(HOUSTON) — The first commercial U.S. vessel designed, built and verified using an end-to-end 3D design process is now under construction in a pioneering project by the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), Robert Allan Ltd. (RAL), Signet Maritime Corp. and the U.S. Coast Guard. Designed by RAL, the advanced rotortug, which is designed to escort vessels and offshore assets at the Port of Corpus Christi, will receive its certificate of inspection from the Coast Guard and will be built and operated by Signet to ABS class, making it the first commercial vessel in U.S. history to be produced using only 3D models in design and construction for all structures. A purely 3D process reduces costs and time investment, while streamlining interaction between stakeholders throughout the design, verification and construction phases,…
A powerful escort tugboat ran into a docked tanker loaded with nearly 1 million barrels of crude oil in Valdez, Alaska, opening a gash in the ship’s hull that allowed ballast water, but no oil, to escape. The incident happened just before midnight on Jan. 10 as the tug Courageous approached the U.S.-flagged Polar Endeavour docked at the Valdez Marine Terminal. The mate at the helm lost control of the 12,300-hp tugboat moments before impact. One mariner aboard Courageous was injured. Andres Morales, director of emergency preparedness and response for the Alyeska Pipeline Service Co., told a local advisory board that “operator error” appeared to be a leading cause. He called the incident “unacceptable” and said an investigation would explore all aspects of what led to it. “(If) we do…
U.S. shipbuilders responded with characteristic resolve when the COVID-19 pandemic reached North American shores. Workers adapted to new safety protocols and managers overcame supply chain hiccups to keep projects moving forward. But many of these shipyards now face another challenge altogether: Finding new work to keep their yards humming. “We are getting through it, but we are not through it yet,” said Peter Duclos, president of Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding in Somerset, Mass. “There is lots of work hanging out there we were counting on that hasn’t come yet. Things really stopped in terms of new projects.” Gladding-Hearn, which primarily builds ferries, small ships and its trademark pilot boats, is by no means alone. Shipyards specializing in large-scale steel ships, ferries and offshore supply vessels (OSVs) have seen commercial order books empty…
The following is text of a news release from the St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corp. (SLSDC): (WASHINGTON) — The U.S. Department of Transportation’s St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corp. announced the arrival Monday of its new tugboat, Seaway Guardian, in Massena, N.Y. The vessel has been on a three-week journey through the Gulf of Mexico, around Florida, and up the Atlantic seaboard from the Gulf Island Shipyards in Houma, La., where it was constructed. Seaway Guardian will be the first new American-built tugboat to join SLSDC since the Seaway opened 61 years ago. “The St. Lawrence Seaway is important because it provides access for American raw materials, manufactured goods and agricultural products to be exported all over the world. Many thanks to the Wisconsin-based crew that sailed the new tug on…
The RApport 2400-series tugboats developed by Robert Allan Ltd. have earned their keep around the world. Now, Crowley Maritime has put the first U.S.-built RApport 2500-series vessel to work in Los Angeles and Long Beach, the busiest container ports in the United States. Crowley chartered the 6,008-hp tug from Brusco Tug & Barge of Longview, Wash. Diversified Marine of Portland, Ore., built the vessel, originally named Noydena. It left the shipyard around April 1, 2020, before making its way to Los Angeles later in the spring. Crowley renamed it Hercules to honor an oceangoing Red Stack Fleet tugboat acquired in the early 1900s. The newbuild is the company’s first ship-assist tug equipped with Tier 4 propulsion. The 82-by-40-foot Hercules has Caterpillar engines paired with Cat z-drives. The electric Markey…
A wireless helm developed by Sea Machines has received approval for use on a class of U.S.-flag tugboats that support articulated tug-barge (ATB) sets, a new way of doing business that is bound to generate comment among mariners. The SM200 system frees the primary operator of a vessel from remaining at or near a fixed control position (e.g., the bridge or pilothouse). Through a wireless connection, the individual can control steering and propulsion as well as auxiliary equipment including pumps, winches and anchor windlasses. According to the company, the specific advantage for ATB operations comes in the tricky process of connecting the tug in the barge notch. The operator can retain full control of the tug while overseeing placement of the connecting pins from outside the wheelhouse. While touted…
Despite a down market for new construction, there were some key advances in tugboat design and technology over the last year. Notable examples include wider adoption of Tier 4 marine engines in ASD tugboats, as well as orders for tugs with hybrid propulsion. International interest in liquefied natural gas (LNG) tugboats is growing slowly, while in North America the appetite for LNG-fueled tugs remains almost nonexistent. The prospect of unmanned tugs also moved closer to adoption with serious testing overseas. Through mid-2018, Caterpillar and GE engines have been the choice of Tier 4 early-adopters such as Harley Marine Services, McAllister Towing and Moran Towing. Although that could change once competitors bring their Tier 4 solutions to market, Cat also entered the propulsion market with its first Cat-branded z-drives. Commander, the…
With its tapered hull and spider-like pilothouse, Capt. Cooper is a unique boat with an important job. Bald Head Island Limited developed the 850-hp vessel to push a deck barge between mainland North Carolina and the resort island located four nautical miles away. The two-vessel unit makes four round trips a day carrying virtually all large cargo and provisions for the island’s visitors and full-time residents, a number that can swell to 5,000 during the high summer season. CT Marine of Portland, Maine, designed the 50-by-24-foot vessel. Capt. Cooper was the first ever self-propelled vessel project for shipyard Metal Trades Inc. in Hollywood, S.C. Delivery came in August 2017. Capt. Claude McKernan, manager of Bald Head Island Limited’s Barge Department, said the new tug was developed for simplicity and efficiency.…
Harbor tugboats with three z-drives were first introduced almost two decades ago. The first of these so-called Rotortugs has finally reached North American shores. Seabulk Towing took delivery of Trident, the first of three planned Advanced Rotortugs (ART), in January. Master Boat Builders of Bayou La Batre, Ala., built the vessel using a design from Robert Allan Ltd. of Vancouver, B.C. Seabulk assigned Trident — named for the weapon favored by the sea god Poseidon — to Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The second tug, Triton, named after Poseidon’s messenger, is scheduled for delivery in late spring. A third tug, aptly named Trinity, is due in December. “This was a proven design internationally, and we believed this concept could best service the growing LNG industry as well as accommodate…
Tugboats Illustrated — History, Technology, Seamanship by Paul Farrell Copyright 2016 W.W. Norton & Company Inc., New York, N.Y. ISBN: 978-0-393-06931-0 $49.95 A lifetime love of tugs, their design, their work and, yes, their beauty, shows through on every page of Paul Farrell’s recently published book, Tugboats Illustrated — History, Technology, Seamanship. It is all of that and more. Farrell’s book captures that elusive character of tugs that so many, who have spent lifetimes working on them, have so often been unable to explain — the magic that kept drawing them back even after retiring to a life ashore. Although not himself a mariner, Farrell’s training and career as an architect shows through in the richly detailed illustrations. A drawing by the author titled “Steam Towboat, Late 19th Century” includes…
