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was underserved. Building a shipyard was central to the mission. In the shipyard, Bordelon and his team are able to exercise a high degree of control and adaptation, to design and build the vessels that they want, the way they want them, when they need them. So the shipyard gives Borde- lon a high degree of control on quality: one that could exist only with an high price tag when building at an outside yard. The manifestation of the strategy sits in the form of the 260-ft. Stingray class offshore service vessel, a vessel designed in concert with C. Fly Marine of Covington, La., and the Þ rst of which was in the process of being com- pleted at press time. ÒDeveloping the Stingray was almost a two-year process to design and bring it to fruition,Ó Bor- delon said. ÒWe wanted to grow and develop a design that was unique, and cutting edge.ÓBordelon chose Houma as the home for the new ship- building venture based on the tried and true axiom of real estate: location, location, location.ÒWe wanted to be in Houma because itÕs a good epi- center of support, there are many excellent service and support companies here, and a deep pool of quality work- ers,Ó Bordelon said. So simultaneously, Bordelon was designing its new boat and building its new shipyard, no easy task by any met- ric. While shipyard design and outÞ tting is essential to efÞ cient and quality production, anyone in the business knows that a shipyard is only as good as its workers, and in the regard BordelonÕs timing was just right to pick up a choice crew of experienced builders. ÒOne of the biggest challenges, of course, is at the same time (weÕre working on the boat), weÕre building a ship- yard. Then you need to source experienced crew.Ó Bor- delon found fortune in a New Orleans misfortune, spe- ciÞ cally just as Bordelon was building up, a New Orleans shipbuilding icon Ð Avondale Ð was closing down. With this, Bordelon gained immediate access to entire crews of experienced technical workers as well as managers and su- pervisors. Highly trained people from day one that were experienced in building in a modular way. So with an experienced shipyard crew and a brand new ship construction facility Ð one that was purpose built for the new Stingray class of boats, Bordelon and crew were set for the next phase: construction of the Stingray class. MEET THE STINGRAY The Þ rst of three new Stingray class series 260-ft. DP2 PSV and MPSV Ð M/V Connor Bordelon Ð was expected for completion at press time. ÒWe are very excited to introduce the new Stingray DP-2 PSV and MPSV series,Ó said Bordelon. ÒThe Stingray is a prototype design that incorporates a number of cutting edge features and capabilities, only commonly found in much larger new generation vessels. The concept here is to give our clients a more affordable MPSV or light IMR/ ROV support vessel option.Ó The Stingray class was designed to be an ROV support vessel, or a light IMR vessel, according to Bordelon. ÒItÕs most ideal function would as a life of Þ eld deepwater pro- duction boat that has an ROV onboard and can conduct subsea intervention.Ó Bordelon said that by design the Stingray class is a small vessel for that sector of the offshore market. We wanted to provide our clients with a more affordable option, but still have all of the power, cutting edge features Ð the automation, DP2, and the interior amenities Ð that you commonly only Þ nd on a much larger vessel.Ó In analyzing the Stingray design, Þ nish and potential use, Bordelon described it as such: ÒIt is more of a Swiss Army Knife than a workhorse. You see a lot of 260s out there now that are in the 4000 to 4500 deadweight range, meaning it is a wider, and deeper vessel. These larger boats are designed to primarily move a lot of product. This is what I mean by a whorkhorse; weÕre really not that king boat. We can still move the cargo, but the StingrayÕs advantage comes in her accomodations, automation, and multi-purpose function-ality.Ó The 255 x 52x 18-ft. Stingray is more of a specialized support boat, with an innovative, thinner hull design to optimize speed and fuel consumption. While performance is the bottom line, according to Bordelon the comfort and amenities of crew and passengers remained a priority. The boat is near comfort class, featuring well-appointed state- rooms with features that cater to the passenger, the client and the mariner. ÒWe gave a lot of thought and consider- ation to the comfort of the Mariners, when we designed this vessel. These boats are the home away from home for our guys, and you canÕt expect them to be safe, smart, and productive unless they are well rested and comfort- able with their surroundings. Each stateroom has a private head, individual climate controls, and TV, internet and phone connections,Ó said Bordelon ÒFor us, itÕs about the culture of the company,Ó said Bor- delon. ÒWe take care of our people, and its good business to do so. A well rested, happy mariner is a safe mariner. Someone who wants to be here will take better care of the equipment, will take better care of our clients.Ó ÒPeople always ask me why on earth would I want to be in the ship building business. ItÕs messy, expensive, and incredibly risky. Well for us itÕs simply about the boats. If you stay in this business long enough, you develop a March 2013 52 MNMN March2013 Layout 50-65.indd 52MN March2013 Layout 50-65.indd 523/4/2013 3:52:21 PM3/4/2013 3:52:21 PM