Moffatt & Nichol

Company Information

Summary:
Moffatt & Nichol is a global infrastructure advisory firm providing practical solutions to clients in the marine terminal, transportation, energy, environmental, federal, and urban development markets around the world.

Description:

Owned by the Nichol family and senior management, Moffatt & Nichol has focused on marine design and planning services continuously since 1945. As a result, the company is a recognized leader not only among its engineering peers, but also the port and shipping industry for its specialized expertise. Moffatt & Nichol has been routinely ranked as one of the top marine and port facilities engineering firms in North America by Engineering News Record (ENR). Initially, the firm concentrated on harbour works, bridges, buildings, industrial facilities and military installations. Later, services were expanded to include coastal and oceanographic engineering, port and rail planning, economics, automation, logistics and financial services, project management plus construction inspections and administration.

In over 70 years of continuous practice, Moffatt & Nichol has completed feasibility and planning studies, program management, cost estimates, preliminary and final designs plus construction support for several thousand ports and waterfront projects around the globe.

PRODUCTS/SERVICES 

Marine Terminals

As one of the largest specialized maritime planning and engineering companies in the world, Moffatt & Nichol has played a major role in the evolution of the modern marine terminal, being one of the first to revolutionize port planning and design with a focus on efficient goods movement. The company has earned an international reputation for providing innovative solutions to the complex challenges associated with moving all types of freight—from break-bulk and automobiles to more specialized cargos such as coal, oil, biomass, and liquid natural gas. From the advent of containerization to today’s complex goods movement trends and environmental regulations, we offer integrated in-house capabilities to support our clients on any port, maritime or freight transportation assignment worldwide.

Containerisation has passed its half-century mark and “the box” has become the predominant mode of non-bulk cargo transportation. An established marine consultancy, Moffatt & Nichol helped our port clients adapt to containerisation and the subsequent aggressive container market growth. Now, with decades of experience working with port authorities, shipping companies, and marine terminal operators worldwide, Moffatt & Nichol is a recognised leader and innovator in the planning, design, and operations engineering of manned and automated container terminals as well as the equipment and goods movement infrastructure that support them. We offer clients a complete suite of planning, design, and operational engineering services for marine terminal infrastructure to optimise terminal processes that adjust to state-of-the-art evolution over a facility’s economic life. Developing a highly efficient and competitive marine terminal today is a challenging prospect. Moffatt & Nichol’s expert professionals believe that the successful development and operation of a state-of-the-art container terminal depends on an integrated approach that considers business goals, operating procedures, logistics, equipment, and civil infrastructure. This is especially true of terminals employing automated container handling. Our approach to the development process recognises that the business case drives a set of decisions that start with operations analysis and end with infrastructure design.

Bulk Terminals

Moffatt & Nichol also offers our clients a full array of planning and design services for dry and liquid bulk processing and handling terminals and facilities. Our expertise includes financial analysis, feasibility studies, detailed engineering, trade-off studies, equipment selection, bid comparisons, master plans, FEED, detailed design documents, simulation, engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC), and construction support. Our comprehensive skill set supports a range of facilities—from berths and jetties to loading and unloading areas, storage and transfer systems, and inland transportation networks. Our project portfolio includes terminals and facilities that handle liquid petroleum products (including LNG), coal, ore, mineral concentrates, fertilizers, grain, and other agricultural products, construction aggregates, and wood products. Combining our maritime experience with specific knowledge of bulk handling technology and equipment enables Moffatt & Nichol to support our clients with the most efficient infrastructure and operations, while maximizing performance.

Marine Terminal and Intermodal Rail Planning

The journey from ship to quayside to hinterland and back is a complex union of technology and opportunity, benefitting regional economies and offering opportunities to integrate, expand, and enhance them. To keep goods on the move, Moffatt & Nichol has leveraged our global commercial and engineering capabilities to provide vertically integrated services, leading to the successful completion of large-scale design projects for intermodal cargo networks and regional transportation corridors. Unique in the market, our group comprises a mix of economists, logistics, financial, management, engineering, modelling, and operational specialists with expertise in the innovative organization, financing, and design of advanced cargo delivery systems. This team offers the full development of cargo and transportation infrastructure projects, from initial concept, strategic planning, and simulation modelling, through to the creation of a viable project that can be designed, built, and operated.

Energy

Moffatt & Nichol has—for decades—been an industry-leading consultancy company addressing the specific off shore and nearshore marine terminal needs of the oil and gas industry. Today, our services are spread globally and involve projects ranging from piers and wharves to deep foundations, off shore floating facilities, liquid bulk and LNG terminals, and off shore mooring systems. The firm provides a full suite of services from planning and conceptual design to final design and construction management. In addition, our services include coastal, civil, and structural engineering for substructure design, and mechanical, electrical, and piping engineering services for terminal topsides design.

Keywords:
Global infrastructure advisory firm, marine terminal, transportation, energy, environmental, federal, urban development markets structural, coastal, civil engineering, environmental sciences, economics analysis, inspection and rehabilitation, program management solutions.