Duclos Corporation News

Financial support from federal and state agencies helped Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation, in undertaking capital projects that have made its shipyard operations more efficient and safer.With a Small Shipyard Grant from the U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD), the yard replaced heavy bi-fold doors on its 12,000 square foot Walker St. facility. It took two cranes and as many as six employees to open the doors, explained Peter Duclos, shipyard co-president and director of business development.

Boston Harbor's MV Outward Bound has returned to Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation for a mid-life refit. Redelivery is planned for spring 2026. Purpose-designed by JW Gilbert Associates and built by the Somerset, Mass., shipyard in 1995, the 64-foot, 140-passenger steel vessel carries visitors and supplies seasonally to Cathleen Stone Island Outward Bound, which offers experiential outdoor programs for youth and adults on the island in Boston Harbor.Along with installing a new shaft and propeller…

The Association of Maryland Pilots has taken delivery of its fifth Chesapeake Class launch from Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation since 2002. “The Maryland Pilots have some unique features and configuration control is essential to be sure their operators can seamlessly operate all the boats in their fleet. However, this must be balanced with new equipment and design updates, as well as, in some cases, retrofitting their existing boats. To make this happen over the span of 20 plus years requires a very high level of detail in the design and its execution…

For Peter Duclos, shipbuilding has always been personal.As President and Director of Business Development at Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation, Duclos represents the third generation of his family to lead the Somerset, Massachusetts, shipyard. “I’ve been involved with our family’s 70-year-old company my whole life,” he said. “From dinner table conversations to summer jobs, and now as President.”Armed with a mechanical engineering degree from the University of Massachusetts and a U.S.

Delta Launch Services, a launch company operating on the Mississippi River, ordered a pair of new class of pilot boats from Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation. The Venice Class launches follow a long history of six larger pilot boats built for the Delta Launch Services by the Somerset, Mass., shipyard. Delivery is scheduled for 2027.The custom 44-footer is based on the shipyard’s Resilient class; the design is optimized for performing launch services on the Mississippi River. “The lower Mississippi can be a harsh operating environment.

Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation has delivered a repowered pilot boat, after 10 years of continuous service for the port of Charleston, to the Charleston Branch Pilots. The all-aluminum vessel was also outfitted with a Seakeeper 40 gyro stabilizer.The 65’ Fort Ripley was designed by Ray Hunt Design and Gladding-Hearn and built by the Somerset, Mass., shipyard in 2014. With a top speed of 28 knots, it was the first commercial vessel in the United States powered by Volvo Penta IPS drives with twin forward-facing…

The Virginia Pilot Association has taken delivery of a new high-speed, pilot boat from Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation. It’s the Virginia pilots’ tenth launch built by the Somerset, Mass., shipyard since 1983.The all-aluminum launch is designed and outfitted for the Pilot’s Hampton Roads harbor station. An all-new, shallow-V hull by Ray Hunt Design was created to optimize speed with a low wake while maintaining seakeeping and boarding performance. It displaces about 2,000 pounds less than a similar sized offshore pilot boat.

Seakeeper’s motion control technology can improve the performance of even the most impressive of workboats. Partnering with Seakeeper and Gladding-Hearn, the Charleston Pilots did just that, once again setting the bar for excellence.On a beautiful Autumn afternoon in Charleston, SC, way back in 2014, MarineNews had the good fortune to attend the christening on the nation’s first dual purpose, rapid response vessel and pilot launch. As the first vessel to be designed for offshore salvage and firefighting requirements…

To start, will you please share your personal journey in the shipbuilding industry and what led you to your current role?Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding Inc. was started by Preston Gladding and Richard Hearn in mid-1955. My father, George Duclos, joined them as a minority partner in late 1955, and for $900 owned 20% of the company. Fast forward to 1984, my parents bought out the Gladding and Hearn families and formed Duclos Corporation. Gladding-Hearn was kept as a d/b/a trade name. My brother John joined the company in 1984 with a naval architecture degree from University of Michigan.

Patriot Offshore Maritime Services NY, a subsidiary of Lake Success, N.Y. based Liberty Green Logistics, announced it has been awarded a 10-year contract to provide crew transfer vessel (CTV) services for Empire Offshore Wind LLC.Patriot Offshore's new CTV will service Equinor’s New York offshore wind farm during the construction and O&M phases of the project. The Jones Act qualified CTV will be constructed in a U.S. shipyard and will commence operations in 2026.The 29.5-meter newbuild CTV will be Patriot Offshore's second…

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…

Incat Crowther has been commissioned by Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation to design a new 300-passenger, high-speed catamaran for US operator Yankee Freedom.The new vessel, Yankee Freedom IV, will replace the 250-passenger Yankee Freedom III, which was also designed by Incat Crowther. Like its predecessor, Yankee Freedom IV will provide service on the 70-mile route between Key West in Florida and the Dry Tortugas National Park.The commissioning of Yankee Freedom IV reinforces Incat Crowther’s position as one of the most trusted passenger ferry designers in North America.

Key West, Fla.-based Yankee Freedom has ordered a new 300-passenger, high-speed catamaran from Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation for passenger service between Key West and the Dry Tortugas National Park. The new vessel will replace Yankee Freedom III, a 250-passenger catamaran built for the 70-mile run by the Mass.-based shipyard in 2012. Delivery of Yankee Freedom IV is planned for 2026.The new larger vessel, designed by Incat Crowther, retains the strong brand presence Yankee Freedom has established with tourists to the national park, said company officials.

The Alabama Pilot, Inc. in Mobile, Ala., has taken delivery of its second Chesapeake Class high-speed pilot boat, Mobile Pilot, from Somerset, Mass. shipbuilder Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation. Delivery of its first Chesapeake launch, Dixey, was in 2017.With a length overall of 53.6’, a beam of 17.8’, and a draft of 4.6’, the new all-aluminum pilot boat, features the Ray Hunt Design deep-V hull. It is powered by twin Caterpillar C-18 diesel engines, each delivering 671Bhp at 2100 rpm and a top speed of 27 knots.

Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation, has delivered a Chesapeake Class pilot boat to the Bermuda Government, Department of Marine and Port Services. It follows delivery of a 61’ pilot/rescue vessel to the port services in 2011.The new all-aluminum launch is certified to Lloyd’s Register class and replaces a 10-knot steel pilot boat built by the Somerset, Mass. shipyard in 1980. With a deep-V hull designed by Ray Hunt Design, the new boat measures 52.11’ overall, with a 15.10’ beam and a 4.8’ draft.

The Association of Maryland Pilots has ordered a new pilot boat from Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation. The high-speed vessel is a sistership to its first Baltimore Class launch, delivered less than two years ago. Delivery is scheduled for 2024. With a length overall of 48.5’, beam of 15.6’, and draft of 4’, the all-aluminum pilot boat features the Ray Hunt Design deep V hull. It will be powered by twin Volvo Penta D13, EPA Tier 3-compliant diesel engines, each delivering 600 hp at 1,900 rpm with a top speed of 30 knots.

Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation, announced it has received an order from the St. Johns Bar Pilots for a new high-speed launch.The newbuild, to be based on the Somerset, Mass. shipbuilder's 40-foot Resilient Class pilot boat introduced in 2005, is scheduled to be delivered to the Florida-based pilots in mid-2024—the pilots’ fourth Gladding-Hearn pilot boat since 1962.Designed by Ray Hunt Design, the all-aluminum launch measures 35 feet overall. It has a 13-foot beam, including the foam collar, and a 3-foot draft.

The Association of Maryland Pilots has ordered its fifth Chesapeake Class launch from Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation. Delivery is scheduled for early 2024.With a deep-V hull designed by Ray Hunt Design, the new all-aluminum launch measures 52.6’ overall, with a 16.8’ beam and a 4.8’ draft. Powered by twin Volvo Penta D16, EPA Tier 3-certified diesel engines, each producing 641 Bhp at 1800 rpm; the vessel’s top speed is expected to reach over 26 knots. A Humphree interceptor trim control system, with its Automatic Trim Optimization, will be installed at the transom.

The Government of Bermuda’s Marine and Port Services has chosen Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation, to undertake a major refit of the 700-passenger ferry Bermudian. Built in 1988, the 118’ steel vessel completed the 635-mile crossing of the North Atlantic, arriving at the Somerset, Mass. shipyard, this week. With engineering and project management by Gladding-Hearn and Propulsion Data Services, and Class oversight by Lloyd’s Register, the refit is scheduled for completion in mid-2023.Among the myriad items to be removed…

The Galveston-Texas City Pilots has taken delivery of its fourth pilot boat from Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation. The new launch is equipped with a Seakeeper 30HD stabilizing gyro, which, according to shipyard officials, will reduce up to 80% the vessel’s roll.With a length overall of 73.2’, beam of 23.3’ and draft of 5.9’, the all-aluminum, high-speed pilot boat features the Ray Hunt Design deep-V hull. It is powered by three Volvo Penta D13, EPA Tier 3 marine diesel engines, each delivering 800 Bhp at 2,300 rpm, and integral to the engines’ triple IPS-Pod 1050 system.

Somerset, Mass. shipbuilder Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation informs it has secured another pilot boat order from the Pilots’ Association of the Bay and River Delaware. The vessel will be the pilots’ association’s fourth Chesapeake Class launch and 11th pilot boat built by Gladding-Hearn since 1957. Delivery of the new pilot boat is scheduled for 2024.With a deep-V hull designed by Ray Hunt Design, the new all-aluminum launch measures 53.6’ overall, with a 17.8’ beam and a 4.9’ draft.

Somerset, Mass. shipbuilder Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation, said it has delivered by road transport a new pilot boat to the Lake Pilots in Port Huron, Mich. The Resilient Class high-speed launch Huron Pride is the pilots’ third boat built by the Somerset-Mass. shipyard since 1979.Designed by Ray Hunt Design, the jet-driven, all-aluminum launch measures 42.5 feet overall. It has a 14-foot beam and a shoal 2.5-foot draft. The deep-V hull features a steep 24-degree dead-rise at the transom that increases to a very fine entry forward.

The Alabama Pilot, Inc. in Mobile, Ala., has ordered its second Chesapeake Class high-speed pilot boat from Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation. Delivery of the new 53-footer is set for mid-2023. Delivery of its first Chesapeake launch, Dixey, was in 2017.With a length overall of 53.6’, a beam of 17.8’, and a draft of 4.6’, the all-aluminum pilot boat features the Ray Hunt Design deep-V hull. It will be powered by twin Caterpillar C-18 diesel engines, each delivering 671Bhp at 2100 rpm and a top speed of 25 knots.