Matson

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Matson

Matson is the principal carrier of containerized fright and automobiles between the west coast and Hawaii, Guam and mid pacific, Nigbo and Long Beach and Shangai and Long Beach. It is the larger subsidiary of Honolulu based Alexander and Baldwin, Inc. Headquartered in Oakland, the company also has offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, Guam, Hilo (Hawaii), Honolulu, Kuhului (Maui), Long Beach, Nawiliwili (Kauai), Ningbo, Phoenix, Portland, Salt Lake City, Seattle, Shangai and Washington D.C.. Matson has two subsidiaries: Matson Integrated Logistic (MIT) and Matson Terminals Inc. The first one is a leading provider of multimodal transportation services to the North American market. It serves a broad range of costumers and industries. The second one provides container stevedoring, terminal and equipment maintenance services in Honolulu.[1]

Company History

Matson was founded in 1882 but incorporated in 1901. At the beginning the company served as a passenger transportation company. In the 1910's and the 1920's it expanded its ship fleet from 4 to 14 of the largest and most modern ships. During the war, however, most of the Matson fleet was requisitioned by the government as troopships and military cargo carriers. During the 1920´s the company established Matson Terminals Inc. a wholly owned subsidiary to perform stevedoring and terminal services for its ships. When the 2nd world war began most of the Matson fleet (passenger liners Lurline, Matsonia, Maripos and Monterey as well as 33 Matson freighters) was again requisitioned by the government as troopships and military cargo carriers. All this made Matson had to go by very difficult months. After an $80 million reconversion Matson put the Lurline to work again and built two new hotels on Waikiki in the 1950´s. In 1956 Matson began its freight containerization program. In 1970 Matson carried a record of 1165 containers. At the same time Matson sold its passenger vessels and suspended it. In 1969 Matson became a wholly owned subsidiary of Alexander and Baldwin, Inc. Since then Matson has grown and now is one of the biggest cargo companies of the world.[1]

Financial Information

Detailed financial details on the company are included in the annual report of Matson's parent company, Alexander & Baldwin.[2]

Political and Public Influence

In 2008 Matson Navigation contributed with $42,150 (92% to Democratic Party and 8% to Republican Party) to the federal candidates in the United States.[3]

Lobbying

The company expended $160.000 for lobbying in 2006. The lobbyist was Grill, Philip.[4]

Corporate Accountability

Labor

The company has a code of conduct and a code of ethics that can be consulted on the webpage of Alexander and Baldwin Inc. It doesn´t exit solid evidence of any kind of controversy generated by the treatment the company gives to its employees.

Environment

"It is our policy to ensure the environmental integrity of our processes, vessels and facilities".[5] The company has published very punctual goals in terms of environmental respect. These are the following:

  • Office Operations [6] : 1. Minimizing Printing 2. Using non-disposable cups and utensils 3. Conserving electricity 4. Using public transportation and carpooling 5. Appropriately disposing for recyclable items, and 6. Participating in local clean ups such as International Coastal Cleanup Day.
  • Terminal and Office operations, Honolulu [7] : 1. Decrease paper purchases by 10% compared to 2006 baseline and 2.Complete an energy audit with Hawaiian Electric Company by November 2008.
  • Matson Vessels [8]: 1. Related to the air pollution: Achieve 90% compliance with Port of Long Beach speed reduction program for non-triangulating vessels. 2. Related to the invasive species: Obtain USCG approval of Ecochlor ballast treatment system on the Moku Pahu. 3. Related to the water pollution: Install Marinfloc emulsion breaking bilge water systems on Manoa, Maui, Kauia and Lurline.

Governance

Since Matson is totally owned by Alexander and Baldwin Inc. the board of directors that governs the company is the same board of directors that Alexander and Balwin Inc. has. The board of directors of Alexander and Baldwin is conformed by [http://www. http://www.alexanderbaldwin.com/our-company/corporate-governance.php#board-of-directors:

  • W. Allen Doane, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Alexander & Baldwin, Inc.
  • W. Blake Baird, Managing Partner and Co-Founder Terreno Capital Partners LLC (Real Estate Investment Management)
  • Michael J. Chun, President and Headmaster The Kamehameha Schools, Kapalama Campus (Educational Institution)
  • Walter A. Dods, Jr., Non-Executive Chairman of the Board First Hawaiian Bank (Banking)
  • Charles G. King, President and Dealer Principal King Auto Center; Dealer Principal King Windward Nissan, King Infiniti of Honolulu (Automobile Dealerships)
  • Constance H. Lau, President, Chief Executive Officer and Director Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. (Electric Utility/Banking)
  • Douglas M. Pasquale, President, Chief Executive Officer and Director Nationwide Health Properties, Inc. (Healthcare Real Estate Investment Trust)
  • Maryanna G. Shaw, Private Investor
  • Jeffrey N. Watanabe, Of Counsel, Watanabe Ing LLP (Attorneys at Law)

Contact Information

Alexander & Baldwin, Inc.
822 Bishop Street
Honolulu, Hawaii 96813
Tel: (808) 525-6611
Fax: (808) 525-6652
Website: http://www.matson.com/

Articles and Resources

Related SourceWatch Articles

Sources

  1. 1.0 1.1 Matson, "About Us", Matson website, accessed November 2008.
  2. Alexander & Baldwin, "Alexander & Baldwin: 2007 Annual Report", March 2008.
  3. "Matson Navigation: 2008 PAC Summary Data", Open Secrets, accessed November 2008.
  4. "Matson Navigation: Firm Profile: Lobbyists, 2006", Open Secrets, accessed November 2008.
  5. Matson, "Safety, Quality and Environmental Protection Policy", Matson website, accessed November 2008.
  6. Matson, "Significant Aspects, Related Objectives and Targets: Office Operations", undated, accessed November 2008.
  7. Matson, "Terminal and Office Operations: Honolulu", undated, accessed November 2008.
  8. Matson, "Significant Aspects, Related Objectives and Targets for Matson Vessels", undated, accessed November 2008.

External Resources

External Articles

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