“I take great pride in being a leader of Appledore, where our organizational culture is centered around delivering high-quality work to our clients, while prioritizing safety and timeliness, as well as active engagement in shaping industry standards that advance the field of Marine Engineering. I am proud to say that our success is attributed to the hard work and dedication of our employees, who are the backbone of our company.”

Danielle M. Somma, PE - Vice President

Danielle Somma is a licensed professional engineer who has spent her career specializing in Marine Engineering. A commercial dive supervisor with over 15 years of experience, she has inspected, designed, and assessed hundreds of federal, commercial, and industrial waterfront facilities across coastal United States, Cuba, Japan, and Guam.

Danielle began her career in New York City as an engineer diver inspecting and designing repairs for waterfront facilities and performing quality assurance throughout construction. After a couple of years, she made her way back to New England and eventually landed a role with Appledore Marine Engineering in 2014 and couldn’t be happier.

“I grew up in coastal Maine and absolutely love being around the water. I discovered engineer diving and the field of Marine Engineering at a career fair while I was in college, and I have never looked back. I love the fact that I am able to travel all over the world performing inspection and design work while living and raising a family in a place that I love.”

Today, as a Principal and Vice President of AME, she manages and leads project teams performing structural inspections, design and analysis, review of technical submittals, and quality assurance inspections. In the last 10 years, Danielle has managed the design of over $60 million (construction cost) in waterfront improvements for both new and existing facilities.

As a leader in a small, specialized firm, Danielle has also been committed to having an impact in the industry. In 2021, she co-developed and co-instructed the two-day short course “Fixed Aids to Navigation Inspection, Assessment & Design” to U.S. Coast Guard engineers. In 2023, she became a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), Coast Oceans Ports & Rivers Institute (COPRI) Ports & Harbor. This is in addition to her role as Vice Chairperson of the ASCE COPRI Waterfront Facilities Inspection Committee where she’s contributed to the update of the ASCE Manual and Reports on Engineering Practice No. 130 Waterfront Facilities Inspection and Assessment—an important manual that sets the standard for marine engineers across the country to perform facility inspections and assessments.

Danielle is a licensed professional engineer in Maine and Connecticut and holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Manhattan College and a master’s degree in structural engineering from Norwich University.

Did You Know? Danielle holds a second bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Saint Joseph’s College of Maine and is an Engineer Officer in the Maine Army National Guard where she has been serving since 2010.