EXECUTIVE TEAM

As an independent design firm, F&G depends heavily on its ability to provide innovative solutions which are aimed at significantly improving operational efficiency and safety, while at the same time providing cost effective build strategies. Our staff is made up primarily of highly-skilled professionals with extensive experience in the marine industry. Our company has been active in the formation and updating of classification society rules and national regulations, primarily in an effort to promote consistency and standardization, but also to increase quality and reduce the costs associated with compliance. Our employees play leading roles in the committees of the American Bureau of Shipping, the International Maritime Organization, and the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers. F&G has also been an active advisor to the UK Department of Energy (HSE) and the Norwegian Maritime Directorate (NMD).


Paul Geiger, Jr.
President & Chief Executive Officer

Paul Geiger Jr. has served as Friede & Goldman president and CEO since March 2000. Having begun his career with F&G as a designer while continuing his engineering education, Mr. Geiger has a unique perspective in F&G’s rig design tradition & history. His ground-up experience combined with his 15 years of offshore engineering, project management, shipyard construction and repairs, offshore construction equipment, and offshore installations make him an invaluable asset to our engineering & design process. He is a highly motivated and creative individual who has found practical solutions to various offshore problems by blending sound engineering principles, proven technology, and managerial skills.


Calvin V. Norton
Senior Vice President

Mr. Norton has more than 40 years of offshore experience in the design and construction of ships, semi-submersible and jack-up drilling units, floating production units, posted drilling barges, supply boats, tug boats and barges. He is very effective in combining his many years of design experience with up-to-date and proven technology to provide efficient and practical designs and solutions to offshore problems. He is the co-author of “Offshore Vessels and their Unique Applications for the Offshore Designer,” published in SNAME “Marine Technology,” January, 1995, and gave a paper on drilling rig construction before the Tampa, Florida Section of AWS. With 38 years of dedicated service to Friede & Goldman alone, Mr. Norton is considered the one of the most valuable employees on the F&G staff.


Robert Clague, P.E.
Vice President, Engineering

Robert Clague began his career at Friede and Goldman over 10 years ago as a structural engineer. Since then, he has been promoted to the manager of structural engineering, on to manager of engineering and today, oversees F&G’s engineering and drafting departments as Vice President. With an education in classical naval architecture and his many years of experience in structural engineering, Mr. Clague offers a well-rounded perspective to F&G’s design process. Most recently he has branched out into technical sales support, a fitting departure for him due to his personable disposition and thorough knowledge of F&G’s engineering process and products. Mr. Clague’s attention to detail and efficient management of the design process will continue to aid in sustaining F&G’s position as a world leader in offshore design.


Matthew Hemker
Vice President, Operations

With 13 years experience in the offshore engineering industry, Matt Hemker has spent the majority of those years with Friede and Goldman. Following the years he worked in shipyard construction engineering and hydro-dynamic structural engineering, Mr. Hemker joined F&G as a structural engineer, quickly moving up the ranks into project management. Today, as F&G’s Vice President of Operations, he oversees all projects within the company, manages and develops work processes, and negotiates and manages contracts. Mr. Hemker’s comprehensive knowledge of industry news and trends, the competition, and project management makes him an essential asset in business development and client retention.


Yang Sun, Ph.D., P.E.
Vice President, Design & Asia Operations

Dr. Yang Sun has over 25 years of design experience in the offshore oil industry. Since joining F&G in 1996, he has been involved in a wide variety of conversion and new-build MODU projects. He is instrumental to the development of F&G proprietary designs and has been credited for the company’s success in the Chinese market. Dr. Sun published several technical papers related to cable dynamics during his tenure as a research fellow at The University of Connecticut. From 1982 to 1990, he was employed by China National Offshore Oil Corp as the lead structural engineer in designing offshore structures.

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Natalia Badillo
Chief Financial Officer

Natalia Badillo joined Friede & Goldman Group as the Chief Financial Officer in March 2008. She has over 8 years of experience in finance, with at least 6 of those in various managerial roles within operating companies. Prior to joining F&G, Ms. Badillo was employed by Janssen-Cilag, a pharmaceutical division of Johnson & Johnson, in Russia and other CIS countries, where she held various financial management positions, including Finance Director Kazakhstan and Regional Finance Manager CIS. Natalia has a profound expertise in various areas of financial management, including financial and operational planning and budgeting, investment analysis, financial reporting, enterprise funding. Ms. Badillo holds an MBA degree from INSEAD in France, as well as Master’s degrees in International Business and in English Linguistics from Moscow State University. Ms. Badillo works out of the Friede & Goldman Marketing, B.V. office in the Netherlands.

Managers


Morris Shear
General Manager, Friede & Goldman China Ltd.

Morris Shear began his career with Friede & Goldman, Ltd. in 1972, working with the Lighters Aboard Ship Program (LASH). In January of 1981, he transferred into the Offshore Division and has never looked back. Through many years in the offshore business, he has seen the industry and rig designs grow and mature. Mr. Shear’s duties with F&G have varied from electrical design and engineering to participation in the manufacturing of jacking systems and leg fixation systems. Additionally, he has been active in managing the proprietary information developed by the company. Presently, Mr. Shear is stationed in Dalian China where he is the General Manager of the Friede Goldman China Ltd. joint venture.


Jerry Badeaux
Manager, Design Services

Jerry Badeaux has been in the shipbuilding /marine industry for 40 years. Before joining Friede and Goldman, he worked for Avondale Shipyard for 12 years, and he has been with F&G for the past 28 years starting out as a draftsman/designer and rising to Manager of Design Services. His many years of shipyard experience are extremely beneficial to the F&G design process. He has been involved in the design of semi-submersibles, jack-up drilling units, drill ships, FPSOs and the rack chock system. In addition, he has aided in numerous upgrades of various vessels, including semi-submersibles, jack-ups, drill ships for deep water, and barges. Mr. Badeaux is a highly motivated designer and manager who enjoys challenges.


Shannon Galway, P.E.
Engineering Manager

In December 2000, after graduating from Texas A&M Galveston, Shannon Galway joined Friede and Goldman as a structural engineer. Today, he is the Engineering Manager, overseeing the structural, mechanical and electrical engineering and naval architecture departments on a daily basis. In addition to being involved on several upgrades and newbuilds, Mr. Galway has served as project engineer on the JU-2000E jack-up and for the Centurion family of semi-submersibles. With his detailed knowledge of the engineering disciplines and first principles and his proficient computer background, he is able to streamline F&G’s design process, in turn, maximizing the effectiveness of all departments. Mr. Galway is a highly capable and intelligent individual, whose talent for problem solving is imperative to the F&G engineering process.