GULF CRAFT

Vessels: Big Cat Express: A Very Fast Sea Trial

By Larry Pearson It's 8:30 a.m. as the Big Cat Express saddles up to the dock at the Port of Morgan City, La. It is Sea Trial day for the big quad engine catamaran ferry. No question she is waterjet powered as the tops of the blue "buckets" of the four Hamilton Jet 651's break the surface of the water at the stern. Just above the buckets are the exhausts, large four stainless steel pipes that curve downward toward the water. About 25 pickup trucks and my Ford Taurus wait the arrival of the 150-ft. by 34-ft. vessel. Painted gleaming white, the three-deck vessel looks like it was built for speed. Today we will find out just how fast it can travel. Emerging from the vehicles were several executives from Gulf Craft, Inc. builder of the catamaran including Kevin and Scotty Tibbs, who have taken over the day-to-day operation of the family-owned shipyard along with brother Bryant from their father Scott Tibbs. This is also an important day for Cummins Mid-South, supplier of the four KTA-50 propulsion engines and the two 75 k 6BTA.5 gensets. Gulf Craft typically builds Cummins-powered monohulled crew/supply boats, so this is a new application for both Gulf Craft and for Cummins Calvin Klotz, manager of the New Orleans branch of Cummins Mid-South will ride the sea trial along with his ace Morgan City-based salesman "Red" Cunningham. Also onboard is Ben Erdely, manager of the New Orleans based Sewart Supply who supplied the NICO gears for the vessel.

Trico Marine Announces Financing Arrangement

Trico Marine Services, Inc. announced that Trico and GE Commercial Equipment Financing have entered into an agreement that will provide approximately $11.4 million of funding for the marine services company. Under the operating lease arrangement, GE will pay Trico approximately $11.4 million for three 155-foot crew boats currently being built for the company by Gulf Craft, Inc. Upon the completion of each vessel, GE will charter the vessels to Trico

Designers Aim for More Flexibility, Efficiency and Multi-mission Capabilities

By Larry Pearson Four years into the new Millennium designers of workboats are incorporating new technologies and greater efficiencies into their designs to produce vessels that can do more work and do it better than designs of just a few years ago. Supply Boats This is very prevalent in the oil patch where today's supply boat designs emphasize more efficient vessels that can carry as much material to the rig or platform as vessels 30-40 ft. longer in years past.

Hvide to Add Two New Boats

Hvide Marine Incorporated has made an agreement to purchase two modern 152-ft. crewboats from Crewboats, Inc. The purchase price for the two vessels, which will join HMI's Seabulk Offshore fleet in the Gulf of Mexico, is $5 million. The company expects to take delivery of one vessel in December 2000 and the second in May 2001. "These are the 'hotshot boats' of the offshore industry," commented company president and CEO Gerhard E

Eye on the Navy

April 1, 2009, a landing craft air cushion from Assault Craft Unit (ACU) 5 leaves a beach during an exercise near Camp Lemonier, Djibouti. ACU-5 is currently assigned to the USS Boxer Expeditionary Strike Group supporting Combined Task Force-151 (CTF-151), a multinational task force conducting counter-piracy operations to detect and deter piracy in and around the Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea, Indian Ocean and Red Sea.

Offshore Update: Waiting on Feds to Issue Permits

By Susan Buchanan, from the November 2010 edition of MarineNews Marine companies along the Gulf of Mexico have seen little new business since the offshore drilling moratorium was lifted in early October as oil producers apply for permits and decide how to navigate costly safety regulations. At Bollinger Shipyards, Inc., one of the top U.S. boat builders, Chief Executive Officer Boysie Bollinger, said “we're waiting for BOEM to start issuing offshore drilling permits

Graham Gulf Commissions a Special Boat

The Graham name is well known in the Gulf of Mexico maritime world with family ownership of fleet operator Graham Gulf and the C&G Boat Works in Mobile Alabama. As Graham Gulf's newest crew boat leaves the C&G Boat Works and goes into service this month it will mark a special memorial. The 165-foot vessel is named for Gayla Graham, sister to Janson Graham and a partner in the firm, who died tragically in an auto accident last year

Cummins Power for Arabian Gulf Crewboat

The Kuwaiti company, Arabian Gulf Mechanical Services and Contracting Co. Ltd., has been operating a 30.5-meter Grandweld-built crew boat since the summer of 2007. The successful boat, named Fraih-8, carries a 6.4-meter beam with a 3.25-meter depth allowing for 8400 gallons of fuel and 2000 gallons of fresh water as well as 195 gallons each of black water, grey water, Lube and hydraulic oil. Accommodation for an 8-member crew is provided along with seating for 24 off-shore personnel

Navy Accepts Delivery of Future USS Dewey

The Navy officially accepted delivery of the future USS Dewey (DDG 105) Aug. 17 from Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding (NGSB) during a ceremony in Pascagoula, Miss.  In June, the guided-missile destroyer completed a combined Builder's and Acceptance trial, also called "super trials," after spending three days in the Gulf of Mexico. "This is the second DDG we've delivered this summer," said Capt

Future USS San Diego (LPD 22) Launched

The future USS San Diego (LPD 22) was launched May 7 from Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding's Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss.  The launch of the 684-ft ship into the Gulf of Mexico marks an important milestone in the ship's construction process. "As the sixth ship of the class, this launch is a considerable achievement in the program." said Jay Stefany, LPD 17 program manager for the Navy's Program Executive Office (PEO) Ships