Page 69: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (November 2016)

Tug Heath Wood Roll Out ings, and we see the opportunities com- behind that. We are starting on our AMA ing down the pike lending themselves to project, which is an 185,000 barrel barge that, which is the ability to build almost with an 8,000 hp tug that will push it. completely indoors. Then we have another 8,000 hp tug and a 155,000 barrel barge in our backlog.

We have an eight boat new construction

What products are coming backlog. Currently the John G. Munson, down the pike?

a 1950s vintage ore carrier, is being re-

We see the tug business, the ferry busi- ness and some small boat markets as powered; its steam power plant being replaced with a MaK diesel engine. The having good potential. entire propulsion plant is being gutted and a new propulsion plant, including a Schot-

When will the new facility be in- tel CPP system, is going in. That will be tegrated into your operations?

delivered in the spring of 2017. I could go 50% of it is up and running now; 70% into full details on all of our repair jobs, will be up and running by year’s end. but I think it best to say that our docks are

There is a fabrication bay where we will fully booked through the end of the year.

increase the lifting capacity to 200 tons, and with that comes the strengthening of

In your career, is there a tech- the building and raising the roof to allow nology that you can point to for a 55 foot hook height and a 200 ton that have helped to make the lifting capacity. By the summer of 2017 it should be completely integrated.

job of building and repairing vessels more ef? cient?

On the tour of the yard I saw a

Good question. Welding technology certainly has come a long way. Some of lot of activity. Can you give to the piping products that you’re seeing to- me a rundown of the business day, you couldn’t use in the past. Some in the yard at the moment?

things that have gotten approved by ABS

The ? rst of the Kirby ATBs will be de- and the Coast Guard such as snap-on ? t- livered by the end of the month (October). tings and some of the composites and

We’ve got the second Kirby ATB coming plastics, have led to greater ef? ciency. www.marinelink.com 69

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