Long History, Promising Future

SeaArk Marine inc. of Monticello, Ark., is a company ideally positioned to benefit from the influx of patrol boat orders expected in the wake of tightening waterway security. The company is well-regarded for quality of construction and support, and has been the beneficiary of some large deals for new boats. Founded in 1959 as MonArk Boat Co., SeaArk Marine, Inc. has a long and varied history in the aluminum boat building industry. The company got its start when Zach McClendon started building riveted, aluminum flat bottom Jon boats. After a few years and several additions to the product line, the company started selling riveted and all-welded boats to entities such as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Law Enforcement Agencies, and Fish and Wildlife Departments. Eventually two divisions were formed - a Recreational Division and a Workboat (Commercial) Division.

The Workboat division of the company concentrated on all-welded, heavy-duty, aluminum boats and included customers from all over the world. Crew boats for oil field work in the Gulf of Mexico were the primary products during the oil boom days of the seventies, but fire boats, patrol boats, oil spill response boats, and transporters were also being produced.

In 1988 the Brunswick Corporation bought the Recreational Division of MonArk Boat Company from the McClendon family and with it the MonArk name. The remaining Commercial sector renamed themselves SeaArk Marine, Inc. and continued to produce all-welded, work, patrol and fire boats up to 65 ft. long, as well as excursion and tour boats up to 85 ft. long. SeaArk Marine's customer base continues to include the Corps of Engineers, oil companies, and various Law Enforcement Agencies as well as the U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Marine Corps, Survey Companies, and many other Domestic and International Government Agencies. In 1992, SeaArk Boats, Inc. was formed as a separate company (by the same owner) to produce aluminum pleasure boats once again. The McClendon family continues to manage both companies that are located in Monticello, Ark.

65-ft. Survey Boat "Teche": Great Boat of 2002

SeaArk Marine, Inc., of Monticello, Ark., recently delivered a 65-ft. Survey Boat to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers New Orleans District. The SeaArk 65-ft. Dauntless Deep Vee is designed to perform hydrographic survey missions for the Corps of Engineers along the lower Mississippi River and its tributaries, as well as in the Gulf of Mexico.

Dubbed Teche, the boat features twin Cummins KTA19-M4 main propulsion engines rated at 720 hp each, and achieves a top speed of more than 24 knots. Main AC electrical power is supplied by a single Onan 27.5 kW generator. The vessel has a complete galley, head, shower and sleeps four total in a combination of the captain's stateroom and separate crew bunkroom. Teche is the first of two SeaArk built 65-ft. vessels under a project administered by the Marine Design Center of Philadelphia, Pa. The boat was delivered to New Orleans under its own power via the Arkansas and Mississippi Rivers. Teche's identical sister vessel, LaFourche, went on builder's trials in May 2002. The Dauntless series deep Vee hulls constructed by SeaArk are designed by C. Raymond Hunt and Associates Naval Architects and are available from 21 to 85-ft. in length.

First Force Protection Boats Delivered

SeaArk Marine, Inc. earlier this year delivered a multi-boat order for Naval Sea Systems Command. SeaArk's 2810 - V Dauntless, designated the Harbor Security Boat (HSB) Medium, the first of several boats delivered to the Pacific Fleet. It features a 20-degree Radical Vee Deadrise Hull, twin outboard propulsion, on board AC power, air conditioning, head, galley, electronics suite, an integral outboard mounting bracket, a foam filled, air cushioned collar for boarding and shouldering operations and M-60 weapons mount foundations. The Dauntless reached a top speed of 38 knots during trials. Several of SeaArk's 270-ft. Commander Class RAM, designated the Harbor Security Boat (HSB) Small, were ordered by Naval Sea Systems Command and will be delivered to the Atlantic Fleet. Powered by twin four-stroke outboards, the Commander RAM also has a foam filled, air cushioned collar for boarding and shouldering operations.The vessels also have on-board AC power, air conditioning, M-60 weapons mounts, and electronics suite.