is the largest provider of
dredging services in the United States and the only U.S. dredging
company with significant international operations, averaging 30% of its
dredging revenues over the last three years. The Company is also one of
the largest U.S. providers of commercial and industrial demolition
services. Additionally, the Company owns a 50% interest in a marine sand
mining operation in New Jersey which supplies sand and aggregate used
for road and building construction. Great Lakes has a 120-year history
of never failing to complete a marine project and owns the largest and
most diverse fleet in the U.S. industry, comprised of over 180
specialized vessels.
Cautionary Note Regarding
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release may constitute
"forward-looking" statements as defined in Section 27A of the Securities
Act of 1933 (the "Securities Act"), Section 21E of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Exchange Act"), the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the "PSLRA") or in releases made by the
Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), all as may be amended from
time to time. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown
risks, uncertainties and other important factors that could cause the
actual results, performance or achievements of Great Lakes Dredge & Dock
Corporation and its subsidiaries, or industry results, to differ
materially from any future results, performance or achievements
expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Statements that
are not historical fact are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking
statements can be identified by, among other things, the use of
forward-looking language, such as the words "plan," "believe," "expect,"
"anticipate," "intend," "estimate," "project," "may," "will," "would,"
"could," "should," "seeks," or "scheduled to," or other similar words,
or the negative of these terms or other variations of these terms or
comparable language, or by discussion of strategy or intentions. These
cautionary statements are being made pursuant to the Securities Act, the
Exchange Act and the PSLRA with the intention of obtaining the benefits
of the "safe harbor" provisions of such laws. Great Lakes cautions
investors that any forward-looking statements made by Great Lakes are
not guarantees or indicative of future performance. Important
assumptions and other important factors that could cause actual results
to differ materially from those forward-looking statements with respect
to Great Lakes include, but are not limited to, risks associated with
Great Lakes leverage, fixed price contracts, dependence on government
contracts and funding, bonding requirements and obligations,
international operations, government regulation, restrictive debt
covenants and fluctuations in quarterly operations, and those factors,
risks and uncertainties that are described in Item 1A of its Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2009, and in other
securities filings by Great Lakes with the SEC.
Although Great Lakes believes that its plans, intentions and
expectations reflected in or suggested by such forward-looking
statements are reasonable, actual results could differ materially from a
projection or assumption in any forward-looking statements. Great Lakes
future financial condition and results of operations, as well as any
forward-looking statements, are subject to change and inherent risks and
uncertainties. The forward-looking statements contained in this press
release are made only as of the date hereof and Great Lakes does not
have or undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking
statements whether as a result of new information, subsequent events or
otherwise, unless otherwise required by law.