New Online Service Rescues MASS. Maritime Academy from Sea of Paperwork
3/16/05
BUZZARDS BAY, Mass. – The Massachusetts Maritime Academy (MMA), which depends upon boat donations to provide hands-on training to over 800 undergraduate and continuing education students, was swimming
in a sea of paperwork whenever they received a donated vessel. A myriad of forms had to be tediously completed, no matter whether it was a 25- or 55-ft. boat.
Now a new online service called ONEtoolSM, from Secured Marine Trust, a marine software and data management services company in New Haven, Conn., is helping the MMA reduce the time it takes to process
a donated vessel, while reaching substantially more potential boat donors through a network of 350 brokers nationwide.
Located on Buzzard’s Bay, at the mouth of the Cape Cod Canal, Massachusetts Maritime Academy (www.maritime.edu), established in 1891, is the oldest continuously operated Maritime College in the
country. Cadets come from throughout the U.S. to train for careers in marine transportation business worldwide. An Emergency Management Homeland Security course begins at the Academy next year.
According to the MMA’s Chuck Fontaine, Director of Boat Donations and Sailing Programs, the boat donation program has led to redevelopment of the waterfront at the Keith Hartford Sailing Center
in Plymouth, Mass., it has helped to underwrite a bond for renovation of Storer Engineering Lab on the main campus in Buzzards Bay, funded all varsity sailing and crew programs, and supported other waterfront
development at the college.
The ONEtool system has been employed to manage the donation process for yachts and boats, which are used to train seamanship, boat handling, maintenance, and piloting and also serve as recreational platforms
for MMA cadets. Donated vessels are also used to facilitate the college’s educational programs through internships, federal work study, and cooperative learning experiences in International Marine
Business (IMB) and Marine Safety and Environmental Protection Degree (MSEP) programs.
To use ONEtool, the MMA donation program operates on a completely secure Web-based server where the privacy of information is assured as it efficiently flows to support document preparation, sales administration
and the listing of donated boats.
ONEtool eliminates repetitive steps that can cause errors and delays. For instance, to execute a Purchase and Sale Agreement or Central Listing Agreement, ONEtool’s Vessel TrackSM quickly and easily
executes a one-click transfer of the vessel information from the U.S. Coast Guard database of documented vessels. A form ready for signature can be prepared within minutes, then easily printed, e-mailed
or faxed. The information is entered just once and saved into a secure database.
“Previously, our inventory of boats was placed on a cumbersome Excel spreadsheet,” says the MMA’s Chuck Fontaine.
“Now we can offer donated boats for later sale to a wider audience, and streamline the entire process. ONEtool will allow us to accept more boat donations faster and more efficiently. We’re
getting in on the ground floor of an online management system that we believe will soon become an industry standard.”
The MMA has a specific need for donated powerboats within the 40- to 50-foot range. The Massachusetts Maritime Academy is headquartered at 101 Academy Drive, Buzzards Bay, MA 02532; 800 453 2541
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