Our History
WHERE IT BEGAN
Our Founders
Rooted in decades of maritime and business leadership, our founders embody the vision, values, and dedication that define our company’s course — setting the standard for innovation and reliability across every operation.
Wayne Carlisle
Founder
Bill Bray
Founder
Carlisle Construction
Bray Marine
Key Milestones
Founded in 1937
In 1937, Griff Carlisle started his first business, G. Carlisle Hauling, while working at another full-time job at a Newport, Kentucky, steel mill.
Carlisle’s first job was hauling old railroad ties from the steel mill to Falmouth, Ky., which he sold for $6 a load.
1937-1966
Griff’s hauling business soon grew into a demolition and hauling business, then a crane rental business, then an excavation company, and finally into one of largest companies in the Midwest providing rental, sales, and service of cranes and heavy construction equipment.
In 1966, a customer wanted Griff to do construction work on the Ohio River. While he had more than 30 years of experience providing construction work on land, Griff had never done any work on the Ohio River. But as always, he would find a way to satisfy his customer’s needs.
1966
That boat purchase was the genesis of Greater Cincinnati Marine and Griff’s lifelong love affair with the Ohio River. The boat he purchased in 1966 — the Beverly Wayne — continues to serve Carlisle and Bray Enterprises today as a tow boat in the company’s fleet operations in Patriot, Indiana
1999
In 1999, Boston-based Bain Capital approached the Carlisle family about selling their companies. Bain Capital’s primary focus was Carlisle’s crane and heavy equipment operations in Wilder, Ky. Bain wanted to acquire Carlisle Crane and Anthony Crane in Pittsburgh — two of the largest crane rental operations in the country — to create a corporation that would become the world’s largest crane rental company, known today as Maxim Crane Works.
1999
In 1999, Boston-based Bain Capital approached the Carlisle family about selling their companies. Bain Capital’s primary focus was Carlisle’s crane and heavy equipment operations in Wilder, Ky. Bain wanted to acquire Carlisle Crane and Anthony Crane in Pittsburgh — two of the largest crane rental operations in the country — to create a corporation that would become the world’s largest crane rental company, known today as Maxim Crane Works.
2001
In 2001, Maxim decided to sell off Greater Cincinnati Marine, which led the Carlisle family to reacquire the company.
When the acquisition was complete, the Carlisles had reacquired all of the equipment that it sold to Bain, which included eight tow boats, more than 50 barges, and multiple pieces of unloading equipment, construction equipment, and barge-mounted cranes. But most of all, the Carlisles saved the excellent team of employees that made Greater Cincinnati Marine what it was.
Key Milestones
1940's - 1970's
William C. “Bill” Bray and his wife, Christine A. “Chris,” each grew up in families with nine children in what today is known as Edgewood, Kentucky. Neither Bill nor Chris had many material things growing up, but their families did provide them with plenty of love, food, and clean clothes.
1980 - 1987
After a series of sales jobs in the 1980s, Bill, through a friend, was offered the job as Director of Sales with River Transportation Company in Cincinnati. In this position, Bill grew to love the river industry, as well as the people who worked within it. He made many great friends and contacts over the course of his time at RTC, including meeting a gentlemen named Craig Borneman.
Borneman took Bill under his wing, much as an older brother would, and helped him learn the ways of the river business and people involved in it. Borneman also introduced Bill to Earl Faig, who then was Vice President of Sales for the Ohio River Company, which at the time was the largest barge line in the country.
In 1987, after ORCO’s Sales Manger had retired, Faig was looking for a replacement. After several interviews and a battery of tests, ORCO offered Bill the Sales Manager job, despite the fact that he didn’t have a college degree.
1988 - 1993
At ORCO, Bill was charged with working with most of the the utilities in the Midwest, several of which are C&B customers today. These utilities included Cincinnati Gas & Electric, Louisville Gas & Electric, Kentucky Utilities, Dayton Power & Light, and American Electric Power. It would be through these relationships that the future Bray Marine would ultimately be built.
While Bill had great success as ORCO’s Sales Manager, after several years, it became readily apparent that he was never going to move further up in management at the company because of his lack of a college degree.
1994 - 1996
At ORCO, Bill was charged with working with most of the the utilities in the Midwest, several of which are C&B customers today. These utilities included Cincinnati Gas & Electric, Louisville Gas & Electric, Kentucky Utilities, Dayton Power & Light, and American Electric Power. It would be through these relationships that the future Bray Marine would ultimately be built.
While Bill had great success as ORCO’s Sales Manager, after several years, it became readily apparent that he was never going to move further up in management at the company because of his lack of a college degree.
One evening, in late 1994, Bill and Chris discussed an opportunity that Bill saw with several of his customers. This was during the period of deregulation of the utility industry, and utilities were looking for ways to cut their operational costs. One of the ways to cut costs, Bill believed, was for these utilities to subcontract their harbor boats and harbor work to outside contractors.
Bill and Chris believed that this would provide a wonderful opportunity for their family to finally start its own business, but they realized they needed help. Because the river industry is capital intensive and Bill had no experience in operations, the couple thought they needed a partner that could provide both of these assets.
Once again, through his good friend Borneman, the couple was able to find that partner, and on April 1, 1995, Bill left ORCO to start the family business with this partner. Things fared well in the beginning, but after about a year, it became apparent to Bill and Chris that the partnership was not going to work. So, in the spring of 1997, the couple decided to dissolve the partnership and go at it alone.
1997
At ORCO, Bill was charged with working with most of the the utilities in the Midwest, several of which are C&B customers today. These utilities included Cincinnati Gas & Electric, Louisville Gas & Electric, Kentucky Utilities, Dayton Power & Light, and American Electric Power. It would be through these relationships that the future Bray Marine would ultimately be built.
While Bill had great success as ORCO’s Sales Manager, after several years, it became readily apparent that he was never going to move further up in management at the company because of his lack of a college degree.
One evening, in late 1994, Bill and Chris discussed an opportunity that Bill saw with several of his customers. This was during the period of deregulation of the utility industry, and utilities were looking for ways to cut their operational costs. One of the ways to cut costs, Bill believed, was for these utilities to subcontract their harbor boats and harbor work to outside contractors.
Bill and Chris believed that this would provide a wonderful opportunity for their family to finally start its own business, but they realized they needed help. Because the river industry is capital intensive and Bill had no experience in operations, the couple thought they needed a partner that could provide both of these assets.
Once again, through his good friend Borneman, the couple was able to find that partner, and on April 1, 1995, Bill left ORCO to start the family business with this partner. Things fared well in the beginning, but after about a year, it became apparent to Bill and Chris that the partnership was not going to work. So, in the spring of 1997, the couple decided to dissolve the partnership and go at it alone.
1997
On July 1, 1997, they founded Bray Marine.
1997 - 2014?
Chris and Bill put in a lot of long, hard hours building their business into the company it is today. But they also did it with the help of a number of great friends. Starting off with only a few boats and a few contracts, Bray Marine grew to eight boats and other equipment, including several deck flats, loaders, and excavators before the business merged with Greater Cincinnati Marine.
1997 - 2014?
Today, through more great friends, the Bray family is back in a partnership with the Carlisle family, and with them, they have formed Carlisle & Bray Enterprises, LLC. This family of companies offers all types of services to the river industry, power plants, and terminals.
Bill and Chris’ two sons, Scott and Chad, work in the company, and the couple is starting to slow down and step back a little. Chris and Bill recognize that they have had a great deal of support and help over the years, for which they are grateful, because without it they know that they could have never have built Bray Marine into the business it became, which is now part of Carlisle & Bray Enterprises.
Carlisle & Bray Enterprises
Building the Future
A Northern Kentucky / Greater Cincinnati Tradition
In 2011, two long-established Ohio River marine operations – Greater Cincinnati Marine and Bray Marine – Merged to create Carlisle & Bray Enterprises, LLC, then parent company of C&B Marine, C&B Energy Services, and Score GLobal.
With more than 45 years of experience on the Ohio River, our companies provide a full array of marine ad land-based services, as well as consulting and insperction capabilities, giving our customers total confidence and peace of mind that we can meet any need that may arise.
From towing, fleetig and shifting on the Ohio River with C&B Marine to utility byproduct management and movement with C&B Energy Services and gap analysis consulting with Socre Global, the Carlisle & Bray Enterprises family of companies provides unmatched customer service to meet your needs.
2015 - Expansion
The company expanded operations and incorporated advanced building technologies to improve efficiency and project delivery.
2022 - Merger
A strategic merger with Bray Marina enhanced our service offerings, allowing us to undertake larger and more diverse projects.
2023 - Future Plans
With a solid foundation and expanded capabilities, Carlisle Construction is poised for future growth and innovation in the industry.
Carlisle & Bray Enterprises, LLC — and its subsidiary companies, C&B Marine, LLC and C&B Energy Services, LLC — were established in March 2011 as a result of the merger of Bray Marine and Greater Cincinnati Marine.
As is often the case in the close-knit river communities, the Bray and Carlisle families long knew each other and the work that their respective companies provided to businesses on the Ohio River.
“The merger just made sense,” Bill Bray, CEO of Carlisle & Bray Enterprises said. “Our utility customers asked us to do various things that we didn’t or couldn’t do, such as dredging, loading and unloading, and construction work, and the Carlisles were already helping us do a lot of those things for our customers.”
In November 2010, the families started discussing the possibility of a merger, and within four months, the merger was completed.
Today, C&B Marine is a full-service marine company providing a multitude of services to utility and aggregate customers in the Midwest, including towing, fleeting, shifting, and dredging, among others, while C&B Energy Services manages byproduct movement and management for utility waste.
“From the time we put it together, we experienced an extreme amount of growth,” Rob Carlisle, president of Carlisle & Bray Enterprises said. “We continue in growth mode.”
“It just shows that there was a great need for a company like ours — to be a full-service provider,” Rob said. “Time is a priority for everyone. I think if you can go to a turn-key operation like ours and get all the service you need from one company rather than three or four different companies, you are more likely to go with us, especially with the excellent service that we provide.”