C&C Boat Works of Belle Chasse, La., has stepped up its boatbuilding quality by having its new series of 162-foot supply boats classed full ABS rather than ABS load line. The first vessel so classed is Isla Blanca sold to Adriatic Marine in Raceland, La., and delivered in June 2008. The company has two more sister ships to build for Adriatic.
C&C has a very active barge division involved in both building new and repairing existing barges. The company also has three 72-foot push boats under construction.
“Most of our facilities have been extensively renovated since Hurricane Katrina,” said Tony Cibilich, company president.
The new construction yard and the barge yard are separated by about a mile on the Intracoastal Waterway. Also along the waterway are four dry docks used for vessel repair and to launch the newbuilds.
All American Marine delivers research vessel to NOAA
Distance from the owner is no big deal for All American Marine of Bellingham, Wash. In early June, a heavy-lift ship brought two All American newbuilds from its Washington state shipyard to the East Coast. Both River Gorge Explorer, a tour boat for the Tennessee Aquarium at Chattanooga, and research vessel Manta made the journey to Port Everglades, Fla. After offloading, both vessels went on their own bottoms to their homeports. I covered River Gorge Explorer in the last issue of this newsletter.
Manta is an 82-foot all-aluminum research vessel owned and operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). It will work in the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary about 100 miles offshore, south of the Louisiana-Texas border. The vessel will concentrate on sea-floor mapping, habitat characterization, data collection and monitoring the health of the ocean species and reefs.
Unlike a lot of research vessels, Manta is built for speed — with two Caterpillar C-32 engines developing 1,600-hp each, driving Hamilton Jet HM 571 waterjets. The vessel can cruise at 27 knots and can reach speeds topping 34 knots.
Manta is the fifth NOAA Teknicraft-design catamaran built by All American Marine.
Fort Smith Shipyard shuttered
Nine months ago, a new shipyard opened on the Arkansas River at Fort Smith, but an apparent lack of capital has doomed the project.
The owner of the Fort Smith Shipyard, Dave Rite, blamed the City of Fort Smith for the failure. “We spent a lot of money trying to satisfy the city’s requirements. They wanted us to spend $200,000 to 300,000 for a new office building and plant 400 shrubs on the site,” Rite added.
The city of Fort Smith said the requirements and permits were pretty standard.
Both sides agree that the property along the river is better than ever before. “They went in and cleaned up that property and unfortunately they could not make a go if it there,” said city official Tom Manskey. “But somewhere down the road it is a great opportunity for future growth.”
“We may come back as a shipyard. I just don’t know yet,” Rite added.
Trinity Inland Barge Group has record year
Trinity Industries’ Inland Barge Group generated record revenues and operating profit in 2007 and ended the year with the largest backlog in the division’s history.
Revenues grew to over $493 million. Operating profits were over $72 million. The year-end backlog was $753 million.
The company opened a new enclosed paint facility to help expedite the delivery of tank barges at its Ashland City, Tenn., location.
Steiner building more tugs
In addition to four tugs being built for Southern Towing of Memphis, Tenn., Steiner Shipyard of Bayou La Batre, Ala., has delivered a 78-foot tug to HLC Tugs LLC of Golden Meadow, La., a division of Marquette Transportation in Paducah, Ky.
Main power for this tug is three Cummins QSK 19 engines rated at 680 hp each.
Layla Renee uses a three-screw arrangement, because owner Huey J. Cheramie believes he saves fuel with this propulsion plant. “Sometimes you only need to run two of the engines and this saves money,” Cheramie added. “Plus it is real insurance in case you lose an engine or even two.”
Dakota Creek builds two IMRs
Dakota Creek Industries of Anacortes, Wash., is building a pair of huge inspection, maintenance and repair (IMR) vessels for Otto Candies LLC of Des Allemands, La.
While not sister ships, the two vessels are each about 300 feet long and will be used to rejuvenate older wells.
Grant Candies will be delivered at the end of 2008, while Ross Candies will join the Candies fleet in 2009.
IMR vessels do not carry supplies to rigs or platforms. They mount large 100-ton knuckle boom cranes and 100-ton sea winches to place infrastructure on the seabed floor. Both vessels use a pair of ROVs, one to work at these depths and the other to observe and guide the construction activity.
Atlantic Marine delivers first of six 240-foot supply boats
Hornbeck Offshore Services, Inc. of Mandeville, La., has added the first of six new-breed 240-foot supply boats to its fleet. Built by Atlantic Marine in Jacksonville, Fla., the 240-foot HOS Polestar is powered by a pair of Caterpillar 3516 C engines each rated at 2,000 hp.
These engines are coupled to CPP 4-blade 96-inch propellers. In addition there are a pair of Brunvoll tunnel bow thrusters and a Brunvoll tunnel stern thruster. Three 340-kw gensets powered by Caterpillar C-18 engines provide over one megawatt of electrical power.
DP2 is standard on this series of newbuilds, as it is on all new Hornbeck supply vessels.
Mariner LLC steps up deepwater newbuilds
Another small shipyard that has benefited from the run-up in supply boatbuilding is Mariner LLC of Houma, La.
Run by the father-and-son team of Gary Stansbury Sr. and Jr., Mariner LLC has a 166-foot supply boat Karla F set to join the Superior Energy Services fleet in September. Next will come Gulf Quest, a 170-footer for Gulf Fleet Management due at the end of 2008.
After that is a 170-foot supply boat for an undisclosed U.S. interest followed by a 172-foot DP2-classed vessel for a foreign customer.
“Our backlog extends well into 2009,” Gary Stansbury Jr. said.
