Workboats News

On October 31st, 2019, George A. (Sandy) Thomson, the founder of Thordon Bearings and a pioneer in the development of advanced polymer materials, was presented with the 2019 Elmer A. Sperry Award in recognition of “leading the innovation in water-lubricated propeller shaft bearings” in marine transportation through the use of polymeric compounds.The award was presented to Mr. Thomson at the SNAME Maritime Convention, in Tacoma, USA, by the Chairman of the Board of the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMarEST), Mr.

MMS Offshore Renewable Services Ltd has taken delivery of a Fast Crew Supplier (FCS) 2610 from Damen Shipyards Group. The new vessel – to be called MMS Superior – will be deployed in a variety of roles in the offshore renewables, oil & gas and marine civil engineering sectors.MMS Offshore Renewable Services is located on the banks of the River Humber in Hull and Grimsby, UK. The company operates a modern fleet that consists of workboats and multi-purpose wind farm support vessels…

PACC Offshore Services Holdings (POSH), an Asian operator of offshore support vessels, with a diversified fleet servicing offshore oil and gas E&P activities,  said its joint venture, POSH Terasea (PTPL) would be voluntarily liquidated by creditors after it defaulted on a facility with an outstanding amount of around US$27.6 million.POSH said the maximum potential financial impact arising from the liquidation will be up to $42m and no material impact to its operating cash flow is expected.PTPL is 50 percent-owned by POSH and 50 percent-owned by Terasea…

Sea Machines Robotics CEO & President.Michael Gordon Johnson is a marine engineer, an accomplished entrepreneur and sector leader with a primary goal of building progressive and sustainable innovation for modern society. He is the founder of Sea Machines, a Boston-based tech company that is a leading provider of autonomous control and intelligent perception systems for marine vessels. Johnson earned a marine engineering degree from Texas A&M University before starting a career focused on complex projects in offshore oil and gas, marine transportation and salvage.

Singapore-listed operator of offshore support vessels PACC Offshore Services Holdings (POSH) has agreed to acquire the 50 per cent stake held by Sembcorp Marine (SMM) in harbour services provider Pacific Workboats Pte Ltd (PWPL) for over US$679,400 in cash.PWPL is a 50:50 joint venture between POSH and Dolphin Shipping Company, a 100% owned subsidiary of Sembcorp Marine Limited. The 50% stake actually belongs to Dolphin. PWPL offers harbour services in Singapore and across the region.The Acquisition is expected to complete by end 2019…

It just might. And, you’ve got options.The Voyage Data Recorder (VDR) carriage requirements apply to all passenger ships regardless of gross tons or year of build, and to all cargo ships 3000 gross tons or larger built after 2002. A simplified VDR (S-VDR) is allowed on older ships built before 2002. The performance standard was updated in 2014. That said; a full type-approved VDR is not a requirement for inland vessels under 3,000 GT. Nevertheless, a good case to be made for installing a (less costly) data recording device on such vessels…

Volvo Penta gensets are powering the largest electric-hybrid ferry in Sweden. The Tellus ferry operates the 1.8km-wide Gullmarsleden waterway between Uddevalla and Lysekil – one of Sweden’s busy maritime routes. We take a look at the motivations, collaborations, and technology behind this installation.The Tellus ferry was commissioned by the Swedish Transport Administration and built by Baltic Workboats Shipyard – an Estonian company that’s made over 200 workboats and who currently have 30 workboats on order.

During the Seatrade Offshore Marine and Workboats 2019 in Dubai, SCHOTTEL  welcomed Lars Seistrup, Managing Director of Albwardy Damen, to its booth to sign a contract agreement for a full propulsion package for a new type of vessel. The Damen Multibuster 8020 (DMB 8020) is designed with extreme shallow draft for applications such as pipe laying and cable laying works, the upgrading, installation and decommissioning of platforms as well as well stimulation projects.Full propulsion package for reliable DP performanceThe DMB 8020’s tasks require reliable DP performance…

Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) will secure two new workboats by 2022 to boost marine operations at the Port of Cape Town and ensure it is recognized internationally for excellence.The more powerful workboats are expected to improve the port’s ability to maintain marine operations during challenging weather conditions. The engines will be approximately 20% more powerful on the new workboats and the bollard pull will be 80% greater as a result of advanced propeller and rudder designs.The Port of Cape Town presently has two workboats…

Representatives from the U.S. Army and federal and local elected officials joined Vigor for a keel laying ceremony, celebrating the first milestone in the construction of the Army’s next generation landing craft, the Maneuver Support Vessel (Light) or MSV(L).The nearly billion dollar contract to build MSV(L) was awarded to Vigor in October, 2017. The new design, developed in partnership with BMT, improves the capabilities of the current LCM-8 and provides the optimal combination of performance…

ZF Marine Propulsion Systems Miramar, LLC announced that Drew Orvieto has been promoted to the position of Senior Manager, Commercial Fast Craft and Engineering – North America. Orvieto, a 4+ year member of the ZF team first worked with the company as an intern in 2011.Orvieto returned to ZF in 2015 after completing a Master’s degree in engineering, followed by a period as a naval architect at a large American boat builder. Upon his return to ZF, Orvieto took a position as naval architect…

Western Australian boatbuilder Dongara Marine has delivered a second Berkeley Class pilot boat to the port of Fremantle. ‘Genesis’ will join ‘Berkeley’, which has been operating in the port since 2015.Whereas Berkeley is owned by Fremantle Pilots, the 19.4-meter new vessel has been acquired by Harbour Services Australia (HSA) as part of the company’s fleet of 18 workboats ranging from six-meter punts, mooring/lines boats to 21-meter cargo vessels, a crew transfer and dive/survey vessel…

A perennial fixture in our prestigious MN100 edition - MarineNews' annual look at the best 100 individuals and firms in the shallow draft, brown water and workboat sectors - Thordon Bearings has been on the leading edge of environmental improvements for the marine industry for many years. The Case:Thordon has invested heavily in the inland waterway market,  keeping two warehouses well stocked with tailshaft bearings, seals and rudder bearings to ensure quick delivery. The TG100…

The 2019 version of the MarineNews MN100 edition - our annual look at the very best individuals and firms in the shallow draft, brown water and workboat sectors - has come and gone. Anchoring that prestigious list, as always, is R.W. Fernstrum & Company. That's no surprise to MarineNews readers.THE COMPANY:R.W. Fernstrum & Company set the standard in marine heat exchangers over 70 years ago, building a reputation focused on innovation. Today, its commitment is to continual improvement, ensuring customers have quality, reliability, and the latest in cooling technologies.

Named one of this year's MarineNews' prestigious MN100 firms, Elliott Bay Design Group (EBDG) in 2019 expanded to the East Coast by opening an office in New York and teamed with AMD Marine Consulting Designs to be their exclusive North American vessel design representative. EBDG delivers designs that are better to build and better to operate.The Company:EBDG is a full-service, employee-owned company with offices in Seattle, New Orleans, Ketchikan and New York. The firm provides naval architecture…

Derecktor is a diverse boatbuilding organization, with a multitude of yards and long experience building  hundreds of yachts, workboats and military craft. Its shipyards today include:• Robert E. Derecktor: The company headquarters located 25 miles north of Manhattan in Mamaroneck, NY, and the original Derecktor yard. Today, the site remains as the company’s new construction base, and it also provides repair services for a variety of yachts and commercial craft.• Derecktor Robinhood: Located in Riggs Cove…

A modest event designed as a get-together for commercial workboat operators in upstate New York is now celebrating 20 years as a three-day community festival.On September 11, 1999, local resident John Callaghan had an idea to bring in some friends who ran tugs on the Hudson River and NYS Canal System for a quick one-day get together, right at the entrance to the famed Erie Canal. Callaghan, then a tug captain himself for the state canal system, brought in seven tugs and cooked several dozen hot dogs.

Norwegian Electric Systems has signed a contract with the Estonian shipbuilder Baltic Workboats to deliver upgrade of the Diesel Electric Propulsion system onboard the ferry Tõll to battery-hybrid.The ferry operator TS Laevad, a subsidiary of the listed port Company Tallinna Sadam, operates the ferry routes between Western Estonia’s major islands and mainland. The upgraded hybrid-ferry, serving the Virtsu-Kuivastu route, is expected to reduce the consumption of diesel fuel by one fifth as a result of the hybridization project.

Veecraft Marine, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Paramount Maritime Holdings and African-based global aerospace and technology company Paramount Group,  opened its new premises at a ceremony held in Cape Town. Veecraft Marine has manufactured more than 60  maritime platform solutions in various classes since its inception in 2002, totaling more than $130 million of contracts. Leveraging its specialization in the construction of 20 to 30 meter vessels, the company has secured an order book valued at more than $13.5 million.

Dutch marine construction company ST Marine Support christened its newest multi-purpose workboat (Multi Cat) AUXILIA at Damen Shipyards Hardinxveld.The vessel brings the total of Multi Cats in the company’s fleet to three, following the delivery of Multi Cats 3013 ODIN in 2010 and NERO in 2013. AUXILIA is the first of her kind – a Multi Cat 3513.S. T. Marine Support approached Damen for a new Multi Cat with larger deck capacity and greater winch capacity. The contract was signed…

Vattenfall has signed a contract with Windcat Workboats for the provision of crew transfer vessels (CTVs) for the Hollandse Kust Zuid 1&2 offshore wind farm in the Dutch North Sea.Under the agreement, Vattenfall will be one of the first users of Windcat's hydrogen-powered vessels, currently being developed.The IJmuiden-headquartered vessel operator is working with CMB Technologies on the vessel development, which is expected to be completed by the third quarter of 2020.The contract…

Aqua Culture Exhibition, Tuco Marine presents the brand new ProZero 10m Walk - A - Round Workboat. The new vessel complements Tuco's range of ProZero workboats and support vessels. And is dedicated to the Workboat, Crew transfer and Diving markets.The New ProZero 10m walkaround workboat DCW is strategically sized and carefully equipped for passenger transportation and patrol missions in coastal and offshore waters and built on the proven, reliable and extremely seaworthy ProZero hull platform.Like all ProZero vessels…

On 26th July, Damen Shipyards Group and Coastal Workboats Scotland unveiled a new vessel for the aquaculture industry in Oban, Scotland. The unveiling of the new Damen Landing Utility Vessel 1608 took place at the same time as the handover of the first in series, to client Loch Duart.The LUV 1608 is built by Coastal Workboats Scotland to a Damen design that was engineered by Damen design bureau OSD/IMT. The vessel will be able to carry out a wide range of support tasks to the aquaculture industry, including the transportation of people, equipment and feed to offshore fish-farming locations.