Contact Information
National Maritime Center is among the main institutions in the United States Coast Guard. The center provides credentials to all the mariners who are up to pursuing a prolific career in this armed force. The US Coast Guard has served the interests of the United States of America for around two centuries already, dealing with environmental protection and law enforcement activities and covering more than 40,000 military troops. It has managed to become such a powerful force due to the strict structure and organization, the dedication of its members and the centers and institutions supporting its missions and objectives. The center is located in Martinsburg, in the northeastern part of Virginia. The place is also used to host the headquarters of other similar institutions.
Mission
National Maritime Center is not as varied as other similar centers in the US Coast Guard. It is led by Captain Anthony S. Lloyd. The center is the one and only authority responsible for the licensing of the mariners. It fully supports the laws and regulations of the Department of Homeland Security. Its general mission is to hand out the appropriate credentials to all the aspirant mariners. In order to get there, they must be qualified and benefit from the proper studies and courses. The responsibility of this center is huge, although someone from the outside might say it is nothing but a bureaucratic office. In fact, the credentials differ, therefore they must be given in the right manner. This is the best way to ensure the mariners get the papers they need and are qualified for.
History
National Maritime Center may support an authority that is about two centuries old, but its history is relatively short. As a matter of fact, it is one of the latest centers in the United States Coast Guard. It was founded as a necessity and to ensure a better organization of this armed force. There are dozens of similar facilities spread throughout the country. If there is one little mission out there that is not taken care of, there will definitely be a center for it any time soon. The center was opened on February, 7-th, 2008. The groundbreaking ceremony was open for authorized personnel and official authorities only. The center benefited from a second ceremony that was also open to the civilians on June, 26-th, same year. The institution covers about 60,000 square feet. It hosts multiple services, such as for licensing, documentation, training or oversight. It is as complete as it could be, not to mention about the modern facilities on site. The construction also received the LEED award for the environmental design.
Although the history of National Maritime Center is short, the future is about to be very impressive. The authorities have some amazing plans for the expansion of this facility and the services it provides. The upcoming improvements aim to bring this center one step ahead when it comes to technological issues and modern techniques. It currently supports around 250,000 units spread around almost 200 countries and the list is about to get longer.