Inland Marine Delivers Towboat M/V Mike Schmaeng To Pott Industries

The Inland Waterways Division of Pott Industries, Inc., St.

Louis, recently christened its newest towboat, the M / V Mike Schmaeng, an 1,800-hp towboat, built by Inland Marine Constructors, Inc. of Evansville, Ind. The christening ceremonies were at Evansville.

The new towboat is named after G. Michael Schmaeng, port engineer of Federal Barge Lines, an operating company of the Inland Waterways Division of Pott Industries. The towboat will be operated by Heartland Transportation Company, a subsidiary of United Barge Company, another operating company of the Inland Waterways Division.

Opening address and welcome was given by Roy Ryan, president of Inland Marine Constructors, Inc.; tribute was bestowed upon the vessel by Jack Lynch, president of the Inland Waterways Division of Pott Industries. Benediction was offered by Reverend David Kissel, pastor of St. John The Baptist Church at Newburg, Ind. Reverend Kissel presented the ship's bible to Capt. John Choate. Immediately thereafter, Mrs. Margaret June Schmaeng, sponsor and wife of the towboat's namesake, broke the traditional bottle of champagne.

The M/V Mike Schmaeng hull measures 85 feet by 30 feet by 10 feet, with an operating draft (maximum) of 8 feet 3 inches.

The all-welded steel hull is heavily framed, longitudinally and transversally.

The bottom plate is y2- inch with bilge knuckles and stern bottom plating %-inch, side plating is %-inch, bow corner plating is %-inch, and headlog plating is %-inch. A bent plate of y2-inch plating is provided along both sides and the stern transom.

There are four fuel oil bunkers with a total capacity of 30,016 gallons, two potable water storage tanks having a total capacity of 6,556 gallons, one 360-gallon lube oil storage tank, one 590- o-allon bilge holding tank, one 590 gallon dirty oil holding tank, and three ballast tanks, having a total capacity of approximately 10,000 gallons, all built into the hull.

Propulsion power is furnished by two Cummins KTA-2300M diesel engines, each developing 940 hp at 1,800 rpm through a Twin Disc Model MG540 reverse reduction gear with a 7 to 1 ratio. The engines are cooled with clear water circulated through Fernstrum Grid Coolers. The engine and gear package was supplied by Cummins Missouri.

The engines are started from the engine room only and are controlled by means of Wabco Logic Master pneumatic control system, as provided in the pilothouse.

The Mike Schmaeng swings two four-blade Columbian Bronze stainless-steel propellers, with 78-inch diameter and a 64- inch pitch.

The twin Delco 60-kw generators, driven by GM 4-71s, and the Con-Select control panel, were supplied by Western Diesel Company, St. Louis.

The boat carries a Pan American Systems Corporation 24- point monitoring system. The PASC 450 Series modular system maintains a watch on main jacket water levels and temperature, lube oil level and pressure, reduction gear lube oil levels, and generator water and lube oil levels, as well as bilge water level, fire alarms, and other functions.

The steering system is mechanical- over-hydraulic with full followup controls. The boat has two steering and four flanking rudders.

The system is operated by one of two hydraulic steering pumps. On deck, in addition to dual 40-ton Patterson winches, the Mike Schmaeng is equipped with Steven-Adams "Car Puller" Model 12V capstan winches, fore and aft.

Atop the pilothouse are two Carlisle and Finch 19-inch carbon arc searchlights, as well as a Kahlenburg Model T-2 Triplex Airhorn. Pilothouse electronics include two Raytheon 55 VHF radios, a Dukane loud hailer and intercom system, an Intech Model 2500 single-sideband, and two Sperry radars, Model 74 and Model 3012. The towboat is also e q u i p p e d with an Anschuetz swing indicator and an EPSCO CVS-888 depth recorder. Pilothouse eye level is 34 feet.

The pilothouse contains a console for housing the engine and steering controls, a double cushioned settee with hidden water closet under and a combination water c o o l e r / r e f r i g e r a t o r . An electronics room is provided immediately beneath the pilothouse and houses the searchlight rectifiers and power supplies for the various electronics equipment.

The Mike Schmaeng sleeps nine persons, with two double bunkrooms, laundry, full head and a galley, located on the first deck, and two double bunkrooms, a single bunkroom and a full head on the second deck. All living quarters, galley and bathrooms have central air-conditioning. The pilothouse is air-conditioned by two window-type units.

The Mike Schmaeng is equipped with a bilge/ballast pump, fire pump, fuel oil transfer pump, two Quincy Model 325 air compressors, a potable water pressure set, and hot water tank. A Fast 9M sewage treatment plant treats the waste matter.