# Hornbecks new flotel rolls into town **URL:** \ **Category:** Professional Mariner Forum\ **Created:** [April 2, 2015, 12:28pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533 "2015-04-02T12:28:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Capnklump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/73ab20/32.png) [@Capnklump](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/Capnklump)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2015, 12:28pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/1 "2015-04-02T12:28:29Z")
[ATTACH]4208[/ATTACH] I wonder if its even got a job?? Looks real pricey. ---
**Author:** ![Fraqrat](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.gcaptain.com/fraqrat/32/1961_2.png) [@Fraqrat](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/Fraqrat)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2015, 12:50pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/2 "2015-04-02T12:50:01Z")
Of course it has a job. Why would a company spend all that $ configuring the vessel like that without any work? ---
**Author:** ![Colston1285](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bc79bd/32.png) [@Colston1285](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/Colston1285)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2015, 1:02pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/3 "2015-04-02T13:02:39Z")
What boat is it? The picture won’t come up for me. I saw they had one at Gulf Island Shipbuilders a few weeks ago when we were headed into our shipyard ---
**Author:** ![JayNola](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7cd45c/32.png) [@JayNola](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/JayNola)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2015, 1:09pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/4 "2015-04-02T13:09:06Z")
It’s the same vessel that was at GIF. It’s the HOS Riverbend. I can’t see the photo either. Not sure what that’s about. I even tried another browser. ---
**Author:** ![anchorman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bbce88/32.png) [@anchorman](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/anchorman)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2015, 1:11pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/5 "2015-04-02T13:11:06Z")
[QUOTE=Fraqrat;158311]Of course it has a job. Why would a company spend all that $ configuring the vessel like that without any work?[/QUOTE] Flotel work is drying up. Many of those vessels being let go. Not sure about this particular vessel. ---
**Author:** ![Capnklump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/73ab20/32.png) [@Capnklump](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/Capnklump)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2015, 1:18pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/6 "2015-04-02T13:18:42Z")
> [@"JayNola"](#): > > It’s the same vessel that was at GIF. It’s the HOS Riverbend. I can’t see the photo either. Not sure what that’s about. I even tried another browser. Yeah sorry. I think its an issue with ios not being able to upload photos. It is the Riverbend. FINE looking boat! ---
**Author:** ![Colston1285](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bc79bd/32.png) [@Colston1285](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/Colston1285)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2015, 1:27pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/7 "2015-04-02T13:27:27Z")
Yup that’s the same one. It looks like all regular osv but with a camper shell on the back! Lol ---
**Author:** ![Fraqrat](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.gcaptain.com/fraqrat/32/1961_2.png) [@Fraqrat](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/Fraqrat)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2015, 2:10pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/8 "2015-04-02T14:10:12Z")
> [@"anchorman"](#): > > Flotel work is drying up. Many of those vessels being let go. Not sure about this particular vessel. I know a guy who talked to another guy I think the info is legit that it has work. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Saltine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Saltine](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/Saltine)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2015, 6:33pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/9 "2015-04-02T18:33:12Z")
[QUOTE=anchorman;158315]Flotel work is drying up. Many of those vessels being let go. Not sure about this particular vessel.[/QUOTE] Actually, most of the Flotel vessels out there are foreign flagged. HOS has made a good decision to convert several of their assets into Flotels and push the foreign boats out. I don’t understand a lot of the moves HOS makes but this was a good one. Question, why hasn’t ECO got in on this segment of the market yet? ---
**Author:** ![Nyla1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Nyla1](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/Nyla1)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2015, 7:20pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/10 "2015-04-02T19:20:29Z")
Solid. Legit. ---
**Author:** ![Fraqrat](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.gcaptain.com/fraqrat/32/1961_2.png) [@Fraqrat](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/Fraqrat)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2015, 7:24pm UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/11 "2015-04-02T19:24:01Z")
Shhhhhhhhh!!! ---
**Author:** ![matt21](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f475e1/32.png) [@matt21](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/matt21)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 4:34am UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/12 "2015-04-03T04:34:53Z")
Looks like a stability nightmare to me…That is a lot of steel sitting way up out of the water, even for a 300’ Non-HOS bathtub design. ---
**Author:** ![KrustySalt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3ec8ea/32.png) [@KrustySalt](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/KrustySalt)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 5:14am UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/13 "2015-04-03T05:14:18Z")
Stability seems pretty easy. Load it down with water. ---
**Author:** ![matt21](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f475e1/32.png) [@matt21](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/matt21)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 5:20am UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/14 "2015-04-03T05:20:33Z")
[QUOTE=KrustySalt;158403]Stability seems pretty easy. Load it down with water.[/QUOTE] Im talking about negative stability, like when that thing does a barrel-roll if they turn too sharp! Its as tall as a cruise-liner and drafting what, 18-19’ max? Does looked a little top heavy when it drove by, but I may be wrong…Carl Annessa is one of the greatest naval architects known to man so maybe he was in charge of the retrofit… ---
**Author:** ![Kennebec\_Captain](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.gcaptain.com/kennebec_captain/32/13_2.png) [@Kennebec\_Captain](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/Kennebec_Captain)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 5:54am UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/15 "2015-04-03T05:54:52Z")
[QUOTE=matt21;158405]Im talking about negative stability, like when that thing does a barrel-roll if they turn too sharp! Its as tall as a cruise-liner and drafting what, 18-19’ max? Does looked a little top heavy when it drove by, but I may be wrong…Carl Annessa is one of the greatest naval architects known to man so maybe he was in charge of the retrofit…[/QUOTE] The eyeball is not a reliable way to solve stability problems. Spaces designed exclusively for people to use, the ship’s house for example, may appear massive but are actually mostly empty space. In contrast a full ballast tank has no empty space to speak of. ---
**Author:** ![awulfclark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@awulfclark](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/awulfclark)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 5:57am UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/16 "2015-04-03T05:57:51Z")
Think of a cruise ship. Those things look impossibly top-heavy yet manage quite fine. Now, they do have issues if they turn too hard but that’s more a question of passenger comfort. ---
**Author:** ![blaineatk](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.gcaptain.com/blaineatk/32/243_2.png) [@blaineatk](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/blaineatk)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 6:11am UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/17 "2015-04-03T06:11:58Z")
Chouest uses some of their boats as flotels… The Island Intervention is working as a flotel right now down in Trinidad. I am sure there are a few others wandering around… ---
**Author:** ![matt21](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f475e1/32.png) [@matt21](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/matt21)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 6:24am UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/18 "2015-04-03T06:24:18Z")
I am not doubting they didn’t get it right and I am aware that eyeballing is not a proper for of calculating. I was just simply stating that “looked” pretty top-heavy. I understand that it is also a lot of empty space, but thats not just a bunch of sheet-metal riveted together to form a 200’x60’x60’ box with an auto-stabilizing personnel gangway at the top. Just saying it looks light they might be pushing the boundaries of the design, especially from personally driving one of those Eastern Shipyard designs (with one less level than the Harvey/HOS ones) and seeing a loaded “tiger-shark” design at max draft in rough weather rolling around like a mini-supply. They are kind of top-heavy from the get-go. ---
**Author:** ![coldduck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ce7236/32.png) [@coldduck](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/coldduck)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 7:45am UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/19 "2015-04-03T07:45:47Z")
It appears blisters/sponsons were added also during the conversion. ---
**Author:** ![Kennebec\_Captain](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/forum.gcaptain.com/kennebec_captain/32/13_2.png) [@Kennebec\_Captain](https://forum.gcaptain.com/u/Kennebec_Captain)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2015, 10:38am UTC](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533/20 "2015-04-03T10:38:30Z")
[QUOTE=matt21;158416]I am not doubting they didn’t get it right and I am aware that eyeballing is not a proper for of calculating. I was just simply stating that “looked” pretty top-heavy. I understand that it is also a lot of empty space, but thats not just a bunch of sheet-metal riveted together to form a 200’x60’x60’ box with an auto-stabilizing personnel gangway at the top. Just saying it looks light they might be pushing the boundaries of the design, especially from personally driving one of those Eastern Shipyard designs (with one less level than the Harvey/HOS ones) and seeing a loaded “tiger-shark” design at max draft in rough weather rolling around like a mini-supply. They are kind of top-heavy from the get-go.[/QUOTE] In my experience the issue with light draft and large sail area is handling in the wind. Underway to dry-dock with no cargo, min fuel and ballast on a windy day is like trying to steer a ping-pong ball. [Next page](https://forum.gcaptain.com/t/hornbecks-new-flotel-rolls-into-town/14533.md?page=2)