IMA provides a full range of strategic planning and management advisory services to shipbuilders and ship repair firms. We have been active in this sector since the early 1970s. Among our clients have been shipbuilders of all sizes, ship repair firms, government agencies and lending institutions. The following illustrate the range of services we have provided:

profiled the Brazilian shipbuilding/offshore fabrication industrial base, assessed local construction demand for ships and offshore equipment over the next ten years, analyzed capability of Brazilian shipbuilders and the local equipment supply chain to support future construction demand and identified opportunities for technical cooperation and/or investment by Japanese companies

evaluated the feasibility of establishing a new ship repair yard on a greenfield site near the Atlantic side of the Panama Canal, determined appropriate dry dock dimensions based on future ship traffic flows in the region, assessed layout options, forecast financial results and recommended a plan of action

segmented the available North American shipbuilding market, forecast potential demand by segment over the following ten years, assessed the competitive situation, benchmarked competitor performance and recommended positioning strategy

evaluated future Libyan ship construction requirements and recommended a plan of action for positioning for future contracts

assessed the market available to a Mexican ship repair yard, benchmarked competitor strengths and weaknesses and recommended a strategy and plan to strengthen market position

analyzed shipbuilding and offshore equipment fabrication prospects in Brazil and evaluated options for positioning in the Brazilian ship construction market

forecast shipbuilding demand in North America through the following decade and estimated the potential market to be generated by requirements for shipboard electrical systems

forecast demand for ship construction in South American and Latin American countries and evaluated capability of local shipbuilders to accommodate future ship construction requirements

profiled and compared the technological strengths and weaknesses of Japanese, Korean, European and U.S. shipyards

analyzed M&A activity in the U.S. shipbuilding sector and assessed the underlying drivers for recent consolidations

identified market expansion opportunities available to a major shipbuilder, assessed the company's ability to compete in various market segments and recommended a strategy for market positioning

recommended a long term strategy and business plan for a midsize shipbuilder, including acquisitions to develop and expand activities

conceived and coordinated a finance/build/operate project to construct a dryocking facility in the Port of Charleston to be owned by the port authority and operated by commercial tenants -- J.P. Morgan, Parsons Brinckerhoff and MAN GHH participated as consortium members

provided advisory services to the World Bank and Yemen Ministry of Transport for privatizing the government owned ship repair yard in Aden

developed a long term development plan and capital investment strategy for the shipbuilding and ship repair industry in Malaysia, prepared for the Industrial Development Bank of Malaysia

assessed the repair and construction market available to a proposed new shipyard in Ecuador

conducted a major review of the U.S. Navy's capability to plan and budget the acquisition of new naval ships, including audit of its performance in three major ship acquisition programs

analyzed the planned acquisition of a major shipyard involved in naval and commercial shipbuilding, performed for a Fortune 500 integrated steel company

prepared numerous market and feasibility studies for shipbuilders and ship repair firms considering facility improvements and expansions

completed more than a dozen multi-client studies of the worldwide shipbuilding market


Prior to forming IMA, Mr. McCaul co-authored Improving the Prospects for U.S. Shipbuilding, a study published by Webb Institute of Naval Architecture.  He had also been an advisor on shipbuilding issues to the U.S. Government Accountability Office and the Commission on American Shipbuilding