Randy Wright opens strategic advisory firm
Businessman Randy Wright, former president of Harbour Air and Oak Bay Marine Group, has launched a strategic advisory company called RW & Associates Ltd. Wright is known for his long-time work in travel, tourism and the marine industry, and for his involvement in community organizations.
He will focus on business management and advice in operations, sales and marketing, logistics and transport, workplace safety, and stakeholder and community engagement. This will include helping companies grow and implement creative and innovative business strategies leading to long-term sustainability.
Wright is a director of the board of Destination British Columbia and a lifetime member of Destination Greater Victoria. While Wright was with Harbour Air, it was honoured multiple times as a well-managed company and for its corporate culture and innovation, and as a top employer.
Seaspan finishes prototype of coast guard icebreaker
Seaspan Shipyards has completed its prototype block for the Canadian Coast Guard’s Polar Icebreaker program.
The North Vancouver-based company said construction of the prototype block ensures that it has the proper processes, procedures, equipment and skills necessary to build the first heavy polar icebreaker in Canada in more than six decades.
Seaspan’s presence on B.C.’s coast includes a shipyard and dry dock in North Vancouver and Victoria Shipyards, where hundreds of employees work at the federally owned Esquimalt Graving Dock.
Mario Pelletier, commissioner of the Canadian Coast Guard, said the icebreaker will “extend coast guard’s on-water operations and ensure the continuous delivery of critical services in the high Arctic. This includes search and rescue, environmental and humanitarian response, supporting important ocean science and arctic sovereignty.”
Hullo ferry increases number of sailings
Hullo, the walk-on fast-ferry service run by Vancouver Island Ferry Co., is expanding its spring sailing schedule with six daily round trips between downtown Nanaimo and downtown Vancouver on the five busiest days of the week and three round trips on the remaining two days, plus extra late-night sailings for passengers attending concerts and Canucks games.
The company started in August of last year and has made 150,000 passenger trips so far. As of March 1, Hullo will carry large luggage for $25 per trip and oversized sports gear for $30 per trip. Passengers can still take a personal item and a carry-on sized bag at no extra charge.
