Lugger News

Somerset, Mass. shipyard Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation, announced it has delivered the first of the Boston Pilots’ two Chesapeake-class pilot boats undergoing a comprehensive refit.“The vessels are well used and well maintained. Only minor structural repairs were necessary so definitely worthy of refitting,” said Peter Duclos, the shipyard’s co-president.Along with installing new shafts and Brunton propellers, the 53’ all-aluminum pilot boat’s twin 600 hp Lugger L6140AL2 engines were replaced with a pair of Volvo Penta D-16 diesel engines…

Northern Lights Inc. (NLI) announced the launch of several new products hitting the market in 2024, including its new M4105 and M6105 genset series as well as the reintroduction of its Lugger propulsion engines with the L4105 and L6105 series.With kilowatt ratings from 125 to 245 at 60 Hz, the M4105 and M6105 series generator sets are built on Northern Lights’ robust base frame design for a clean, compact package sure to complement any engine room, the manufacturer said. Northern…

Northern Lights announced a new partnership with MAN Engines & Components, when on June 30 2021, Northern Lights acquired MAN Engines West Coast distributor Rabaul Diesel Inc (RDI). Northern Lights  said the deal with MAN is a great addition to its family of products including Northern Lights marine generators, Technicold air conditioning, refrigeration, ice machines & Lugger propulsion engines.Also headquartered in Seattle, WA Northern Lights intends to operate under Northern Lights Power and Energy for the Western US and Canada.

YANMAR America’s Commercial Marine Division has announce the addition of three new Repower Centers to its distribution network: Kennedy Engine in Biloxi, Mississippi; Sun Power Diesel in Dania Beach, FL and Todomar in Colombia.“YANMAR is looking to add local market experts to our distribution network. Kennedy Engine, Sun Power and Todomar are a good match due to their regional knowledge of applications and customers in terms of needs and expectations,” commented Terry Wallace, Division Manager for YANMAR America Commercial Marine.Kennedy Engine has a history as long as YANMAR’s dating back to 1912 when William Patrick Kennedy introduced the otter trawl and gasoline-powered Lugger to the seafood industry in Biloxi, Mississippi.

Louisiana-based inland workboat operator Alexis Marine has awarded a supply contract to Thordon Bearings for the retrofitting of 6in diameter RiverTough bearings to MV Kristin Alexis, the 60ft twin-screw towboat built by Bollinger Shipyard in 1969.Both the vessel’s shafts will be withdrawn at New Orleans yard Bayou Fabricators and Machine Works, where the original rubber bearings will be replaced with Thordon’s RiverTough tailshaft bearings.The polymer bearing manufacturer will…

1777 - During the American Revolution, the Continental lugger Surprise, led by Capt. Gustavus conyngham, captures the British mail packet Prince of Orange and the brig Joseph in the North Sea. 1898 - During the Spanish-American War, U.S. Marines from cruisers Baltimore and Raleigh (C 8), raise US flag over Cavite, Philippines. 1942 - USS Spearfish (SS 190) evacuates naval and military officers, including nurses, from Corregidor before surrendering island to Japan. 1944 - USS Flasher (SS 249) sinks the Japanese freighter…

Over the years, Rodriguez triple-screw shallow-draft towboats have won a following in the shallow waters of the Mississippi River estuary. Many of these boats are the distinctive aft-cabin Lugger-type of vessel. Recently Mid-River Terminals of Osceola, Ark. has taken delivery of a new design towboat from Rodriguez. With a conventional forward-house pusher configuration, the new 70- by 30-foot MV Dianna Lynn utilizes the same propulsion as the Lugger tugs. This is composed of three in-line six-cylinder Cummins QSK19 engines, each delivering 660 HP.

Jerrold Denet, owner of Denet Towing in Boothville, La., is as straight forward as they come. When asked why he started his towing company in 1982, the response was incredulous: “Why did I start it? When asked why he repowered his M/V Ocean Pride from a 12-cylinder  V with a pair of six-cylinder in—line Scania DI-13 continuous duty engines with 450hp @ 1800 rpm through Twin Disc MGX 516 marine gears, the answer was similarly blunt: “This is where my money is best spent,” said Denet. “We are producing more power and burning less fuel.

Battery hybrid provides clean, quiet, fuel‐efficient research platform on Long Island Sound. Corvus Energy, Northern Lights and BAE systems now power Spirit of the Sound, a floating marine education classroom and research vessel. The vessel, a 65‐foot catamaran, will operate in Long Island Sound for The Norwalk Aquarium in Connecticut. The Corvus Energy lithium battery will provide the high-density energy storage for propulsion and house loads. Two 100kw diesel Lugger L1064A generators…

Cvitanovic towing of Belle Chasse, Louisiana has taken delivery of a fourth vessel for its fleet of highly efficient Lugger-style tugs. Built at the Rodriguez yard in Bayou LaBatre, Alabama, the 65 by 26-foot, Andrew C, is slightly smaller than the 67.5 by 26-foot Pere C (2011) and George C (2012). Cummins QSK19-M mains power the two larger vessels. The smaller size permitted the Andrew C to take advantage of a pair of Cummins 355 HP QSM11-M main engines for a total of 710 HP.

Those MarineNews readers who are not familiar with Bob Kunkel probably should be. That’s because Kunkel, President of Alternative Marine Technologies, previously served as the Federal Chairman of the Short Sea Shipping Cooperative Program under the Maritime Administration and Department of Transportation from 2003 until 2008. He is a past Vice President of the Connecticut Maritime Association, a contributing writer for many maritime and technical trades publications, including Maritime Professional Magazine and MarineNews.

The yard recently delivered a Cummins powered 75 by 28-foot model bow tug to Morgan City-based Garber Bros. Inc. and Sea Cypress LLC for Gulf of Mexico operations, inform Cummins Hotips. Cummins explain that over the years, Rodriguez Shipbuilding Inc, of Bayou LaBatre Alabama has probably delivered more shallow-draft tugs than any other US-yard. Their signature lugger-type tug design, with its distinctive aft cabin and wheelhouse, has a strong following amongst US Gulf Coast operators servicing near shore petro-operations.

Shaping a vessel’s design and construction to the its function is the aim of most commercial boat building. Often, the demonstration of success is in how the boat does its job and makes money for the owner, and the definitive proof of good design and construction is defined by the owner’s return to the original yard for a sister ship. Fleet-owner Stan Cvitanovic of Cvitanovic Boat Service, Inc and shipyard owner Joe Rodriguez have demonstrated this once again with the late 2012 delivery of the lugger tug Ana Maria C. A sister ship to the George C delivered earlier in 2012 (Cummins Hotip#656) the boat has the same aft house design on a 67.5 by 26-foot hull.

A new Maritime Aquarium (Norwalk, Conn. USA) research & floating schoolhouse vessel to be fitted with Northern Lights' Hybrid Marine System. Northern Lights Hybrid Marine is an ideal fit for the Maritime Aquarium. Their new 65-foot research vessel – designed by Incat Crowther – will be used throughout Long Island Sound to entertain and inform aquarium patrons. Installing the Hybrid Marine system allows the vessel the clean, reliable propulsion it needs to travel out into the Sound.

Marine NewsWire- Northern Lights, Inc. (NLI), is redefining the traditional engine room with an unmatched hybrid-marine solution. NLI combines its high-performance Lugger propulsion engines with BAE Systems' HybriDrive Propulsion System. The system uses a Propulsion Control System (PCS) to direct power produced from the electric generator for immediate use, or holds it in the Energy Storage System (ESS) to provide clean, quiet power without the engine, while the propulsion motor provides power to the prop. The system can be customized to fit a myriad of marine applications. "The entire package is designed to be clean, quiet and environmentally responsible,"said NLI vice president Mike Maynard.

Northern Lights, Inc. (NLI) is redefining the traditional engine room with an unmatched hybrid-marine solution. NLI combines its high-performance Lugger propulsion engines with BAE Systems’ HybriDrive® Propulsion System. In service in over 3,500 applications worldwide, this is the world’s most successful series hybrid. The system uses a Propulsion Control System (PCS) to efficiently direct power produced from the electric generator for immediate use, or holds it in the Energy Storage System (ESS) to provide clean…

The “Lugger” designation traces back to days when a small handy coastal vessel often carried lug-rigged sails. A modern day lugger, as used on the US Gulf of Mexico coast, is still a handy boat for working in near shore waters. On a version of the tug, designed by and currently finishing up at Rodriguez Boat Builders, a pair of Cummins Tier 2 compliant QSK19-M diesels turning four-blade stainless steel props has replaced the lugsails for propulsion. The 67.5 by 26-foot Pere C. has a molded depth of 8.5 feet.

First Choice Marine Supply announces it now offers launch services in the Port of Charleston, South Carolina. First Choice now handles all scheduling and pricing of launch services including personnel, spares in transit or deck and engine supplies. President Greg Nielsen said, “We are excited about this new expansion. Our company has been supplying services into Charleston for quite some time. Available equipment includes 100 ft by 32 ft ramp barges, lugger tug and crew, and a 125 ton barge mounted crane. Services are naturally available 24/7. First Choice Marine Supply also has offices in Savannah, Georgia, Freeport, Bahamas and Tampa, Florida.

Rodriguez Boat Builders, of Bayou LaBatre, Ala., will deliver one more of their popular lugger tugs to Central Boat Rental of Morgan City, La., at the end October. Designed for the specialized tasks of supporting shallow water oil wells in the Gulf of Mexico they are as much supply boat as tug. Joe Rodriguez explains that the 65 by 24-ft. boat can work in water as shallow as five ft. While it features a model bow for open water work, it is designed to push a supply barge as well as to tow rigs and equipment from place to place. It also can transport liquids with tankage for 9,000 gallons of fuel and 12,000 gallons on potable water. Propulsion for the new boat, the Miss KerriLyn, is provided by a pair of Cummins N14 engines rated for 480 hp each at 1,800 rpm.

While much of the boat building industry on south Louisiana is being driven by the deep-water offshore industry, there is a continuing need to maintain the existing near shore production wells and infrastructure. The market demand in this sector was increased by extensive infrastructure damage by hurricane Katrina. At the end of December Intracoastal Ironworks will deliver the Lauren G, a 1200 hp lugger-type model bow tug to meet the demands of that market niche. To be operated by G.O.L. (Gulf Offshore Logistics) the 72 x 28 vessel has a molded depth of seven feet.

Northern Lights, a manufacturer of marine diesel generator sets, Lugger propulsion engines and land-based diesel generators, will celebrate its 50th Anniversary in 2008. Founded in 1958 as Alaska Marine & Equipment in Cooper Landing, AK, by Harold Walton Johnson, Northern Lights has grown into one of the marine industry’s most respected companies. Starting with a line of industrial generators for Alaskan lodges and off-grid applications, Mr. Johnson’s company soon developed a marinized generator set whose robust design and ease of service became the genset of choice for the region’s demanding commercial fishing industry. The Lugger propulsion engine would follow, utilizing the same core principals of reliable power production, durable build, and simplicity of use and maintenance.

Intracoastal Iron Works, Inc. of Bourg, will deliver another of their popular 72.5 x 28-ft. lugger-type boats this June with one more to follow in September. The boats are powered by a pair of 600 hp Cummins KTA19 main engines turning into Twindisc 5170 gears. Owners of the handy inshore vessel will be G.O.L. (Gulf Offshore Logistics). The 1200 hp tug will have 28 x 32-ft. of clear deck space forward. The model bow is set with a pair of push knees.

Northern Lights, a manufacturer of marine diesel generator sets and Lugger diesel engines, introduced their newest propulsion solution – the L6125H diesel engine, featuring an electronically-controlled high-pressure common-rail (HPCR) fuel system. The L6125H is based on the heavy-duty Komatsu industrial engine block and is custom marinized by the Northern Lights engineering team, whose five decades of experience are well known to mariners across the globe. The L6125H reaches a high output rating of 470 hp at 2300 rpm.