Workboats News

The Town of Hempstead Harbormaster on Long Island recently took delivery of the first Stormer Marine workboat built under a license agreement by SAFE Boats International. The 6.8-meter Porter 68S, delivered in late January, was recently put into service in the waters around the Town of Hempstead.Through this Jones Act-compliant licensing agreement between U.S.-based SAFE Boats International and the Netherlands-based Stormer Marine, SAFE Boats can now offer the full line of Stormer workboats to U.S.

Boston-based Sea Machines Robotics revealed on Wednesday that its SM200 wireless helm system has been installed and is being used aboard two sister U.S.-flag articulated tug-barge (ATB) tugboats.Sea Machines said its dealer Rio Controls & Hydraulics, of Houston, managed the installations and technology integrations at a U.S. Gulf of Mexico shipyard. In the coming months, Rio and Sea Machines will continue to work together to install additional SM200 systems on at least five more ATB tugboats by the same owner.Sea Machines’ wireless helm system introduces flexible control for mariners…

Singaporean shipbuilder Penguin said it has delivered Singapore’s first hybrid-powered pilot boat.Built, owned and operated by Penguin, the 15-meter vessel Penguin Tenaga is certified by Bureau Veritas with a "ZE" (zero emission) class notation and is capable of running in pure electric mode at 5 knots for more than 30 minutes. In conventional diesel mode, the vessel can reach a maximum speed of 24 knots.In addition, solar panels installed on the roof of Penguin Tenaga generate…

Satellite communications services provider Intelsat on Wednesday released a smaller antenna class for its FlexMaritime high-throughput satellite (HTS) service geared for leisure, fishing and commercial maritime vessels globally.The new maritime mobility solution enabled by the 45cm antenna is designed to bring a new level of broadband connectivity performance and affordability for fishing, leisure, tugs and other workboats, as well as smaller or coastal merchant ships, Intelsat said.Small enough to hand carry aboard vessels…

It’s no secret that the U.S. offshore wind sector is finally about to burst into action after years of behind-the-scenes movement. With a new administration set to bolster the favorable political headwinds for the sector, establishing a strong domestic supply chain will be critical as the industry scales up.Offshore wind farm operators will need high-quality vessels ready to go, and crew transfer vessels (CTV) are vital when constructing and servicing new assets. Concurrently…

In just over a week Hydrex diver/technicians traveled to Finland, Germany, the Netherlands and France to assist shipowners with damaged propeller blades. On two bulkers the blades were cropped while on a third bulker and a general cargo vessel the bent blades could be straightened.In all cases the best solution was offered to the customer to restore the propeller’s efficiency as close to the original condition as possible.One of the propeller blades of a 180-meter bulker was severely bent. A fast, on-site solution to restore the propeller’s balance and efficiency was needed.

One of South America’s leading push boat operators is on its way to completing a fleet-wide retrofit to Thordon’s water lubricated tailshaft and rudder bearings.In 2014, Argentinian owner Atria Logistics UABL, which operates a fleet of workboats on the Paraná River, installed Thordon’s RiverTough tailshaft bearings to its first push boat, the 135-foot-long Concepcion. In 2020, six more vessels in the company’s 26-strong fleet were converted.Egnard Bernal, Thordon Bearing’s Business Development Manager…

U.S. shipbuilder All American Marine (AAM) has been sold to family-owned Bryton Marine Group, the company announced on Friday.The aluminum vessel designer and builder will continue to operate in Bellingham, Wash. Bryton CEO Byron Bolton will assume the role of AAM CEO, and AAM's former CEO and owner Matt Mullett will serve in an advisory role. Ron Wille, AAM’s president, together with his management team will lead the business. AAM’s workforce and 57,000-square-foot facility will remain.All American Marine…

NIBC Bank, Damen Ship Lease and Damen Financial Services on Friday sealed multi-year partnership in the field of ship leasing.The financing from NIBC will be used to enable financial or operational lease solutions for customers of Damen Shipyards Group. This concerns state-of-the-art workboats in offshore energy, including wind and oil and gas, as well as tugs for port activities and other tasks. These leases are offered by one of the funds of the Damen Ship Lease Cooperative…

Sea Ranger Service, the Netherlands-based company that has been carrying out surveying and research tasks in the North Sea with emissions-free sailing offshore work vessels since 2018, has appointed Christel Pullens as its new managing director effective March 1, 2021.A WISTA board member with nearly 25 years of technical and commercial experience in shipbuilding and offshore, including as senior sales manager projects at Dockwise (now Boskalis), head of sales and marketing at Damen Shiprepair & Conversion and global sales and marketing director at Alewijnse…

U.K.-based equipment and engines manufacturer Rolls-Royce said it has received U.S. EPA Tier 4 certification for its mtu propulsion systems based on its Series 4000 M65L 16-cylinder diesel engines.EPA Tier 4 regulations are considered the most stringent emissions standard for marine applications, requiring the propulsion system to have very low particulate and nitrogen oxide emissions throughout its lifecycle."This means we have climbed to the king's class of emissions regulations with our engines for yachts and commercial vessels…

Autoship Systems Corporation (ASC) supplied Boksa Marine Design (BMD) with its latest Autohydro 6.10, offering yet more features and tools leading to new efficiencies for calculating hydrostatic parameters, stability and longitudinal strength. BMD, a naval architecture and marine engineering firm located in Lithia, Fla., has designed and engineered more than 600 completed projects up to 740-feet for over 50 clients since 2003, including leading shipyards.Specializing in full-scale…

A new company called Nicola Offshore specializing in marine survey campaigns and on-demand missions has started operations from its headquarters in Hamburg, Germany on Monday.According to the company's press statement, Nicola Offshore was established to service the more complex and specialist aspects of marine surveying, including underwater object detection, unexploded ordnance (UXO), and subsea cable investigations, as well as pre- and post-dredging reports. The company is a joint venture between Nicola Engineering GmbH…

U.K.-based equipment supplier Outreach Offshore Ltd announced Cedar Marine Ltd and Engineered Marine Systems Ltd will join its network of dealers offering PALFINGER Marine products.Engineered Marine Systems (EMS) specializes in the design, supply and integration of marine systems and products across multiple sectors in the industry including workboats, ferries, superyachts and expedition vessels, while Cedar Marine provides survey, technical and commercial support services for clients with a focus on future sustainability within the broad marine sector. Both companies are based in the U.K.

CWind, a provider of project services and crew transfer vessels (CTV) to the offshore wind industry, reports it has completed the sale of its CTV Endeavour to Wood Marine, a port services operator based in Suffolk, U.K.According to CWind, part of the Global Marine Group (GMG), the sale the 18.5-meter catamaran with a maximum speed of 27 knots, is part of the company’s plan to remodel its CTV fleet.“We continuously review the composition of our fleet of over 20 CTVs, to actively divest tonnage and upgrade our fleet to suit market requirements.” Joshua Brennan, operations director at CWind.

Unique collaboration on green fuels, new propulsion technology and hull-form optimization in the workboat sector will lay the foundation for global emissions reduction efforts.The workboat sector, comprising one of the strongest categories of the UK’s Ship Register and including many Small to Medium size Enterprises (SMEs), is leading the charge in developing innovative technologies that will ultimately reduce emissions throughout the wider maritime industry. This is according to the Workboat Association (WA)…

Intellian announced the v45C, the smallest antenna the company has yet developed for the maritime satellite communications market. The C in the product name represents its compact form factor: this new 45cm unit will bring VSAT to new markets where there is limited space available for communications equipment, such as workboats, leisure craft, fishing boats, small commercial and government vessels.Intellian's recent launches have focused on enhancing user experience and capabilities with smaller VSAT solutions; first with the 60cm v60E antenna launched last year, and now the v45C.

ZF launched its new ZF AT 80 thruster model range today via the SMM Digital maritime trade fair. The range is available as a 360-degree steerable thruster and as a retractable propulsion system, or as a bow thruster, effectively broadening its appeal among ship owners, shipbuilders and naval architects."With this model range, we have created a new generation of environmentally friendly, powerful and efficient propulsion solutions. This way, naval architects, shipyards and fleet…

Polish shipbuilder Remontowa Shipbuilding said it recently delivered the fourth in a series of six tugboats for the Polish Navy.The vessel, H-12 Semko, was built in Gdańsk and sailed to Świnoujście for handover to the 8th Vice Admiral Kazimierz Porębski Coastal Defense Flotilla.The contract for the design and construction of six tugs was signed in June 2017. The workboats will be used by the Polish Navy for military and logistics operations support at sea and in ports, as well as for technical evacuations, personnel transfers, search and rescue operations and oil spill recovery.

New York-listed offshore vessel owner SEACOR Marine has completed the previously announced sale of its offshore crew transfer subsidiary Windcat Workboats to the Belgian shipping and logistics group Compagnie Maritime Belge (CMB).Windcat is headquartered in Lowestoft, United Kingdom and IJmuiden, the Netherlands and has joint ventures with two local partners, FRS Windcat Offshore Logistics in Germany and TSM Windcat in France. Windcat employs approximately 180 shore-based and sea-going personnel.The sale was completed on January 12…

A refurbished 48-foot workboat has been delivered to The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) for its second life as a research vessel.The vessel, an Endeavor 45 cabin patrol vessel originally built by Silver Ships in 2008 for the State of Mississippi Department of Marine Resources (DMR), returned to the Theodore, Ala. shipyard for the transformation. The vessel is now capable of supporting the USM School of Ocean Science and Engineering’s deep ocean underwater surveys using various uncrewed underwater vehicle systems.

North America is increasingly adopting energy storage systems (ESS) to use in combination with combustion engines or as the sole energy carrier in fully electric-powered systems.We clearly see a transition from ‘consideration’ to ‘execution’ of hybrid and all-electric maritime projects. Stakeholders want to explore how to make vessels more energy efficient and less polluting. Corvus Energy has deployed over half of the ESSs aboard vessels globally, totaling over 300 megawatt hours (MWh).In North America, Corvus has deployed 24 MWh of energy storage capacity, and there are 13 vessels under U.S.

Robert Allan founded Robert Allan Ltd. in 1930 when Allan commenced private practice as a consulting Naval Architect after serving as Technical Manager of a local major shipyard. In the 90 years that have passed, the organization has evolved from a one-man shop to a global powerhouse in the business of naval architecture and marine design. Following the founder into the business were his namesake son and grandson, with the company in recent years passing to an employee-owned model led by Mike Fitzpatrick. Robert G.