(SPAY, Germany) — Schottel will equip a new OX series tractor tug from U.S.-based aluminum workboat builder Silverback Marine with two Schottel RudderPropellers type SRP 100.
Designed in collaboration with Seattle-headquartered Elliott Bay Design Group, the truckable tug will have a bollard pull of almost 7 tons and ensure excellent maneuverability with an extremely compact size of just 26 feet in length and 14.6 feet in width. The vessel, being built for the U.S. Department of Defense, is expected to be delivered in late 2025.
“Silverback spent a little over three years refining the design of the OX, and a huge part of this was identifying key vendors that we could be confident in,” said Ian Gracey, CEO of Silverback Marine. “Part of our approach was to consult not only highly experienced and seasoned tug captains but also mechanics servicing tugs. We identified a consistent trend of both captains and mechanics expressing appreciation for the Schottel product.”
Silverback’s tug will be equipped with two SRP 100 azimuth thrusters, each with an input power of 216 kW and a propeller diameter of 33.5 inches. The design of the SRP fits perfectly into the overall concept of the new tug series, which aims to offer the greatest possible performance in an extremely compact vessel. For this purpose, the 360-degree steerable SRP provides the vessel with maximum maneuverability and combines bollard pull with a compact thruster design that allows a space-saving installation on the tug.
The compact yet powerful tugboat can be easily transported to job sites by truck and will perform operations normally only possible with much larger tugs.
– Schottel
