President
Young Brothers

How has your experience at Booz Allen Hamilton and Hawaii Gas informed your current leadership?

At Booz Allen Hamilton I learned the importance of creating the right environment for success. A combination of core values, focused training, clear goals and transparent communication aligned the entire organization to achieve our mission.

Hawaii Gas and Young Brothers are very similar, with a comparable employee base of about 400 across the islands and operations in regulated and unregulated business that are crucial to Hawai‘i. Though I now handle the transportation of essential cargo instead of delivering gas energy, my experience with Hawaii Gas laid a solid foundation for my present role.

How does Young Brothers support the shipping needs of local industry? 

What we do affects nearly every business and every person, every day in Hawai‘i. Young Brothers is the only approved water carrier for regulated cargo in the state, and we are responsible for transporting 100 percent of all cargo that originates and ends in Hawai‘i. While our business may seem small in comparison to large mainland companies, the shipping and handling of non-standard cargo is complex and requires tremendous skill.

We are the only carrier delivering non-standard construction materials of any size, with the construction industry representing approximately 10 percent of our cargo. This includes every type of heavy equipment imaginable, from cranes and trucks to entire cement plants sent by barge in pieces and then reassembled. Our cargo volumes are a good indicator of construction activity on neighbor islands. 

Where does the company fit into the picture of food security and resilience in the islands?

Our job is especially important when severe weather disrupts the state, as Hurricane Olivia and Tropical Storm Lane did last year. In emergencies, we’re the first carrier to respond and bring relief supplies to our island communities in need. Young Brothers is the lifeline to the neighbor islands, and everyone, including Hawaiian Electric, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Hawaii Foodbank, Red Cross and others, depends on us to pre-position emergency equipment and supplies before the storm and to provide ongoing essential storm recovery efforts to help our communities return to normal as soon as possible.

Efforts are underway to increase locally grown produce and livestock on the neighbor islands, and we provide discounted transportation services to support these initiatives. Renewable fuels and renewable natural gas may play an increasing role in the coming years to help Hawai‘i meet its clean energy goals, and we continue to work with our industry partners in these areas to provide effective transportation solutions.

What clean energy initiatives are in place at young brothers?

Our four new tug boats significantly reduce fuel consumption and carbon emissions. They travel faster while running on technologies that are safer for our crewmembers, oceans and reefs. In 2018, we replaced a portion of our refrigerated containers with models that are more energy efficient, and we are also exploring the shift from diesel to renewable electricity for our hundreds of pieces of lifting equipment to further reduce our shoreside carbon footprint and improve air quality within our harbors. We are proud to support a more sustainable Hawai‘i by progressing toward more renewable operations, passing savings on to our customers while also providing improved and more efficient services.