Uncategorized – Page 35 – Professional Mariner

28 Feb

Africa Mercy set to embark on its mission

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

This is a massive undertaking," Tim Tretheway said. Tretheway, 50, is the chief officer on Africa Mercy, the newest hospital ship of the Texas-based Christian-charity organization Mercy Ships. He has spent the past two years working on, in and around the 499-by-69-foot former rail ferry as it underwent a $62 million refit in Newcastle, England. It took Mercy Ships six…

28 Feb

Marco Marine, a landmark on the Seattle waterfront, closes its shipyard

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

After 52 years of building all kinds of boats for Pacific Northwest clients, Marco Marine has closed its Seattle shipyard. A fixture on the Lake Washington Ship Canal, the company cited lack of new orders for the decision. San Francisco is one of two station boats Marco Marine delivered to the San Francisco Bar Pilots in 2001. The 104-foot steel-hull…

28 Feb

ATB Sound Reliance: Articulate success

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We took this combination bow-on into 25-foot seas with 14-second intervals outside of San Francisco," said Capt. Tom Lenfestey of Marine Transport's articulated tug-barge (ATB) unit Sound Reliance. "It rode really well, but what surprised us the most was how little water there was on deck." Sound Reliance enters First Narrows in Vancouver, British Columbia. The 126-foot, 9-inch boat pushes…

28 Feb

Paddle-wheeler has antique charm, plus all the modern conveniences.

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This may be due to the depth of his involvement in the design and construction of the 360-foot cruise vessel Empress of the North. Empress of the North on its way out of Vancouver. Image Credit: Alan Haig-Brown Wengel captained the paddle-wheeler Queen of the West on the Columbia River for American West Steamboat Co. When the owners made…

28 Feb

Ports experimenting with vacuum pads for securing ships to dock

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

The expansion of coastal shipping in the United States may have moved a step closer to reality with the announcement that Roadships America Inc. plans to build eight high-speed ro-ro cargo ships. "This is not pie in the sky. Roadships has finalized the high-speed monohull design, the operational considerations have moved to their final design phase, and decisions will be…

28 Feb

History cruise aboard John W. Brown revives old memories while creating new ones

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

Call it the ship of memories. During World War II, the Liberty ship SS John W. Brown shuttled troops between battle zones in the Mediterranean. These days, John W. Brown, one of two surviving Liberty ships from the fleet of over 2,700 built during the war, still operates as a transport. Although it no longer carries young men and women…

28 Feb

Cenac’s largest tug begins service with a clean-oil barge in the Gulf

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

Cenac Towing of Houma, La., has put into service the largest tug in its fleet of 43 vessels. Introduced this spring was the 130-foot offshore tugboat O.J. Cenac, designed for offshore work in the Gulf of Mexico with a 50,000-barrel clean-oil barge. O.J. Cenac, rated at 8,000 hp, is powered by three QSK60 engines from Cummins. The engines turn three…

28 Feb

Building a new shipyard from the Ground Up

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

Kvaerner's Philadelphia shipyard has come a long way since 1997, when Kvaerner ASA, based in Norway, decided to build a modern commercial shipyard on the site of the former Philadelphia Naval Shipyard. Manulani, the third of the containerships the yard has built for Matson Navigation, was delivered in May 2005. Image Credit: Courtesy Aker Philadelphia Shipyard Inc. The goal…

28 Feb

Harsh treatment of Philippine crew held as witnesses in Calif. sparks calls for reform

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

The plight of a Philippine crew stranded in California has spotlighted an issue of growing concern to mariners: the harsh treatment of crews held as witnesses to crimes that may have been committed aboard their ships. On Sept. 10, 2004, the crew arrived in Long Beach, Calif., aboard the 600-foot Katerina with a load of steel. The crew aboard the…

28 Feb

Bay of Fundy shipping lanes shifted to protect right whales.

Professional Mariner StaffUncategorized

A major section of the traffic lanes was moved about four nautical miles to the east, effective July 1, 2003. The change was configured so that the new route comes no closer to Digby Neck, Nova Scotia, than the old route did. It marks the first time that the International Maritime Organization has altered a shipping route to protect marine…