Page 40: of Marine News Magazine (June 2020)

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The Little Bender

That Could

All images: Boschert USA and Atlantic Coasts.

Okay, it’s not that little – it can bend

The addition of the Stierli bender will dramatically increase up to 240 tons. productivity for Dakota Creek. According to Mike Nelson,

But in the larger scheme of the U.S. economy, security and Dakota Creek owner and vice president, “The Stierli will al- infrastructure; or of the country’s maritime competitiveness; low us to expand our daily production from around three sets or even the ?nancial health of the Dakota Creek Industries of hull frames (six total port and starboard) for three people shipyard and its 300 production jobs; this little bender has the to 12 sets (24 total frames) using only one or two people and, potential to make a mighty big difference. as we get our team’s familiarity and skills up to speed on the

Dakota Creek recently installed the Stierli-Bieger 2200 SE new machine even greater productivity will be possible. It will

CNC horizontal ram bender in its Anacortes, Wash. shipyard. also allow us to bid jobs more competitively – because it will

It is the ?rst of its kind in the U.S., and it adds a steel fabrica- take us fewer manhours to do the same work. Where we once tion capability that was previously only available in Europe. might have been priced out of a job, we will have a better shot

The Stierli bender is an important link in the shipyard’s – and at winning the bids.” the country’s – production process. It gives Dakota Creek the The Stierli bender’s CNC controls will also help automate ability to craft complex opposing port and starboard hull rib parts of the process and make production of these complex frames that shift in angle and radius from bow to stern. The designs even more ef?cient. The maximum bending capacity shipyard will use it initially to form bulb pro?le hull stiffen- on the Stierli 2200 is HP300 bulb pro?les.

ers for the tugs, ?shing boats, barges, research vessels and oil With the bender in place, Dakota Creek also raises its ability recovery ships that it produces for ?eets on the Paci?c, Gulf to do more sophisticated hull forms. “The complexity of new

June 2020 40 MN