Page 48: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (August 1992)

Boats & Barges

Artisfs conception of the 350-foot, 3,000-passenger paddlewheeler designed by Service Marine

Industries, Inc., for operation in Louisiana.

Casino, Dinner Boat Orders

Keep Service Marine Busy

New passenger boat construction spurred by both the excursion/din- ner vessel and casino boat markets continues at a torrid pace at the

Morgan City, La., shipyard of Ser- vice Marine Industries, Inc. (SMI).

After delivering the fourth passen- ger boat built for Spirit Cruises,

Inc., in April, Service Marine started "fast track" construction of Harrah's new casino boat destined for opera- tion out of Joliet, 111.

According to Tom Hensley, vice president of marketing, the Harrah's boat will be one of the most glamor- ous riverboat casinos. Borrowing from the designs of many large mod- ern cruise ships, the 210- by 68-foot, 1,200-passenger boat will feature an atrium through its second and third decks. A brass and glass pas- senger elevator will pass through the atrium. The firm of Morse and

Brown is the interior designer and, according to Mr. Hensley, the de- sign themes and color and material selections are comparable to those found in Las Vegas.

SMI has designed the boat for total passenger comfort, with high ceilings, good traffic flow, and sev- eral restrooms. A special onboard smoke exhaust system combined with 465 tons of Carrier Transicold air conditioning, as well as special soundproofing and vibration isola- tors will add to passenger comfort.

Launched in mid-July, the boat is scheduled for an early January 1993 delivery.

In addition, SMI has developed three paddlewheel casino boat de- signs for Louisiana and is currently conducting discussions with several casino groups planning to put boats in service in the state. By law, gaming vessels operating in Louisi- ana must be paddlewheelers. The largest paddlewheel design from

SMI is a 350- by 90-foot, 3,000 pas- senger boat for New Orleans. The two other boats are smaller, but are similar in appearance.

Other activity at the yard created by the growing casino market in- cluded the recent barge conversion and structural steel frame work for a two-story Mississippi casino. The 295- by 74-foot floating casino is owned by Mardi Gras Casino and will be located in Bay Cove, Bay St.

Louis, Miss.

Furthermore, the Louisiana builder is currently working on the conversion of four 295- by 54-foot barges that will provide the founda- tion for Grand Casino's three-story casino going to Biloxi, Miss. Accord- ing to Mr. Hensley, barge conver- sion and conventional structural steel framing are the fastest and least expensive methods of entering

Mississippi's floating casino busi- ness. Trying to convert existing boats leads to unusable space, draft, stability problems and ultimately higher costs. "The conversion time takes longer too, said Mr. Hensley, "and when time is of the essence, starting with a bare deck and building exactly what you want makes a lot of sense."

For free literature detailing the boatbuilding capabilities of Service

Marine Industries, Inc.,

Circle 30 on Reader Service Card

Your Best Bet.

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Des Plaines River Entertainment Corporation, Joliet, Illinois. This eloquent 1200 passenger casino boat will cruise the Des Plaines River on gambling excursions.

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This vessel was built just as tough as the job she has to do.

Built by proud Florida shipbuilders who bring generations of craftsmanship to every project.

They carry on their skilled tradition in one of the South's best equipped yards. Spacious assembly buildings, five assembly locations, sophisticated welding capabilities and year 'round good weather make it possible to build a wide variety of vessels and to build them well.

WE DELIVER THE BEST BOAT FOR THE MOHEY...

AND WE DELIVER IT ON SCHEDULE. 50

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Maritime Reporter/Engineering News