Mr. Tilden heads Ports America, which is the largest stevedoring and terminal operating company in the Americas. Mr. Bloom is the first person honored with the Connie Award from the international technology field. Each recipient will be honored for his significant influence in containerization in worldwide trade and transportation according to Joe Cervenak, CII President.
Douglas Tilden's career in international transportation began in 1969, working for United States Lines in New York as an assistant pier superintendent. During his 18 years with U.S. Lines, Mr. Tilden served in operations and general management positions in the U.S., Oceania, Asia, the Middle East and South America. Mr. Tilden was recently promoted to Chairman of Ports America Group from his previous position as president of Ports America and CEO of Marine Terminals Corp.
When U.S. Lines terminated its shipping activities in 1987, Tilden, who was serving as vice president of U.S. Lines' South American subsidiary, joined Marine Terminals Corp. He held various executive sales and operations positions before being elected president in 1996. In 2000, Tilden was also elected president of MTC's parent company, MTC Holdings.
Mr. Tilden remains involved in industry and public affairs and serves on boards of several industry associations, including the Pacific Maritime Association. He maintains an active interest in international affairs, having extensive professional and personal contacts in many overseas locations. Mr. Tilden is also involved in community activities in the San Francisco Bay Area, many of which focus on education.
Ports America is the largest stevedoring and terminal operating company in the Americas providing services at 95 terminals in 49 ports including New York/New Jersey, Los Angeles/Long Beach, Baltimore, Savannah, Miami and Houston. The Ports America portfolio of companies also has a strong foothold in Mexico, with operations at Toluca, L'zaro C'rdenas, Mazatl'n, Altamira and elsewhere. In 2007, Ports America handled more than 12 million TEUs, more than two million automobiles, three million tons of general cargo and one million cruise ship passengers.
Mr. Tilden currently resides in San Francisco, California. He has two daughters, one who attends University of California, Berkeley and the other who attends Brown University.
The other recipient for the 2008 Connie Award is Ken Bloom, who has overseen a period of tremendous growth and organizational development for INTTRA.
During his tenure, INTTRA has grown from its 'start up' phase in 2001 to become the largest business-to-business e-commerce portal in the ocean container industry, now processing more than 10 percent of all global containerized trade.
The sustained growth that INTTRA realized has been attributed to the corporate culture that Mr. Bloom has built around the principles of horizontal organizational alignment and high performance. Mr. Bloom, along with his INTTRA management team, continues to participate in and lead discussions with key industry members, solidifying INTTRA's position as an important thought-leader in the shipping industry.
Prior to joining INTTRA, Mr. Bloom served as Chief Operating Officer at Optimum Logistics, a subsidiary of Stolt-Nielsen, responsible for the development and marketing of Translink, a web-enabled system that provides global visibility and advanced supply chain management to more than 13 chemical producers and 110 logistics service providers around the world.
Mr. Bloom is also an independent director for H.J. Baker and Bros. Inc., a private company in Westport, Connecticut engaged in the distribution of bulk fertilizer, feed and sulphur. He also serves on the board of directors for the Treetops Cha
