Crowley Christens Tug Response

Crowley's latest ship assist and escort tug renamed Response was christened August 2 in Elliott Bay. Deicy Mathur, wife of Anil Mathur, President of the Alaska Tanker Company, LLC, performed the christening ceremony aboard Response. A team of Crowley engineers and architects designed the Response, with input from Crowley's ship assist and escort customer, Alaska Tanker Company; the vessel was constructed by Marco Shipyard in Seattle. Response is a 130 ft. (39.6 m) and 7,200-hp tug able to provide enough indirect force to get most any job done quickly and safely. Response features twin Voith Schneider 32G II/250 cycloidal propellers, powered by two Caterpillar 3608 DITA engines, and a unique high lift and streamlined hull designed to meet the indirect forces and speed requirements of the tankers operating in Puget Sound. The hull is derived from a design for the tug Boxer and was developed by Bukser og Berging, Norway. It is also equipped with full fire fighting capabilities and can carry 2,800 of foam concentrate. Measuring 130 x 46 x 25 ft. (39.3 x 14 x 7.6 m), Response is designed to generate direct bollard pull of 150,000 lbs. and indirect forces in excess of 340,000 lbs. at 12 knots, with an anticipated free running speed of 15 knots. Fitted with a Markey Model DESS-52 High Performance single-drum electric Hawser winch designed specifically for this vessel, Response's winch will hold 1,000 ft. of 10-in. circumference AmSteel Blue high molecular weight polyethylene line with an average strength of more than one million lbs. This main line will be able to be hauled in at pressures of over twice the bollard pull of the boat's engines, a condition that can occur when escorting tankers at high speed.