McGinnis Inc. of South Point, Ohio at Mile 318 on the Ohio River delivered a new towboat to sister company Excel Marine Corp. of Cincinnati Ohio with a christening ceremony at Ashland Kentucky on January 26 2008. The 75 x 27-f.t boat is the first new build for McGinnis in over 20 years.
According to a report in the Ashland Daily Independent, the new vessel was named in honor of James Allen Ward III who has worked for
McGinnis since 1978 and oversaw the construction of the $3.5 million vessel.
Main engines on the vessel are a pair of 12-cylinder Cummins KTA 38 M1 engines each with a continuous duty rating of 1050 HP at 1800 RPM and turning 72 by 58-inch props through Twin Disc MG532 gears with 5.96:1 ratios. Cummins 6BT
engines power the twin 80 kW generators sets. All engines were supplied by the area distributor Cummins Bridgeway through McGinnis Inc. who are a part of the Cummins dealer and service network.
McGinnis Inc. has 35 boats in their fleet.