Ships of the Sea host Molly Taylor interviews Frank Peeples Jr., president of Peeples Industries, about his vertically integrated Savannah-based port operations, including East Coast Terminal Company, Industrial Marine Services, Atlantic Marine Warehouse Company, and Atlantic Marine Logistics.

Peeples explains how owning land and facilities enables long-term planning, flexible labor, and turnkey service for customers, with East Savannah handling bulk and breakbulk cargo and West Savannah supporting container logistics near the Georgia Ports Authority with truck- and rail-served warehousing. He discusses logistics shifts driven by containerization, rail-to-container commodity transloading, and key exports such as wood pellets, including a lightning-triggered conveyor fire and the industry’s fire-prevention focus.

Peeples highlights his father’s patented wood-chip “densifier” that increased ship-loading efficiency, shares his mechanical engineering background, describes industry consolidation since the 1960s, and notes how tariffs and changing trade create new opportunities, global partnerships, and careers in maritime logistics.

The Ships of the Sea podcast is recorded on location at the Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum, housed in the historic William Scarbrough House, an elegant example of early Greek Revival architecture in the South. Built in 1819 for William Scarbrough, a prominent shipping merchant and the first president of the Savannah Steamship Company, the museum showcases a remarkable collection of ship models, paintings, and maritime antiques. In addition to its exquisite interior, the museum features the largest private gardens within Savannah’s historic district, designed to reflect a typical 19th-century parlor garden.

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A look inside Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum

Museum EVENTS

Education and Group Programs

Meet the Production Team Dee Daniels Media

FIND A FAVORITE SPOT IN THIS EPISODE:

00:00 Welcome to Ships of the Sea

00:27 Meet Frank Peoples

01:11 Vertical Integration Strategy

03:49 East and West Savannah Operations

05:27 Rail Served Container Logistics

08:33 Key Commodities Wood Pellets

09:55 Warehouse Fire and Safety

11:27 Stevedoring Innovation Densifier

14:28 Frank's Path Into the Business

16:17 Savannah Port History and Containers

20:24 Georgia Exports and Empty Boxes

21:44 Best Days Building Supply Chains

24:34 Making Wood Pellets Work

25:11 Always Watching Markets

26:53 Tariffs Mean Opportunity

28:13 Unexpected Cargo Stories

28:57 How Peoples Began

31:57 Family Legacy Next Gen

33:41 Ports Are a Symphony

36:28 Partners Beyond Savannah

37:26 Ship Owners Trading Firms

40:22 Trade Shows Associations

42:33 Careers in Maritime

44:54 Closing Thanks Support