Dock Co News

MMS Workboats, a division of U.K.-based MMS Ship Repair & Dry Dock Co Ltd. (MMS), has launched a cutting-edge plastic and debris collection vessel: the Envirocat All-Electric Eco 8.5.Designed to make waterways cleaner and support sustainable industries such as fish farming and aquaculture, the 8.5 meter vessel can be operated by a single user, enabling efficient, cost effective and environmentally friendly clearance of plastic and flotsam from the water’s surface.The vessel, developed in conjunction with naval architecture firm Rockabill Marine Design…

A new crew transfer vessel (CTV) for the Ishikari Bay New Port offshore wind farm in Hokkaido Prefecture arrived in Japan from Singapore on April 19, Japan's NYK has informed. The vessel is named “Rera As.”After completing its sea trials, the vessel was delivered in Singapore and transported to Honmoku Pier in Yokohama port by Kifune, a heavy-lift carrier operated by NYK Bulk & Projects Carriers Ltd. After being discharged, the crew transfer vessel was towed to the Oppama factory of Keihin Dock Co. Ltd.

Electrical systems integrator Alewijnse has delivered its newest dredge control solutions to Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co, the largest provider of dredging services in the U.S.The systems were installed on board the Liberty Island, a large trailing suction hopper dredger, which was deployed immediately after completion for a beach replenishment project in Buxton, N.C."Our proven systems for suction tube monitoring and hopper loading deliver maximum added value to our customers," said Johan van Rikxoort, solutions manager at Alewijnse.

Houston-based dredging contractor Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Co. has been awarded a contract from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to perform dredging near New York's Fire Island.Great Lakes was the sole bidder for $24,498,050 firm-fixed-price contract for construction of the Fire Island Inlet to Montauk Point dredging Moriches and Shinnecock Inlets.Work will be performed in Bay Shore, N.Y., with an estimated completion date of March 17, 2023.

NYK finalized a contract with Keihin Dock Co., Ltd., an NYK Group company, to modify a tugboat to ammonia-fuel specifications. Sakigake, a tugboat currently fueled by liquefied natural gas (LNG) and operated in Tokyo Bay by NYK Group company Shin-Nippon Kaiyosha Corporation will be converted to operate on ammonia fuel by a target completion year of 2024.This R&D was initiated in October 2021 by NYK and IHI Power Systems Co., Ltd.

In 1875, the General Moultrie was the first suction dredge built in the United States and was used in the Charleston River — until it sank within a year. During the same era, the city of Houston and other port towns formed companies like the Buffalo Bayou Ship Channel Company to build special-purpose vessels to clear and connect waterways for commercial vessel traffic. Toward the end of the 19th century, the cutter suction dredge made its appearance and effectively dug and maintained water channels.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co. announced Thursday it is moving its corporate headquarters to Houston, positioning the nation’s largest dredging services provider nearer to major regional projects and opportunities. The firm will also open regional offices in Jacksonville, Fla., and Staten Island, N.Y.The move to Houston from from Oak Brook, Ill., which stems in part from changing industry dynamics, places the company closer to key regional customers and new markets, especially along the Gulf Coast and the Mississippi River…

Finland's Wärtsilä reports it has won a contract for the delivery and integration engineering of two retractable thrusters and a dynamic positioning (DP) system for the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) icebreaker CCGS Amundsen.Wärtsilä, which booked the order in July, said it was able to meet the CCG’s requirements to fit the equipment in the existing space of the 98-meter-long Arctic Class 3 Medium Icebreaker, the only vessel in its class to be fitted with retractable thrusters and DP. The new thrusters will be integrated with the existing bow thruster, which is also a Wärtsilä product.

As the marine industry works to find the ‘fuel of the future’ to address increasingly stringent emission regulations, an interesting development from a trio of marine powers in Japan seeks to develop the world’s first ammonia-fueled tugboat. The joint research and development agreement was signed by NYK, IHI Power Systems Co., Ltd., and ClassNK recently to put the world's first ammonia-fueled tugboat into practical use.With the entry into force of the Paris Agreement in 2016, global momentum for decarbonization has increased…

Several companies within Japan's NYK Group have partnered to test the remote navigation of a tugboat in Tokyo Bay.The tugboat, operated by NYK's Shin-Nippon Kaiyosha Corporation, was equipped with a manned remotely controlled system and put to the test by NYK and its group companies MTI Co. Ltd., Keihin Dock Co. Ltd., and Japan Marine Science Inc. (JMS).During the trials, the tug was operated remotely from an operation center in the city of Nishinomiya, approximately 400 kilometers away.

Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK) and NYK Group companies MTI Co. Ltd., Keihin Dock Co. Ltd., and Japan Marine Science Inc. (JMS) have been selected by Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transportation and Tourism (MLIT) to participate in a demonstration project utilizing ship maneuvering support functions and remote control.By 2025, Japan is seeking to begin demonstrations for the practical implementation of autonomous ships.With the aim to pursue efficient, safe operations and reduce officer workload, NYK and NYK Group companies MTI and JMS have been using advanced technology to develop an automated ship, including a study on collision risk judgement and the autonomous operation of vessels…

ClassNK issued EGCSR-F (Exhaust Gas Cleaning System Ready Full) notations to nine ships operated by Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd., meaning that the ship fulfills requirement for SOx scrubber retrofitting. Following discussions on the implementation schedule of MARPOL Annex VI SOX/PM regulations at MEPC70 in October last year, all ships operating outside Emission Control Areas (ECA) will be required to limit sulfur emission levels to under 0.50% from 1 January 2020. In order to enable the safe and secure retrofitting of SOx scrubbers as part of efforts to meet the incoming SOx emission limits…

Japan's first LNG-fueled ship, Sakigake, which is a tugboat owned by NYK has been recognized with a Technology Special Award at the 2015 Ship of the Year Awards sponsored by the Japan Society of Naval Architects and Ocean Engineers (JASNAOE). An awards ceremony was held on July 7 at the Kaiun Club in Tokyo. This is the 26th year that JASNAOE has recognized the most technically advanced, well-designed, and socially conscious vessels built in Japan, and Sakigake was noted by manufacturers and related organizations for the tugboat’s environmental performance, design, and technological developments. And this is not the first time for the NYK Group to be honored.

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd. announced that it has entered into a joint study to equip in-service vessels with SOX scrubber system, to ensure compliance with upcoming international environmental regulations. The scrubbers eliminate sulfur dioxide (SOX) from exhaust gas, allowing vessels to meet international treaty standards for SOX emissions without using low-sulfur fuel. Also participating in the project are Nippon Kaiji Kyokai, Minaminippon Shipbuilding Co. Ltd. , Sanwa Dock Co. Ltd., and Wärtsilä Japan Ltd. The companies plan to address the SOX emissions issue in advance of a revised international treaty that places stronger restrictions on exhaust emissions from vessels.

NYK Line has taken delivery of Japan’s first liquefied natural gas (LNG)-fueled tugboat from Keihin Dock. "The new tug, named Sakigake, was delivered by Keihin Dock Co. Ltd and is expected confirm the viability of LNG as a marine fuel and to help cultivate a new business field in the area of LNG as an environment-friendly marine fuel,” says NYK. Sakigake has been chartered to Wing Maritime Service Corporation from NYK, and will be operated mainly at the ports of Yokohama and Kawasaki. This vessel is the second environment-friendly tugboat operated by Wing Maritime Service Corporation, following the delivery of Tsubasa in March 2013. The new tug is equipped with dual-fuel engines that can use either of LNG and diesel oil, depending on conditions.

Classification society ClassNK has granted approval to the design of the new 28AHX-DF dual-fuel engine developed by Niigata Power Systems Co., Ltd. The new engine is slated to be used as the main engine on a new LNG-fuelled tugboat being built by Keihin Dock Co., Ltd. for NYK Line. The vessel will be Japan’s first LNG fuelled vessel, excluding LNG carriers. New regulations for Emission Control Areas (ECA), including new stricter limits on sulfur emissions as well as the IMO’s Tier III NOx emission limits, are driving demand for new engine and emission control technologies.

Marcon International, Inc. of Coupeville, Washington, says it has sold the U.S. flag ocean-going twin screw tug "Melvin E. Lemmerhirt" to U.S. buyers on a private & confidential basis. The 3,900BHP tug was built in 1973 for Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co. as one of the company's largest tugs by Southern Shipbuilding of Slidell, Louisianaas Hull No. 102. Southern Ship always had a reputation of building fine tugs, building their first in 1903. The shipyard was originally established by Fritz Salmen in the 1880s, becoming Slidell Shipbuilding in 1914 and Canulette Shipbuilding in 1919. After passing through several hands, it was renamed Southern Shipbuilding in 1957. The yard was eventually closed and the site razed in 1993.

Along the way, ATBs gain speed, efficiency, safety – and popularity. Operators of articulated tugs and barges, or ATBs, say they like the maneuverability, weather reliability, stability, speed of these units, and the manner in which the tug pushes the barge. As a marine transportation concept, they can also simply be described as versatile. ATBs move petroleum, chemicals, coal, grain, containerized cargo and rail cars for customers on the U.S. coasts, rivers, the Great Lakes and overseas. As a result, demand for articulated units expanded in the last two decades with new technology.

Contracts have been awarded by the U.S. Department of Defense to Great Lakes Dredge & Dock, NASSCO-Mayport, Timken Gears & Services Inc., and Colonna's Shipyard, Inc. Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co., Oak Brook, Illinois, was awarded a $25,376,872 firm-fixed-price contract for dredging the main channel of the Delaware River. Work will be performed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with an estimated completion date of March 31, 2015. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the contracting activity. Earl Industries L.L.C. doing business as NASSCO-Mayport, Jacksonville, Florida, is being awarded a not-to-exceed $23,238,392 undefinitized contract action for continuous maintenance availability to include structural damage and aluminum welding onboard USS Hue City (CG 66).

The Department of Defense has awarded a US Army Corps of Engineers contract to Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co. Ltd. (GLDD) for maintenance and associated dredging services for the U.S. Naval Station Kings Bay. The $8,030,480 firm-fixed-price, non-option eligible, non-multi-year contract will be carried out at Fernandina, Fla. and St. Mary's, Ga. with funding from fiscal 2013 military construction funds. This contract was a competitive acquisition via the web with two bids received. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers –Jacksonville District, Jacksonville, Fla. is the contracting activity (W912EP-13-C-0023).

Oman Dry-Dock Co eyes $20 million annual revenue by year 2020 Oman Dry-Dock Co (ODC), which owns and manages the Sultanate's newly operational ship repair yard at Duqm, has said it is eyeing annual revenues of around $200 million by the year 2020, Oman Daily Observer has reported. Over the past 12 months, the yard had successfully dry-docked, repaired and maintained a total of 76 ships across all classification types and sizes. The yard's two huge graving docks can accommodate the world's largest vessels of up to 600,000 dwt, and as many as 10 ships of different sizes can be repaired at once at the two docks.

BAE Systems Southeast Shipyards Alabama wins Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co. The announcement came at the christening of the American Phoenix, a 616-foot-long, 105-foot-wide chemical tanker that BAE built for owner Mid-Ocean Tanker Company LLC of South Norwalk, Conn., a joint venture between private equity firm Alterna Capital Partners and Mid-Ocean Marine, a shipping company also based in South Norwalk. BAE Systems said the shipyard has picked up a contract from Illinois-based Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co., to build two dump scows, a project that is expected to add about 125 workers to the company's Mobile shipyard. Vic Rhoades…

Ocean Tug & Barge Engineering Corp. will design the tug portion of a new AT/B dredge to be built at Signal International, in Orange, TX, for Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co. The “RAPID” Class AT/B’s high speed parent form lines for both the tug and the barge were developed by OT&BE and Taisei Engineering, of Tokyo. MARIN is adapting the lines to the specific dredge requirements and engaging in the associated optimization. The design feathers near-ship speeds with ship-like horsepower and is a great advance in AT/B design. Container AT/B’s under design with the same hulls will be capable of 16+ knots at near-ship HP levels. OT&BE will also design the supporting structure in the notch area of the barge to accept the Articouple connection system that will be used to connect the tug and barge.