Lloyd’s Register Americas, Inc. has moved its Houston-area operations to a new regional headquarters to capitalise on the growing opportunities arising from the new regulatory regime in the Gulf, a thriving merchant marine business and concerns about global warming.

The move, which has consolidated five separate businesses under one roof, responded to greater market demand for integrated technical solutions in the increasingly interdependent and complex marine and energy sectors.

“Ensuring the operational efficiency of your assets and the safety of a modern workforce requires a deep understanding of the critical interactions between people, technology and process. As a leading technical-assurance provider, we are increasingly being asked to provide integrated solutions,” said Paul Huber, President Lloyd’s Register Americas, Inc. “Bringing all of the diverse skill-sets of our people under one roof ensures that we can consistently deliver what industry needs.”

Huber said new regulations arising from the Macondo well disaster 14 months ago and increased calls for independent technical oversight had reshaped the opportunity landscape for organisations such as Lloyd’s Register.

The move to the new regional headquarters brings together Lloyd’s Register Energy Americas, Inc. (formed last year by the merger of Lloyd’s Register Celerity3, Inc. and Lloyd’s Register Capstone, Inc.), Lloyd’s Register Quality Assurance, Inc.,  Lloyd’s Register North America, Inc., ModuSpec USA, Inc. and Scandpower, Inc.

In all, almost 300 employees will be brought together, including technical experts from the marine, offshore, power, chemicals and management-systems sectors, and from safety-critical disciplines such as asset-integrity, process or risk management and human factors.

“Our clients are increasingly asking for integrated technical solutions, whether they are a merchant ship-owner looking to validate their carbon footprint, or rig and refinery operators looking to better understand the safety culture of their workforce,” Huber said. “By bringing our people together, we are responding to that.”

Members of the Lloyd’s Register Group have been operating in the United States for 136 years, with the organisation having opened its first offices in New Jersey and San Francisco in 1875.