Bridge Erection Boats News

Australian-based Birdon Group, headquartered in Port Macquarie, has announced that its US subsidiary has been awarded two new contracts worth up to US$390m (AU$575m). In one contract, valued at up to USD 191m, Birdon America has been appointed to carry out an upgrade of the US Coast Guard (USCG) fleet of 47-foot Motor Lifeboat (MLB) vessels.In the second contract, worth up to USD 199m, Birdon America has secured a five-year extension to its existing contract to supply Bridge Erection Boats (BEBs) to the US Army. Birdon won the fiercely-contested tender to supply the BEBs in 2014, beating a field of established global defence suppliers.When combined with Australian contracts secured in the past three months…

In an era of increasingly complicated regulations and sophisticated technologies disrupting the workboat sector, one piece of the equipment – the Keel Cooler – remains as possibly the most important and at the same time, the simplest piece of hardware on the water. Likewise, much the same way as it was more than 70 years ago, Fernstrum remains the standard. For today’s workboat sector, the most pressing issue facing operators is arguably comprised of meeting and paying for the advent of so-called ‘Tier’ emissions standards. The American subset of 5,500 towboats additionally faces the subchapter M towboat rules and new requirements for hardware installation and physical construction. The one thing they shouldn’t have to worry about is engine cooling solutions.

NAMJet’s advanced marine propulsion systems have set the standard for thrust, durability and speed for more than 25 years. Leading the way are its TRAKTOR Jet line of high-thrust marine jets designed for a variety of commercial, military and workboat applications. NAMJet won a large military boat building contract in March to supply tractor jets for the U.S. Army’s one-of-a-kind bridge erection boats. According to NAMJet, its TRAKTOR Jet’s mass flow design pumps more water than high-speed jets…

NAMJet’s tractor jets seal the deal on a significant military boat building contract. The Army’s one-of-a-kind bridge erection boats fill an obscure, shallow draft workboat niche, while showcasing capabilities that someday could be commercially viable. When the U.S. Army turned to industry in its quest to design the next generation, prototype bridge erection boat, the ensuing competition attracted no less than three industry competition teams, all of whom eventually submitted prototypes in 2010. Birdon America, Inc., teaming with a (now) wholly owned NAMJet propulsion group, was one of the players. These models were then handed over to the U.S. Army for extensive testing. Eventually, in March of this year, Birdon won the US Army Bridge Erection Boat (BEB) platform contract.

Marine waterjet manufacturer NAMJet says it has been contracted to provide propulsion systems for Birdon America's US Army Bridge Erection Boat (BEB) 400-boat replacement platform. At the same time NAMJet announces its manufacturing and operational HQ has moved to Denver, Colorado. Bridge Erection Boats are primarily used to provide propulsion and maneuverable thrust to support temporary floating bridges often made necessary when existing bridge crossings have been destroyed in military conflict.

Karachi Shipyard & Engineering Works Limited (KS&EW) say they have cut the keel of a 12-Ton Bollard Pull Pusher Tug being built for the Pakistan Navy at a ceremony attended in the shipyard by officials & dignitaries from Pakistan Navy, Government Authorities and KS&EW. The tug is 16.89 meter in length overall with a gross tonnage of 63 tons. It is fitted with a robust fendering arrangement for all round tugging operations for submarines ships and crafts. Managing Director of KS&EW…

Aluminum Chambered Boats, Inc., Bellingham Wash., is being awarded a $12,824,070 firm-fixed-priced order no. M67854-08-F-5038 under GSA contract no. GS-07-F-0133M for 42 bridge erection boats, 42 trailers, 42 technical manuals, and 42 warranties. Work will be performed in Bellingham Wash., and work is expected to be completed Jul. 2009.  Contract funds will not expire by the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competed on GSA. The Marine Corps Systems Command, Quantico, Va., is the contracting activity.

The U.S. Army's Tank Automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM) awarded FBM Babcock Marine, a contract to commence the overhaul and modernization of its fleet of specialist Bridge Erection Boats (BEBs). The contract to upgrade the existing U.S. Army BEBs of Mk1 and Mk2 specification to a new BEB-M22 specification will be managed by FBM Babcock Marine from Southampton in the UK, in conjunction with Silver Ships Inc. of Theodore, Ala. The work to be performed under the modernization program will include condition assessments, structural and coating overhauls, replacement of obsolete equipment including new waterjets, marine diesel engines and control systems, and the development of a new Integrated Logistics Support (ILS) package.

Geislinger GmbH recently delivered its biggest torsional elastic coupling — a coupling with an outer diameter of 2.8-m and a weight of 36.3 tons. The coupling will be built into the drive line of a VLCC tanker, with an energy saving counter-rotating double propeller. More than 2,000 single parts were produced in the Geislinger works in Bad St. Leonhard and assembled in the works in Salzburg. The coupling transmits half of the 27,160 KW engine power at 74 rpm and in this way protects the gear box, which changes the direction of rotation for the backwards running propeller. This causes the energy of the swirling water in the gushing of the propeller to be used and therefore the degree of effectiveness is increased by about 14 percent.