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Great Lakes Shipyard News

21 Nov 2023

Great Lakes Towing Buys Historic Fireboat

(Photo: The Great Lakes Towing Company)

The Great Lakes Towing Company (GLT) announced it has acquired a 62-year-old fireboat from the city of Cleveland, Ohio.The vessel, Anthony J. Celebrezze, was constructed in 1961 by Paach Marine in Erie, Pa. and was used by the Cleveland Fire Department until it was replaced with a new vessel, Garret A. Morgan, in June 2023 and put up for auction.Auction data shows the vessel was sold on November 14 for just over $41,000, including a 12.5% buyer's premium.GLT said its Great Lakes Shipyard division is very familiar with the Anthony J.

31 Jul 2023

Great Lakes Towing Christens Two New Tugs

(Photo: Great Lakes Towing Company)

The Great Lakes Towing Company on Friday christened two new tugs in Chicago.The vessels, Illinois and Indiana, are part of a series of 10 new Damen 1907 ICE tugs built in Cleveland by Great Lakes Shipyard, a sister company to the Towing Company—both part of The Great Lakes Group.The 64’x24’x11’ tugs are each powered by two 1,000-horsepower MTU 8V4000 Tier III diesel engines, and generate over 30-tons of bollard pull. Their propulsion systems include the Canal-Marine-designed Logan FlexaDrive Hybrid power system…

13 Feb 2023

Miller Boat Line Receives Grant for Ferry Genset Refits

(Photo: Miller Boat Line)

Great Lakes ferry operator Miller Boat Line announced it has received grant funding from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that will help it to reduce diesel emissions from its vessels.The $239,339 grant will cover approximately 40% of the replacement cost for seven (model year 1982-1996) diesel generator sets with Northern Lights model M50T13L generators on four ferries, the Ohio-based company said.The ferry Islander will receive one new genset, and Put-in Bay, William Market and South Bass will each receive two.

02 May 2022

USACE Buffalo Leasing Great Lakes Tug

The tugboat Don Raul, a 74-foot, 2,800 horsepower, twin-screw seagoing tug, built by Great Lakes Shipyard in 2008, at work on the water. (Photo: Great Lakes Towing)

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Buffalo District awarded a $8.4 million contract to Cleveland-based Great Lakes Towing on April 20 for lease of the tugboat Don Raul to serve on the Great Lakes.The boat will primarily be used on Lake Erie between Buffalo, N.Y. and Toledo, Ohio, but may serve all the way to Massena, N.Y., towing the Buffalo District’s repair fleet. The fleet is one of three strategically located across the Great Lakes, providing a flexible, rapid response…

30 Sep 2021

Great Lakes Shipyard Wins $1.9 Million in Government Contracts

(Photo: Great Lakes Shipyard)

Great Lakes Shipyard, a division of The Great Lakes Towing Company, has recently been awarded government contracts amounting to more than $1.9 million.The contracts, which could be valued at nearly $2.5 million if all options are exercised, include haul out, maintenance, and repair work of the following vessels: U.S. Coast Guard: Cutter KATMAI BAY; and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers: Detroit District Floating Plant (Tug DEMOLEN and Crane Barge VELER); and Buffalo District Barge BC6214.Great Lakes Shipyard is a regular provider of maintenance and repair services to the federal government…

14 Sep 2021

USCG Cutter Katmai Bay Enters Great Lakes Shipyard for Repair

(Photo: Great Lakes Shipyard)

United States Coast Guard Cutter Katmai Bay (WTGB-101), homeported in Sault Sainte Marie, Mich., arrived at Great Lakes Shipyard for a drydock, inspection, maintenance and repair contract.The contract includes hull, propulsion and steering system inspections, as well as steel repairs, hull cleaning and painting. The 140-foot Bay-class icebreaking tug was hauled out on Friday, September 3 using the Shipyard’s new 900-ton Marine Travelift.The USCGC Katmai Bay serves throughout the entire Great Lakes system.

09 Sep 2021

It’s European Design, But Built For The Jones Act Market

(Image: Damen)

The Netherlands-based Damen Shipyards Group is one of the industry’s largest and most recognized shipbuilders, perhaps best known for its standardized, serial production workboats. Now with several dozen newbuild and repair yards on the map, the company has produced more than 6,000 vessels over its 90-year history—from harbor tugs and offshore supply ships, to ferries and patrol craft. But Damen does not have a shipyard in the United States, and therefore doesn’t directly build vessels for the Jones Act market. Instead, it licenses its designs to U.S.

24 Dec 2020

Great Lakes Group: Venerable & Versatile

“…We have built our reputation job by job, boat by boat, and tow by tow, and we intend to continue to do so.”The Great Lakes Towing Company (GLT) and the Great Lakes Shipyard are core businesses within The Great Lakes Group of Companies, based in Cleveland, on the Old River, a shipping channel that runs west from where the Cuyahoga River meets Lake Erie. Company towing operations extend from Buffalo, N.Y. in the east to Duluth, Minn. in the west. Great Lakes Towing owns and operates the largest U.S.-flagged tugboat fleet on the Great Lakes, serving more than 35 ports in all eight U.S.

17 Dec 2020

Great Lakes Towing Christens New Tug Pair

(Photo: Paul C. LaMarre III)

The Great Lakes Towing Company and Great Lakes Shipyard christened the newly built tugs Pennsylvania and Wisconsin at the company’s Cleveland facilities on Wednesday.“Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, it is remarkable that the Towing Company has persevered with the successful completion of these two new tugs, despite the adversity the pandemic brought to bear, not only on us, but the industry, not to mention the country and the entire world. The Towing Company, as always, showed its resilience and its resolve to muscle through these difficult conditions…

02 Nov 2020

US Shipyards: Always on the Job Hunt

Gulf Copper & Manufacturing Corp is constantly on the lookout for quality tradesmen. (Photo: Gulf Copper)

American shipyards form an important economic engine, supporting nearly 400,000 jobs, $25.1 billion of labor income and $37.3 billion in gross domestic product (GDP), according to figures from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD).It’s a good thing, then, that U.S. shipyards were deemed essential businesses amid COVID-19 and have remained up and running throughout the pandemic. And it’s even better that most yards have been able to keep their workers employed despite less than stable market conditions…

16 Sep 2020

New Legislation Aims to Boost Great Lakes Icebreaking Capacity

File photo: The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Mackinaw (WLBB-30) breaks ice and maintains Aids to Navigation across the Great Lakes. (U.S. Coast Guard photo)

New legislation introduced by U.S. Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Todd Young (R-Ind.) and Gary Peters (D-Mich.) will codify the U.S. Coast Guard’s icebreaking mission on the Great Lakes and increase the icebreaking capacity of the Great Lakes fleet.The Great Lakes Winter Commerce Act aims to increase Great lakes icebreaking capacity, which the lawmakers say will help the businesses and workers that rely on the maritime industry to transport their goods to market and grow the regional economy.“In recent years…

18 Jun 2020

Great Lakes Shipyard Launches Tug Wisconsin

(Photo: The Great Lakes Group)

The Great Lakes Shipyard on Wednesday launched the new tug Wisconsin, the fifth in a series of 64-foot Damen Stan tug 1907 Ice design harbor tugs that the Cleveland, Ohio shipyard is building for The Great Lakes Towing Company.Wisconsin, like its sister tugs, is powered by two 1,000-horsepower MTU 8V4000 Tier III diesel engines, and generates over 30-tons of bollard pull. Its propulsion system includes the Logan FlexaDrive Hybrid power system, allowing the tug to operate on electric power while at idle…

04 May 2020

Metal Shark Delivers Towboat to FMT

The new towbaot Stephanie Pasentine is the first buily by Metal Shark at its Alabama shipyard acquired from Horizon Shipbuilding in 2018. (Photo: Metal Shark)

Metal Shark announced Monday its Bayou La Batre, Ala. shipyard has delivered its first newbuild, a 120’ x 35’ river towboat for Florida Marine Transporters, Inc. (FMT) of Mandeville, La.The four-decked, welded-steel, USCG Subchapter “M”-compliant towboat Stephanie Pasentine, which bears the distinction of being Louisiana-based Metal Shark’s first-ever steel newbuild and also its first inland towboat, was designed by John W. Gilbert Associates, Inc.The vessel’s twin Cat 3512C marine diesel engines deliver 2…

01 Apr 2020

US Shipyards Forge Ahead Through COVID-19

The 56-foot icebreaking tugboat being built by Blount Boats for N.Y. Power Authority (NYPA). (Photo: Blount Boats)

As the novel coronavirus and its impacts continue to spread across America, U.S. shipbuilders, by and large, continue to build. While most yards have been deemed essential to marine transportation and/or national security and have been able to maintain operations, the situation at and around every shipyard is different, and there are several builders across the country that have had to temporarily suspend activity. In either scenario, it’s far from business as usual for America’s…

16 Mar 2020

Winter Work on the Great Lakes

(Photo: Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding)

Along the 1,600-mile, ice gray arch of the St Lawrence Seaway, the 2020 Great Lakes commercial shipping season will lurch back to life on March 25 when the Soo Locks at Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. reopen.The ceremonial opening signals a passage with passable ice and the 114th Great Lakes season for its fleet of 45 venerable lakers. Most of these huge self-loading freight haulers are at least 50 years old, rust free, and fit; American steel sailing on a freshwater sea.To handle Great Lakes cargo…

24 Jul 2019

Great Lakes Towing Christens Tug Michigan

Great Lakes Towing Company (GLT),  the largest U.S.-flag tugboat company engaged in towing on the Great Lakes, has celebrated its 120th anniversary with the christening of their newest tugboat, the Tug Michigan.The Tug Michigan was christened by vessel sponsor, Carolyn Watkins, Chief, Office of Environmental Education and Administrator, Diesel Emission Reduction Programs for the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.She was instrumental in helping the company secure funding assistance through the EPA’s Diesel Emissions Reduction Grant (DERG) program for the fleet’s new construction program.The newly constructed Tug Michigan is the third in a series of five, 64-foot Damen 1907 ICE design harbor tugs that Great Lakes Shipyard is building for The Great Lakes Towing Company’s operation.

24 Jun 2019

Museum Adds Tug OHIO to Exhibit

Great Lakes Towing Company (GLT), the largest U.S.-flag tugboat company engaged in towing on the Great Lakes,  christened the new Tug OHIO into service and dedicated the historic Tug OHIO as a part of  the National Museum of the Great Lakes.A press release from GLT said that the newly constructed Tug OHIO is the second Damen Stan Tug 1907 ICE design that Great Lakes Shipyard has delivered to The Great Lakes Towing Company. The tug is 64’x24’x11’, powered by two 1,000-hp MTU 8V4000 Tier III diesel engines, and generates over 30-tons of bollard pull. Its compact size and high maneuverability make it ideal for the narrow waterways and low bridges that characterize harbor towing on the Great Lakes…

18 Jun 2018

Great Lakes Group Announces New Management Hires

Thomas Rigolo (Photo: Great Lakes Group)

The Great Lakes Group announced recent new hires to the company’s management team: Thomas Rigolo – Shipyard General Manager; Kirsten Buccigrossi – Director, Marketing & Communications; and Emery Eiber – Quality, Health, Safety, Security, and Environment (QHSSE) Manager.Tom Rigolo is a senior shipbuilding executive with more than 25 years of experience gained from hands-on engineering and high-level leadership roles at several U.S. shipyards. Rigolo is a licensed Professional Engineer…

04 May 2018

Coating Selection Delivers Fleet Uniformity – Even After Touchups

(Photo: courtesy of The Sherwin-Williams Company)

A 10-tug build project leads to federal standard color update for Great Lakes Towing Company.Attention to detail enables uniformity. And when you’re refreshing a renowned tugboat fleet with a 117-year history, you want to ensure a uniform look across all vessels to portray a strong brand image. Doing so means achieving uniform coloring throughout the fleet. It also means having uniform colors on each vessel between dry dockings – such that maintenance coatings don’t stand out…

22 Oct 2018

Metal Shark Open for Business in Alabama

(Photo: Metal Shark)

Metal Shark announced it has secured a contract to build three 120’ x 35’ river towboats for Florida Marine Transporters, Inc. (FMT), signalling the U.S. shipbuilder’s entry into the towboat market.The four-decked, welded-steel, USCG Subchapter “M”-compliant towboats were designed by John W. Gilbert Associates, Inc. and will be powered by twin Cat 3512C Tier 3 marine diesel engines rated at 1,911 HP each. Construction is underway at Metal Shark Alabama, with deliveries commencing in 2019.With the FMT contract…

24 Jul 2018

SPECIAL REPORT: GREAT LAKES BUSINESS and The Great Lakes Group

Embracing and spanning the full breadth of Great Lakes geography and business mix, GLG’s Joe Starck has his multi-missioned firm looking to the future – in more ways than one.The Great Lakes Group (GLG) takes its beginnings from its 1899 incorporation by industrial icon John D. Rockefeller, who formed the Great Lakes Towing to satisfy the demands of a Midwest industrial revolution that brought bigger ships to the region. Existing vessels, unable to keep up with demand, were supplemented and replaced by a fleet of as many as 100 tugboats; the first steel tugs in the region. GLG still has a tug that was part of that original operation.

29 Dec 2017

Best Workboats of 2017

Marine News showcases the best of North America’s 2017 workboat deliveries. There is something for everyone. Notwithstanding the lingering offshore energy downturn, there were plenty of bright spots for North American shipyards in 2017. If a hull was delivered in 2017, we took a look at it, with several areas as a focus for inclusion into this edition. For starters, it is always exciting when a domestic yard delivers a vessel – or multiple vessels, for that matter – to foreign buyers. We can compete in a foreign arena; on price, quality and on-time delivery. This year was no different. No less important is the environmental footprint of a vessel, and there was plenty to report on from that angle in the past 12 months. The domestic waterfront is indeed getting greener and cleaner.

04 Jan 2018

Great Lakes Towing, Shipyard to Hire 100

(Photo: The Great Lakes Group)

The Great Lakes Towing Company and Great Lakes Shipyard have announced plans to hire 100 employees before the end of January 2018 to support continued growth driven by client demand. The company said it is seeking candidates to fill a wide range of positions, including shipyard welders, shipfitters and more. “At The Towing Company, we’re looking for great people to join our team,” said Joe Starck, the company’s president. Located in Cleveland, Ohio, The Towing Company is the owner and operator of the largest fleet of shipdocking tugboats on the U.S. Great Lakes-Saint Lawrence River Seaway.