But, Benny Cenac does more than just talk about it.
Benny Cenac is often quoted as saying,“Bigger is
not necessarily better.”.
Nevertheless, and after the sale, Cenac's entrepreneurial spirit still burned brightly.
Nevertheless, Benny Cenac would tell you that the two efforts are inextricably entwined.
Arlen“Benny” Cenac Jr. navigates the downturns by investing in construction
and modernization at lower costs.
This gives Cenac professionals additional hands on training that is
the bedrock to furthering their professional development.
We asked Cenac's chief executive where those numbers might
be in five years and beyond that, ten.
It's‘no accident' that Cenac has been an AWO member since its beginning,
and is fully SubM Compliant today.
Hence, the Cenac model for what is‘better' has the firm, in his mind,‘right sized' for its intended missions.
On the latest conference call,
Kirby CEO David Grzebinski estimated that the Cenac purchase price was 25-35% under replacement cost.
Cenac Marine Services and its dynamic,
third generation leader, Arlen“Benny” Cenac Jr., continue to flourish, in good times and bad.
The safety of his team is and has always been of utmost importance to Cenac, and therefore training is key.
On the journey to full compliance, Cenac awarded a Third-Party Organization(TPO)
contract to ABS, a recognizable stakeholder on the domestic waterfront.
That's because Arlen“Benny” Cenac Jr. has always believed that customer service,
reliability, and technology were the most important components in towing excellence.
In particular, the Halloween Festival and
the annual Christmas Concert Gala during the holidays are events which all Cenac employees look forward to.
As those industry downturns impact and
ultimately absorb other firms, Cenac Marine Services' success has allowed them to
build on a solid financial base.
In Cenac's world, then, the philosophy of‘making all the boats float
when the tide comes in' has yielded fruit for more than 90 years.
For example, Cenac Towing's 2015 acquisition of Main Iron Works(MIW) is noteworthy in that it
married an experienced, well-regarded shipyard to an established transportation leader.
According to their web site, Cenac Towing Company operates approximately 38 boats,
68 barges and has 400 employees, stretching across almost a century of rich history.
That's because, over time, coastal conservation efforts,
coastal restoration and preservation have been a cause that Arlen“Benny” Cenac has recognized, embraced and robustly supported for decades.
Cenac adds quickly,“We have always been
a company that believes in internal repairs and construction of our fleet, so this acquisition was the perfect fit for our company's overall goals.”.
According to Mr. Cenac, even as he navigates the rapidly changing landscape
of the domestic Jones Act business climate, the Cenac way of doing things is one thing that won't.
But, Mr. Cenac's first entrepreneurial mountain was climbed
when he assumed sole control of the family business and took major risks in a large expansion and modernization of the existing fleet.
Cenac's mother's father started MIW and built
the majority share of Interstate Transportation's fleet, Dixie Carrier's fleet, and Harvey Gulf's fleet, and most of those boats are still in operation today.
In an industry where some operators‘make do' with acquired assets that might
not be just right for the job at hand, Cenac Towing operates only fit-for-purpose hulls with a
high level of efficiency.
If you look at our barge capacity, including Cenac, from the beginning of 2018 to now,
the number of barges we have is up about 26% and the barrel capacity is up 36%.
So if you look at our barge capacity at the beginning of'18 to right now including Cenac the number of barges,
we have is up about 26% and the barrel capacity is up 36%.