Matson Navigation Co. received the General Motors 2007 Supplier of the Year award for its significant contributions to GM's global product and performance achievements.

The 16th annual award — titled the "Best of the Best" — was given during ceremonies held recently in Jacksonville, Fla. Matson's President and CEO James Andrasick accepted the award on behalf of the company.

Bo Anderson, GM group vice president, Global Purchasing and Supply Chain, said "this award is our way of telling the winners that we appreciate all of their efforts in working together with GM to manufacture world-class vehicles.

"Matson is truly honored to receive this award for the second consecutive year from one of our most valued customers," said Andrasick. "Since 1999, Matson has carried 100 percent of GM's vehicles from the U.S. Mainland to Hawai'i and Guam, as well as vehicles returning to the Mainland under GM's Remarketing program. Matson has worked closely with GM over the past eight years to continuously improve the transportation and distribution strategy for the Hawai'i and Guam markets."

Recent enhancements to Matson's auto carriage service include the re-entry of the MV Mokihana following modification work that involved adding a new auto garage. The new design increased Matson's Hawaii roll on - roll off capacity by more than 30,000 autos per year and features a fully enclosed garage.

The fleet enhancement is part of a multiphase program commenced in 2003 that provides Matson's auto customers two service features: frequency of service and ro-ro capacity. In addition to the modifications to the Mokihana, Matson has also invested in an above-deck garage for its S.S. Lurline, made shoreside facility improvements and developed a new information technology platform for auto shipments.

The GM Supplier of the Year award began as a global program in 1992. Winners are selected by a global team of executives from purchasing, engineering, manufacturing and logistics who base their decisions on supplier performance in quality, service, technology and price. This year, General Motors honored 92 suppliers for their outstanding performance throughout 2007.

Matson provides ocean transportation services to Hawai'i, Guam, China and Micronesia, as well as logistics services through its subsidiary, Matson Integrated Logistics. Matson is a wholly owned subsidiary of Alexander & Baldwin, Inc. of Honolulu.