Port Authority cuts ribbon on upgraded EQMR facility
BY SKYLER OBISPO
Journal Staff
The Port Authority of Guam cut the ribbon on the upgraded Equipment, Maintenance, and Repair Building, signaling the completion of the $3.84 million project.
The EQMR facility houses the port’s maintenance and repair operations for its heavy equipment, forklifts, transportation fleet, cargo handling equipment and tractors.
The upgrade included structural repairs, mechanical upgrades, electrical system improvements, and the installation of fire protection systems. JJ Global Services was contracted for the project.
A ribbon cutting was held for the rehabilitated EQMR building on March 25. Photo by Skyler Obispo
Port General Manager Rory J. Respicio said the project was designed with employees in mind. The original design carried a $7 million price tag but was later scaled back after input from port staff identified unnecessary components and talks with the contractor, reducing the total cost to $3.84 million.
Respicio credited the port’s engineering team for the cost savings and added that the project management was done in house.
The nearly 60-year-old building had deteriorated over time, and its canopy was damaged during Typhoon Mawar. Employees previously worked on equipment outdoors, exposed to sun and rain.
But he said the project is not just repairing an old building, but an investment in the port’s employees, something he emphasized at the ceremony.
“The port employees endure so much and give so much,” he said.
In her remarks, Gov. Lourdes A. Leon Guerrero called the EQMR building a “silent witness” to Guam’s growth, referring to its original construction in 1968; two years before Guam’s first elected governor and more than a decade before the rise in the tourism industry, the island’s modernization efforts, and forays into other industries.
“Through all of it, this building did its job quietly, reliably, supporting the equipment that kept Guam moving forward,” she said. “
Leon Guerrero emphasized the importance of the Port of Guam and that it is the infrastructure that allows residents to feel a sense of normalcy in their daily lives.
Roughly 90% of the island’s goods come through sea-based cargo shipment.
The governor said investments into the port is a commitment to the safety of the island and is a preventative measure given the impact that can impact daily life.
“[Islands] like ours, do not have a margin for failure. There’s no backup port. There’s no alternate route. What happens here determines what happens everywhere,” she said. ‘The Port of Guam is not just infrastructure; it is a stability system.” mbj
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