Harvey Gulf orders hybrid MPFSV at Eastern Shipbuilding

Harvey Gulf International Marine Inc., of New Orleans, has awarded Eastern Shipbuilding Group a contract to construct a hybrid Multi-Purpose Field Support Vessel (MPFSV) of Robert Allan RAmpage 6400 design.

The vessel — Eastern Hull No. 234 — is set to be delivered from Eastern’s Panama City, Fla., shipyard in April 2016, when it will begin a 10-year charter.

The vessel is the 14th vessel ordered at Eastern by Harvey Gulf in the past 13 years.

Volvo Penta Diesel Sterndrives for Metal Shark Patrol Boats

Metal Shark Aluminum Boats of Jeanerette, La., announced on July 24 that it now offers Volvo Penta diesel sterndrives in its 29 Defiant patrol boats for customers requiring optimum performance, durability and maneuverability.

The 29 Defiant vessels can now be ordered with twin Volvo Penta D4-225 sterndrives. The first boat has just been placed into service by the New York City Department of Environmental Protection.

The Volvo Penta D4-225 is a four-cylinder 3.7-liter engine designed specifically for commercial marine applications. The electronically controlled fuel system provides the performance required for applications requiring fast acceleration and high top speed. The Volvo Penta DPH Duoprop robust high-speed drives are designed to handle massive torque forces while providing high efficiency at all speeds, safe handling and easy maneuvering.

Crowley Christens New DP2 Tugboat

Crowley Maritime Corp. announced on July 25 that the third of four tugboats in its Ocean-class series, Ocean Sky, was christened in Houston. The ceremony served to formally welcome the third dynamic positioning (DP) tugboat to the company’s expanded ocean towing fleet, which has been involved in most of the major offshore oil production installations in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico over the past 16 months.

Ocean Sky, which features DP2 technology, is part of a four-vessel family of tugs ideally suited to work with Crowley’s new 455 series high-deck strength barges, which measure 400 feet long by 105 feet wide. Crowley’s Ocean class tugs are outfitted for long-range high-capacity ocean towing, rig moves, platform and floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) unit tows, emergency response and firefighting.

All four of the Ocean class tugboats are designed to have a minimum bollard pull of 150 metric tons and a range of approximately 12,600 nm at 15 knots without a tow. They are outfitted with twin-screw, controllable-pitch propellers in nozzles and high lift rudders for a combination of performance and fuel economy.

Horizon delivers 4th towboat to Canal Barge

Horizon Shipbuilding Inc., of Bayou La Batre, Ala., has delivered the fourth in a series of towboats to Canal Barge Company Inc. of New Orleans.

The Jane Merrick is 74 feet long with a 32 feet, 6 inch beam and an 8 feet, 6 inch draft. Designed by Marine Design Inc. of Gulf Breeze, Fla., the vessel is capable of pushing fully loaded fuel barges at 10 knots.

Its 2,000 hp is provided by Cummins K38M, Tier 2, 12 cylinder marine engines drive, 74-inch Kahlenberg propellers through Reintjes WAF 562 reduction gears. Ship’s power is generated by two 85 kW Cummins generators.

There are accommodations for six crew, plus the captain.

Southern Towing opts for MTU power
Memphis, Tenn.-based Southern Towing Co. has opted to power six inland waterways towboats with MTU engines. Four new and two existing vessels will be outfitted with a total of 12 Series 4000 Ironmen engines in 8- and 12-cylinder configurations.

Powered by twin MTU 8V 4000 engines designed to run at a constant 1,800 rpm, the first two new vessels to be put into service with MTU’s Series 4000 were 100-foot Z-drive sister towboats named Paula Fortier and Theresa Echols. Soon to follow were two 120-foot Z-drive towboats christened Capt. Tommy Parrish and Capt. H.R. Kirtley, both powered by twin MTU 12V 4000 M53 engines, rated to produce 1,851 bhp at 1,800 rpm. The Series 4000 engines are matched to ZF Marine Z-Drive steering systems. All four vessels were built by Steiner Shipyard, Bayou La Batre, Ala.

Two re-power projects, each utilizing the MTU 12V 4000 M53 engine, are still on the horizon. The new engines will increase overall fuel efficiency and decrease emissions for two existing push boats.

Coast Guard opts for more cutters from Bollinger

The U.S. Coast Guard exercised a contract option on July 24 with Bollinger Shipyards, of Lockport, La., worth $255.1 million for production of six more Sentinel-class Fast Response Cutters (FRCs). This option brings the total number of FRCs under contract with Bollinger to 30 and the total value of the contract to nearly $1.38 billion. There are a total of 58 planned for the class.

To date, the Coast Guard has taken delivery of 10 FRCs. Nine FRCs have been commissioned into service, and the 10th, Raymond Evans, will be commissioned this September in Key West, Fla.

The FRC uses a proven, in-service parent craft design based on the Damen Stan Patrol Boat 4708 and has a flank speed of 28-plus knots.

Algoma Central christens second Equinox bulker

Algoma Central Corp. announced on July 18 the arrival in Canada and the christening of its second Equinox Class bulk cargo vessel, Algoma Harvester.

Algoma Central owns and operates the largest Canadian flag fleet of dry and liquid bulk carriers operating on the Great Lakes – St. Lawrence Waterway. The Equinox Class represents the next generation of Great Lakes-St. Lawrence bulkers. The ships have been designed to optimize fuel efficiency and operating performance thus minimizing environmental impact.

A 45 percent improvement in energy efficiency over Algoma’s current fleet average is expected, resulting from the use of a modern Tier II compliant engine, increased cargo capacity and an improved hull form. In addition, a fully integrated International Maritime Organization-approved exhaust gas scrubber will remove 97 percent of all sulfur oxides from shipboard emissions.

Algoma is the first company to use an IMO-approved integrated scrubber on a Great Lakes-St. Lawrence vessel class.

Algoma took delivery of Algoma Harvester on May 13 and the vessel departed from the shipyard in China on May 18. Algoma Harvester picked up its first load of cargo at Port Cartier, Quebec, on July 11 following a 54-day voyage across the Pacific and through the Panama Canal to get to eastern Canada. The first cargo of iron ore, which has set a new record size, was delivered to ArcelorMittal Dofasco in Hamilton immediately following the Christening ceremony.

Great Lakes Towing celebrates 116 years

Great Lakes Towing Co. and Great Lakes Shipyard, of Cleveland, will start celebrating their 116th year by putting the Coast Guard cutter Biscayne Bay back into the water using the shipyard’s 770-ton capacity Marine Travelift.

Work under the cutter repair contract started in early May included drydocking and routine maintenance.

Great Lakes Towing continues work on the tug Wyoming, the 10th tug to be overhauled and inspected at the shipyard as part of the company’s ongoing fleet overhaul program.

Other tugs included in the initiative to date include California, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Ohio, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, Superior and Vermont.

Founded on July 7, 1899, Great Lakes Towing’s founding shareholders comprised a veritable “Who’s Who” of America’s great industrialists of the day, including John D. Rockefeller, Jeptha H. Wade and James R. Sinclair, among others.

Popularly called “The Towing Company” for its entire 116-year history, the company has been a significant marine operations link in one of the major economic lifelines of North America — the fourth seacoast and the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway system.

The company has continuously evolved to meet the changing demands of the agricultural, steel and construction industries, and the needs of the ships and tug/barge units, which serve those industries.

Through its development of Great Lakes Shipyard, the company has continually adapted and improve its services to the needs of the day. It says that as it stands upon the achievements of its historic past, it faces the future as a challenge to be met with the full resources at its command.

Master Marine delivers Z-Drive towboat

Master Marine Inc., of Bayou La Batre, Ala., announced on July 28 the delivery its first 2,000 hp Z-drive inland river towboat. The towboat represents the first vessel (Entech Design) of this series by the yard.

Master Marine said it has not been as active in the past years building towboats as the other yards in the area. However, in the last two years, Master Marine has made some personnel changes along with additional investments to re-enter this market.

by John Snyder

Original article: http://www.professionalmariner.com/Web-Exclusive-2014/Shipbuilding-News-August-2014/