Large Craft Production Facility News

Boatbuilder SAFE Boats International on Monday introduced Merlin, a new 23-meter semi-displacement monohull autonomous hydrographic survey vessel design developed in collaboration with Mythos AI, Echo81, and World Marine Design.SAFE Boats has exclusive rights to build the design at its Tacoma, Wash. large-craft production facility. Merlin will be a Jones Act-compliant all-aluminum hull powered by a twin Volvo Penta D13 Hybrid-ready System with IPS. For a zero-emission power package, the Merlin can accommodate forward-thinking hydrogen technology supplied by Zero Emission Industries (ZEI).

Despite all of the challenges that COVID-19 has wrought upon the marine industry, SAFE Boats International has managed to keep building and delivering boats to its customers. A snapshot of the last six months has seen the Bremerton, Wash. boatbuilder deliver more 30 boats, and it has a healthy backlog to keep busy for the next year and beyond. Its range of boats and customers runs from small to large, and deliveries stretch across the globe.Below are highlights of vessels SAFE…

SAFE Boats International has appointed Hartwell Champagne as its new Senior Vice President of Operations. Champagne joined SAFE Boats in 2013 and has been a key member of the company’s executive team. Prior to his new assignment, Champagne was the General Manager of the company’s Large Craft Production facility in Tacoma, Wash. where the U.S. Navy’s Mk VI Patrol Boats are manufactured. Hartwell has been part of the defense and government contracting industries almost the entirety of his career.

SAFE Boats International (SBI) says it has been awarded a contract to provide the United States Navy four additional Mk VI Patrol Boats (Mk VI PB); with options for an additional two boats. The Mk VI PB is the Navy’s next generation Patrol Boat and will become a part of the Navy Expeditionary Combat Command’s (NECC) fleet of combatant craft. SBI explains that according to the contract the Mk VI PBs mission is to provide operational commanders a capability to patrol shallow littoral areas beyond sheltered harbors and bays, and into less sheltered open water out to the Departure Sea Area (DSA) for the purpose of force protection of friendly and coalition forces and critical infrastructure. The 85-foot Mk VI PB is designed for optimal performance, fuel economy, and firepower.

SAFE Boats International (SBI) recently delivered a 65-foot Coastal Command Boat (CCB) to the U.S. Navy’s Coastal Riverine Group 1 in Coronado, California. The CCB is the first vessel of if its kind and represents the next generation of the Naval Expeditionary Combat Command (NECC)’s fleet of patrol boats and combatant craft. Its unique combination of size and agility enable it to patrol shallow littoral areas as well as deeper, open-water regions. The 65-foot CCB is an early variant of the soon to be delivered, 85-foot MKVI Patrol Boat.

SAFE Boats International (SBI) has been awarded a contract to provide the United States Navy five (5) MK VI Patrol Boats (MK VI PB). The MK VI PB is the Navy’s next generation Patrol Boat and will become a part of the Navy Expeditionary Combat Command’s (NECC) fleet of combatant craft. NECC will utilize the MK VI PB to provide operational commanders a capability to persistently patrol shallow littoral areas beyond sheltered harbors and bays, and into less sheltered open water…