Donjon-Smit

What Donjon-Smit does

DONJON-SMIT is a privately held joint venture, formed in December 2004 between Donjon Marine Co., Inc. (Hillside, NJ) and SMIT Salvage Americas, Inc. (Houston, TX), that delivers OPA-90 compliance and marine casualty response services to vessel owners and operators trading in U.S. waters. Its portfolio centers on six core services - marine salvage, marine firefighting, lightering, damaged stability calculations (naval architecture), drills and training (NPREP-certified), and environmental care - delivered by multidisciplinary teams of salvage masters, naval architects, divers, firefighting specialists, and marine pollution responders. Differentiated technical assets include purpose-built lightering equipment (specialized fendering, diesel hydraulic-driven pumps, portable inert gas generators), spill-free "hot-tap" extraction technology for removing fluids from wrecks, and damaged stability calculation files used to support salvage engineering.

Name

Donjon-Smit

Legal name

DONJON-SMIT

Website

https://donjon-smit.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

DONJON-SMIT is a privately held joint venture between Donjon Marine and SMIT Salvage that provides OPA-90 compliance, marine salvage, firefighting, lightering, and environmental response services to vessel owners and operators in U.S. waters.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Marine Salvage and Emergency Response Services

NAICS

Ship Building and Repairing (336611), Support Activities for Water Transportation (4883)

SIC

Ship & Boat Building & Repairing (3730)

akta.pro primary industry

Firefighting & Casualty Stabilization (Marine Fire, De-watering) (IMAJANAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Environmental, Waste & Emissions Control Systems (Wastewater, VOC Capture, Spill Response) (IMAJALAK), Underwater Inspection, Maintenance & Repair (UWILD, Diving/ROV, In-water Cleaning) (IMAJAFAJ)

Keywords

• Marine salvage services
• Marine firefighting
• OPA-90 compliance
• Emergency lightering
• Vessel response plans

Headquarters

HQ city

Houston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. OPA-90 Compliance Services: Contracted emergency response services for vessel owners and operators required to maintain OPA-90 compliance. Services include pre-arranged salvage, firefighting, and lightering coverage with vessel response plan support.
2. Emergency Salvage Response: Round-the-clock marine salvage operations including grounding, collision, fire response, diving, heavy lift engineering, pumping and towing services.
3. Marine Firefighting Services: Specialized marine firefighting services with highly-trained, experienced firefighting teams fully equipped to extinguish shipboard fires swiftly and safely.
4. Emergency Lightering Services: Ship-to-ship lightering operations to reduce vessel draft in emergency conditions, executed following international protocols using specialized equipment.
5. Drills and Training Services: Vessel Response Plan readiness drills, exercises, and training activities certified within Coast Guard's National Preparedness and Response Training Program (NPREP).

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

DONJON-SMIT provides round-the-clock OPA-90 compliance coverage and emergency marine casualty response services for vessel owners and operators trading in U.S. waters. Core services include marine salvage, marine firefighting, emergency lightering, damaged stability calculations, drills and training, and environmental care/pollution prevention. The company operates a coast-to-coast emergency response network spanning Guam to St. Thomas and Florida to Alaska, delivering services through specialized teams, state-of-the-art equipment, and over $100M in working capital.

Product overview

DONJON-SMIT is a marine salvage and casualty response joint venture formed in December 2004 between Donjon Marine Co., Inc. (Hillside, NJ) and SMIT Salvage Americas, Inc. (Houston, TX). The company provides a unified portfolio of marine emergency response services centered around OPA-90 compliance coverage, comprising six core service offerings: Marine Salvage, Marine Firefighting, Lightering, Damaged Stability Calculations, Drills and Training, and Environmental Care. These services are delivered through a strategically positioned emergency response network across the entire United States, with 24/7 availability. The portfolio is complemented by a web-based client portal for compliance documentation access.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Marine Salvage

Quantifiable outcome

• Successfully prevented spillage of millions of tons of oil, chemicals and bunkers from wrecks
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Ardent Americas LLCcoreOthers · 9 April 2020DONJON-SMIT acquired Ardent Americas LLC, a maritime emergency response specialist and leading OPA-90 provider in the United States. Ardent Americas was established in 2015 following the merger of Svitzer Salvage and Titan Salvage, operating from Houston and Fort Lauderdale. The company was a subsidiary of Ardent Global Marine Services headquartered in the Netherlands. Ardent Americas OPA-90 program covered approximately 500 shipowners encompassing over 4,000 vessels. This acquisition expanded DONJON-SMIT's market position in marine emergency response services.
• Marine Spill Response Corporation (MSRC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 October 2013DONJON-SMIT and MSRC established a cooperative alliance to assist shipowners with OPA-90 services. The alliance supports both tank and non-tank vessel owners, enabling non-tank vessel owners to establish pre-arranged agreements with both DONJON-SMIT and MSRC required under NTVRP regulations. The partnership includes cooperation between the two companies in the event of a spill response or salvage/firefighting incident. MSRC is the largest, dedicated oil spill and emergency response organization in the United States and a not-for-profit, US Coast Guard Classified Oil Spill Removal Organization (OSRO) formed in 1990, funded by the Marine Preservation Association (MPA).
• International Salvage Union (ISU)minorOthersDONJON-SMIT parent companies maintain membership in the International Salvage Union (ISU), a professional organization for the salvage industry. Members of DONJON-SMIT have served as office-holders and executive board members within these organizations.
• American Salvage Association (ASA)minorOthersDONJON-SMIT parent companies maintain membership in the American Salvage Association (ASA), a professional organization for the salvage industry in the United States. Members of DONJON-SMIT have served as office-holders and executive board members within these organizations.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Resolve Marine Group: Major international marine salvage and emergency response company and fellow ISU member; competes for the same global OPA-90 and emergency towage contracts that DONJON-SMIT targets with US-flag and Jones Act compliant tugs.
• T&T Salvage: US-based marine salvage and emergency response operator offering 24/7 salvage, firefighting, and lightering services—directly overlapping DONJON-SMIT's core service portfolio and competing for OPA-90 enrollments.
• Ardent Global Partners: Direct competitor formed from the merger of Svitzer Salvage and Titan Salvage; Ardent Americas was divested to DONJON-SMIT in 2020, but Ardent continues to operate salvage and OPA-90 response services globally and is a leading head-to-head rival.

Regional players

• Bouchard Transportation: Family-owned US tug and barge operator with emergency response and salvage capability in the US Atlantic and Gulf; comparable operating territory and customer base (tank vessel operators) as DONJON-SMIT.

Emerging players

• Marine Spill Response Corporation (MSRC): Largest dedicated US oil spill and emergency response OSRO; DONJON-SMIT's strategic alliance partner under OPA-90 services. Comparable in spill response scope though differentiated in salvage and firefighting capability.

Broad incumbents

• Moran Towing & Salvage: Established US East Coast and Gulf tug/salvage operator with harbor towing and emergency response services that overlap geographically with DONJON-SMIT's lightering and salvage work.
• Tidewater Marine (emergency response division): Large offshore vessel operator with marine emergency response capabilities and a global fleet that could be deployed for salvage support; overlaps with DONJON-SMIT in vessel-owner services for upstream energy and offshore operators.
• Boskalis Westminster (Boskalis Salvage): Diversified maritime services giant with a global salvage division; broader portfolio includes dredging and offshore energy, but the salvage arm pursues the same worldwide casualty response market as DONJON-SMIT.
• Crowley Maritime (Crowley Solutions / Salvage & Emergency Response): Large integrated marine services company with US-flag vessel capabilities used in salvage and OPA-90 response; broader portfolio spans logistics and energy, but the salvage arm competes for the same federal and commercial emergency response contracts.

Others

• U.S. Navy Supervisor of Salvage (SUPSALV): Government entity within Naval Sea Systems Command that manages US Navy and federal salvage contracting—directly comparable as a buyer and competitor for large-salvage requirements that DONJON-SMIT supports via long-standing Navy contracts.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/donjon-smit-llc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Donjon-Smit