6 March 2018 • FOGHORN FOGHORNFOCUS: CONVENTION REVIEW A scenic, yet busy river. A genteel Southern city with historic roots and smart, new urban growth. Fantastic restaurants featuring top chefs’ names and delicious cuisine. And, a convention that surpassed expectations with its attendance and trade show size. Savannah, Georgia was the setting for the PVA Annual Convention at MariTrends 2018 and it proved to be a marvelous choice for this growing event. “There was something for everyone in Savannah,” Joe Keefe, editor of Maritimeprofessional.com wrote of the PVA convention. “This lovely southern port city provided the perfect backdrop for the serious work to be done here.” And, serious work there was. On par with being the largest event in PVA’s history, with more than 80 sessions led by more than 100 presenters, the PVA Annual Convention at MariTrends 2018 offered educational presen- tations on every aspect of this robust marine transportation sector. “At a time when the offshore sector has an erratic pulse and the inland waterways industry is searching for additional cargo to fill its overbuilt barge fleet, the passenger vessel sector is rolling,” WorkBoat’s Ken Hocke wrote in his blog, The Hocke Net. “From sightseeing vessels to adventure tour boats to riverboats to ferries, there’s a lot of activity on the water and in the shipyards building for the industry. And it’s attracting attention.” Exemplary Education This year’s event certainly did attract the notice of large numbers of both vessel operators and the industry suppliers who support the PVA Annual Convention at MariTrends 2018 is a Roaring Success “The PVA staff was thoroughly professional and were clearly dedicated to ensuring that the conference was a success.” PVA Annual Convention at MariTrends 2018 Attendee Photos courtesy of Steve Terry