Camarc News

The November edition of Marine News magazine highlighted a selection of the most notable American newbuilds delivered of 2023—from a first-of-its-kind green towboat, to the lead vessel in a series of game-changing ships to train U.S. mariners.Empire StateAs the lead vessel in a series of five new training ships being constructed to serve America's state maritime academies, Empire State is easily one of the most important U.S.-built vessels delivered in recent memory.Built by Philly Shipyard for the U.S.

Seattle shipbuilder Snow & Company on Tuesday launched a new pilot boat it is building for the San Francisco Bar Pilots.The 67-foot-long, all-aluminum vessel Golden Gate was designed by U.K. firm Camarc Design and is capable of speeds up to 30 knots.The vessel is is powered by MAN D2862 LE 438 1,200HP US EPA Tier 4 engines that drive Hamilton HTX52 waterjets through Twin Disc MGX 6599 SC gearboxes. The vessel is also equipped with Northern Lights M944T3F 38kW generators.It has…

Seattle shipbuilder Snow & Company announced it has been awarded a contract to build a pair of 50-foot pilot boats for the Crescent River Port Pilots’ Association, based in Louisiana. Designed by U.K.-based Camarc Design, the all-aluminum vessels have a refined hull with enhanced fuel efficiencies and reduced slamming accelerations, which provide excellent all-around seakeeping capabilities and a pilot specific shape to facilitate safe boarding operations.The vessels will be powered by twin Volvo Penta D13-800 EPA Tier 3 marine diesel engines…

Seattle shipbuilder Snow & Company earlier this month delivered Savannah, the first of two new 64-foot pilot boats for the Savanah Pilots Association. Designed by Camarc Design, the single chine, flush deck 5086 aluminum vessel is the third pilot boat the U.K.-based firm has designed for the Savannah pilots.Savannah is powered by MTU 12V2000M86 marine engines, Hamilton HTX 52 waterjets with electronic AVX controls, ZF 3055 marine gears, and Geislinger Carbon Fiber driveshafts / Silenco couplings.

The Los Angeles Pilot Service has taken delivery of two new pilot boats equipped with full suites of quality Furuno marine electronics. The 56-foot Angels Pilot and Angels Navigator have been outfitted with complete integrated helm suites designed to assist in their mission of piloting ships in and out of Los Angeles Harbor, the busiest seaport in the western hemisphere. The pair of Camarc-designed boats were built by Vigor Industrial in Vancouver, Wash., and have made their way to their homeport in Los Angeles.The helm suites aboard the Angels Pilot and Angels Navigator feature a Furuno black box NavNet TZtouch2 TZT2BB multi function display connected to both 19” and 24” multi-touch displays, the MU195T and MU245T.

The Los Angeles Pilot Service has taken delivery of two customized 56-foot Camarc Design pilot boats built by Vigor Industrial at its Vancouver, Wash. facility, located on the northern side of the Columbia River. The Angels Pilot and Angels Navigator were handed over to the LA Pilot Service at Vigor’s shipyard on Swan Island in Portland, Ore. in early October.Camarc designs are optimized to function in the most extreme climates in the world. The UK firm's pilot boat designs are deployed throughout Europe…

Shipbuilder Vigor said it has been awarded a contract from the Port of Los Angeles to build two 56’ pilot boats.The new vessels, designed by Camarc, will feature a twin chine heavy weather hull form for excellent seakeeping. The design accommodates multiple heavy fender systems facilitating safer pilot transfers in challenging weather. An articulated rescue davit provides man overboard recovery. The overall design also maximizes the available horsepower and performance from a…

Welsh workboat builder Mainstay Marine said it has delivered a newly built 15-meter crew transfer vessel to Scottish tug operator and owner Targe Towing. The Camarc designed vessel is constructed with a steel hull and aluminum superstructure. It sails at speeds in excess of 15 knots and has a bollard pull of 6 metric tons. Compliment is for two crew and 12 passengers. Targe Towing provides dedicated towage for north east Scotland ports including BP’s Hound Point Marine terminal on the Firth of Forth.

U.S. shipbuilder Vigor said it has begun constructing a fifth 45’ Response Boat - Medium C (RB-M C) for its long-time customer, the New York Police Department (NYPD) Harbor Unit. The vessel will be fabricated at Vigor Ballard (formerly Kvichak Marine) in the Seattle metro area with delivery expected in November. It will be the seventh RB-M C built for three different police departments. The RB-M C is the commercial variant of the Response Boat - Medium (RB-M) designed by Vigor in partnership with Camarc Design for high speed and high performance…

Vigor expanded its growing portfolio of international sales with the delivery of two, 19m all-weather pilot boats to The Port of Duqm Company (PDC), SAOC, Sultanate of Oman. The Port has been undergoing a major multiphase expansion and the new pilot boats will play a key role in ensuring the safety of vessels calling on the port. “This is an important delivery for us,” said Keith Whittemore, Vigor Executive Vice President of Business Development. “PDC is a world class, state-of-the-art Port with a major commitment to quality and safety. Designed by Camarc Design, Ltd., UK, and built at Vigor’s Ballard facility (formerly Kvichak Marine), the vessels not only function as pilot boats but also as search and rescue and oil spill recovery vessels.

Kvichak, a Vigor company, delivered a fourth, 45-foot Response Boat - Medium C (RB-M C) to its longtime customer, the New York Police Department Harbor Unit. The Kvichak RB-M C is the commercial variant of the Response Boat - Medium (RB-M), purpose built for the U.S. Coast Guard. To date, 174 RB-Ms have been delivered to the Coast Guard. The vessel was designed by Kvichak in partnership with Camarc Design for high speed and high performance, including tactical handling and specialized mission capabilities, the shipbuilder said.

Marine Core & Charter LLC (MC2) headquartered in Dubai has taken delivery of the new build PETRA-1, the first of two, 45-meter Fast Offshore Support Vessels in a special delivery ceremony held at Dubai Maritime City on February 10, 2016. Built by UAE- based Triangle Shipyard, the new state-of-the-art 45-meter Fast Offshore Support Vessel, designed by U.K. designers Camarc, has a proven hull design and is uniquely built to meet the market demand for an efficient support vessel.

St Brides, the first of three 19-meter pilot boats built by Mainstay Marine for the Port of Milford Haven, has recently been launched. Shipbuilder Mainstay Marine Solutions called the £3.6 million contract a flagship project, with delivery for the second and third vessels due in April and July, respectively. A naming ceremony will be held for all three vessels late July this year. The new pilot boats are an upgraded version of the Picton Pilot Boat built by the company in 2006.

Sanmar Shipyards delivered three more vessels to the Aqaba Port Marine Services Company (APMSCO) for the Sheikh Subah Al Ahmad Al Subah LNG terminal at Aqaba, Jordan. The overall contract comprises four 80-tonne bollard pull specially modified Terminal RAstar 2800 ASD tugs, two conventional twin screw Rascal 1500 line-handling tugs, all designed by Robert Allan Ltd of Canada, and a pilot boat designed by Camarc Ltd in the UK. This latest delivery comprises the second RAstar, Petra 3, a RAscal 1500 line-handling tug, Aldaem,and a 16.7m Pilot boat called Al Sanad.

Kvichak Marine Industries, a Vigor Company, is currently constructing the fourth 44.5-foot Response Boat Medium – C (RB-M C) for the New York Police Department (NYPD) Harbor Unit. The first three vessels were delivered in April 2010, August 2012 and April 2013. The RB-M C’s have been providing maritime security and law enforcement along with search and rescue in the New York metropolitan area. “The RB-M C has proven itself in the most challenging missions,” said Art Parker, Vigor sales manager. These all-aluminum vessels are designed by Camarc Design, U.K.

Three newbuild vessels have been delivered from Sanmar Shipyards to the Aqaba Port Marine Services Company (APMSCO) for the Sheikh Subah Al Ahmad Al Subah LNG terminal at Aqaba, Jordan, the shipbuilder announced. The overall contract comprises four 80-metric-ton bollard pull specially modified Terminal RAstar 2800 ASD tugs, two conventional twin screw Rascal 1500 line-handling tugs, all designed by Robert Allan Ltd. of Canada, and a pilot boat designed by Camarc Ltd in the U.K.

Though the market for Offshore Support Vessels (OSVs) is soft, advances in technology, fit and finish in  the sector is unrivaled in any other maritime niche over the past five years. Here’s a look at some of the more notable designs and deliveries. Few vessels have inspired as much attention or coverage as the Harvey Energy, the first OSV of its kind in North America, able to run on both Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and diesel. Harvey Energy, chartered to Shell for its deepwater operations in the Gulf of Mexico and owned by Harvey Gulf International marine…

Workboat and marine energy device builder Mustang Marine has won a $5.34m contract to construct three new pilot boats for the Port of Milford Haven. The Pembroke Dock-based company is now looking to recruit new workers locally in a number of skilled positions to meet an increased demand for its services, having already increased the size of its workforce to 54 people over the last nine months. The new contact will see Mustang build three 19m pilot boats at its deep-water facility at Pembroke Dock.

UAE-based shipbuilder Triangle Marine Services has laid the keels of two new 45-meter Aluminum Fast Offshore Support Vessels, awarded in November 2014 by UAE-based client Marine Core & Charter LLC. The new builds mark the company’s first shipbuilding project to signify their entry into the offshore market. The ceremony took place at Triangle Marine’s facility in Dubai Maritime City, and was attended by representatives from Triangle Marine, Marine Core & Charter LLC and Camarc Design as well as many representatives from a variety of marine organizations and service providers.

Kvichak Marine Industries  has been awarded a contract for the construction of two 19m all-weather pilot boats for the Port of Duqm Company SAOC, Sultanate of Oman, the company announced today. Designed by Camarc Design, Ltd., UK, the vessels will also function as search and rescue and oil spill recovery vessels. The all-aluminum vessels will be powered by twin Cummins QSK-19 marine diesel engines rated for 800 hp at 2100 rpm each and twin ZF 2000A transmissions driving NiBrAl 5-bladed fixed propellers,  providing an operating speed of ~20 knots.

Kvichak Marine Industries recently delivered Astoria, a self-righting 74’ all-aluminum pilot boat, to the Columbia River Bar Pilots (CRBP) of Astoria, Oregon. Astoria is the third CRBP pilot boat designed by Camarc, Ltd., of the UK and built by Kvichak. The pilots christened Astoria at a ceremony last week where the vessel has joined Columbia, built in 2008. Chinook, built in 2000 is retiring this spring. The pilots operate the vessels over the bar at the mouth of the Columbia River.

Building programs continue, spanning the full range of missions, despite budget concerns. Amidst all the talk of Beltway budget cutbacks and sequestration, the U.S. Coast Guard is quietly investing approximately $30 billion in major acquisition projects to modernize its physical assets. The process of recapitalizing these older and difficult-to-maintain assets has never been an easy task, and the Coast Guard has seen its share of bumps along the way. For example, the initially messy Deepwater debacle initially kicked off what has evolved into today’s more successful recapitalization process, now run by the Coast Guard’s Acquisition Directorate, which stood up in July 2007.

Kvichak Marine Industries, Inc., of Seattle, Wash., recently delivered PV Georgia, a 64' all-aluminum Pilot Boat to the Savannah Pilots Association of Savannah, Ga. Georgia is the second vessel built by Kvichak for the Savannah Pilots. Designed by Camarc Design, U.K., Georgia is powered by twin MTU 12V2000 engines rated for 1,450 BHP each with Hamilton 521 waterjets and ZF 3050 marine gears. Kvichak said this combination allows for excellent maneuverability with a top speed of approximately 35 knots.