Steel Barge

Harrah’s Gets New Barge Mounted Casino

Harrah’s recently opened a new barge mounted casino at their Joilet, Illinois property on the Des Plaines River near Chicago. The building on a barge replaces two USCG certified vessels that have been at the facility since 1993, the M/V Northern Star, a cruise-ship type vessel, and M/C Southern Star, a sternwheeler. The barges for the new facility were designed by DeJong & Lebet, Inc. Naval Architects, Jacksonville, Florida. DeJong & Lebet, Inc. also designed the two casino vessels that were replaced by the barge-mounted casino. The casino is mounted on two barges, which were built at Halter Marine in Port Bienville, Miss. Each barge measures approximately 200 x 100 x 16 ft. The barges are constructed of steel, except for the main deck, which is a 10.5 in. thick concrete slab. This design technique was developed by DeJong & Lebet, Inc. to reduce construction costs by eliminating the steel deck plate since a concrete deck is required even with a steel deck. The barge facility is certified to meet the stability and bulkheading requirements of the Illinois State Gaming Regulations. Third party certification services were provide by Applied Material Technologies, Wheaton, Illinois.

Underwater Salvage Work on 'Rena' Starts Soon

A specialist team of divers from the United States, plus the RMG 280 crane barge due to arrive shortly, reports the wreck salvors. Latest reports from the site follow: Salvage (Resolve Salvage & Fire)     •    The total combined weight of steel removed is now approximately 430 tonnes, which is more than 20 per cent of the total weight to be removed.     •    The RMG 280 crane barge is expected to arrive in port

Donjon Marine Refloats Sunken Barge 2001 on Kill Van Kull

In early August, the fully loaded hopper barge 2001 sank in approximately 25 feet of water while transiting the Kill Van Kull, a waterway that connects Newark Bay to New York Harbor. The barge was loaded with approximately 1,500 tons of shredded steel, as reported by owners. Donjon removed the cargo, rigged the barge for lift, and later refloated it and returned it to its owners. The barge had a light ship displacement of more than 500 tons.

Kvichak Delivers 26-ft Push Boat to Seattle City Light

Kvichak Marine, Industries, Inc. recently constructed and delivered a 25.7 ft push boat to Seattle City Light  for operation with the service barge at the Diablo Dam in the North Cascades.  This Kvichak Marine design is constructed of marine grade aluminum alloy plate and extrusions.  Two vertical push knees are located at the bow. The knees are padded by six inch D-section rubber.  A 1,500 lb davit with manual winch is mounted on the stern.   

Seattle City Light Contract for Kvichak Marine

Seattle City Light has awarded a contract to Kvichak Marine Industries to build a 25.8-ft push boat designed by Kvichak Marine to operate with the service barge at the Diablo Dam in the North Cascades. The hull and superstructure will be constructed of marine grade aluminum alloy plate and extrusions.  Two vertical push knees will be located at the bow.  The knees will be padded by 6” D-section rubber.  A 1,500 lb davit with manual winch will be mounted on the stern

Tulsa Port of Catoosa Reports Record July

“Shipping tonnage at the Tulsa Port of Catoosa increased in July, making it the best July in 22 years and the second best July in the history of the Port,” said Jerry Goodwin, chairman of the City of Tulsa - Rogers County Port Authority. “Shipments of inbound steel, pipe, and dry fertilizer increased along with outbound wheat and liquid fertilizer. Shipments of inbound oats and caustic soda were down slightly along with miscellaneous grains and asphalt,” said Goodwin.

SembCorp Completes Rig Job

SembCorp Industries reported that its engineering and shipyard units have jointly completed the fabrication and assembly of an offshore rig for Woodside Energy of Australia. The vessel - Northern Endeavour - is owned by Woodside Energy of Australia, Shell Development (Australia) and BHP Petroleum. The barge type steel hull vessel has an oil storage capacity of 1.4 million barrels and was scheduled to start production in October.

EBDG-Designed M/V HENRY ISLAND Launched

A new vessel is operating on the waters of the Puget Sound. Last April, San Juan Ferry & Barge selected Seattle-based Elliott Bay Design Group (EBDG) to complete the Contract Design for a new landing craft, the M/V HENRY ISLAND. In order to deliver the vessel in time for the busy summer season, EBDG designed and lofted the landing craft simultaneously, allowing shipyard Latitude Marine Services of La Conner Washington to begin cutting steel in December 2002.

Backlog of New Ethanol Barge Orders

According to reports, the logistics problems in the U.S. ethanol industry are expected to spread to waterborne transportation in the near future, industry sources said. The industry is already facing a transport crunch due to limited rail time and dedicated pipeline capacity, and a lack of trucks and drivers as the country switched to ethanol, a gasoline additive recently adopted by the U.S. oil industry for use in anti-smog blends, from MTBE in early May.

Marine Design Center To Acquire Barge

The Marine Design Center (MDC) of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) intends to attain an inland river style specialty barge to serve on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Louisville District (CELRL) in support of its mission. Measuring 70 ft. (21.3 m) with a 35 ft. (10.6 m) beam, the vessel will be used to wash mud and debris from lock walls, miter gates and floating approach walls at the Olmstead Lock & Dam. The vessel will be designed