I'm sorry but is Crowley clueless?

Maritime News
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a DP2 tug? Why? For what purpose?

Bollinger delivers first of new class of tugs to Crowley

SEPTEMBER 12, 2012 — Bollinger Marine Fabricators, L.L.C., Amelia, La., a Bollinger Shipyards, Inc. company, has delivered the Ocean Wave, the first of four Ocean class tugs, to Crowley Maritime Corporation.

The Ocean Wave is one of two 10,880 BHP tugs in the series that are DP1 capable. The two others will be DP2 capable.

The Ocean Wave is twin screw with controllable pitch propellers (CPP), in nozzles with independent high lift rudders. The hull is welded steel construction and is outfitted for long range ocean towing, dynamic positioning, firefighting, rescue and salvage towing, as well anchor handling. The vessel is designed and outfitted with all tanks containing oil and oil traces inboard of the side shell to create a double hull and designed for zero discharge of any machinery cooling water, gray or black water, further safeguard the environment.

Propulsion is provided by two Caterpillar C-280-12 Tier II diesel engines. Designed to operate on Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel fuel, each is rated at 5,440 BHP @ 1000 RPM. The 153.5 inch diameter CPP Propellers are driven through Reintjes LAF 5666 reduction gears. The bow thruster is a Berg VFD 850 HP unit.

Electric power is provided by two 1,475 kVA shaft generators, one 340 kW Caterpillar C-18 Tier II auxiliary generator (Harbor Generator), and one (1) 125 kW Caterpillar C-6.6 Tier II emergency generator system.

The towing and deck equipment includes an Intercon DW275 hydraulic winch with upper drum capacity for 3,000 ft of 2.5 in wire and lower drum with 4,200 ft of 2.75 in wire, Triplex tow pins, Triplex shark jaws and an open stern roller.

The vessel is U.S. flagged and complies with all applicable rules and regulations for unrestricted ocean towing, International Load Line Certificate, SOLAS and ABS DP1, Green Passport classification.

“Taking delivery of this first ocean-class tug is a significant milestone for Crowley and our customers who will benefit from its use on their projects,” said Tom Crowley, company chairman, president and CEO. “These Jensen Maritime-designed towing vessels – three of which are under construction at Bollinger – are a new generation of powerful, high-tech and environmentally friendly workhorses for Crowley that will further solidify our standing as an industry leader in ocean towing, salvage and offshore marine support for the upstream energy industry.”

“We are extremely proud of our Ocean Class team and the delivery of the first in class tug, Ocean Wave,” said Chris Bollinger, executive vice president of Bollinger Shipyards, Inc. "Our partner, Crowley and Jensen, as well as our numerous vendors, have worked hard to develop and deliver a premier vessel into the international marine market and we look forward to future deliveries of sister Ocean Wind and DP2 vessels Ocean Sky and Ocean Sun.

So what is the point? They aren’t set up for anchors? You can’t DP hipped up to a barge? What the eff are these things supposed to do that they need DP? Is Crowley just so stupid to think that put DP on anything and the offshore will just scoop it up? If there was a offshore market demand for these you’d think ECO, HGM or OCLLC would have big DP tugs already?

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It would appear that a close inspection of the photo will give the answer. A Ball Over a Diamond over a Ball. All while churning and burning.

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[QUOTE=c.captain;82243] If there was a offshore market demand for these you’d think ECO, HGM or OCLLC would have big DP tugs already?[/QUOTE]

ECO has one, the FORTE’. It is DP2 with Voith-Schneider drives with around 9,000 hp and stabilization through the V/S drive. It works at a field for PETROBRAS in the GOM.

As they drill deeper they can’t lay pipelines so they need FPSO’s or VPSO’s or whatever those things are called and/or SPM’s.

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I know little about GOM ops and even less about DP stuff but what I do know is [I]thats a sexy fucking tugboat[/I]!

:smiley:

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Anyone seen any other pictures? I don’t see pins or shark jaws?

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No pin box or shark jaws?

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Equipping these tugs with DP-2 probably makes them more marketable for Salvage work…

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I think I saw something while reading the article in workboat magazine, that the oil companies have exclusion zones set up, and only DP vessels are allowed into those zones?

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[QUOTE=Flyer69;82268]I think I saw something while reading the article in workboat magazine, that the oil companies have exclusion zones set up, and only DP vessels are allowed into those zones?[/QUOTE]

But towing is dynamic with a barge either ahead, alongside or on a hawser. The tug might be DP but the barge isn’t. Can a tug DP when in a notch or hipped up? I very much doubt it unless it’s dead flat calm with 0 current. These boats are not anchor handlers obviously unless except for only picking them up and resetting them and only in shallow water with that deck or winch. Plenty of real DP anchor boats out there available for that work. I suppose they could be used when holding a production platform in position while it’s set up on moorings but again, there are a ton of DP anchor boats to do that work. Salvage work might take advantage of having DP but you don’t need DP2 for Christ’s sake. I’m sorry but I just don’t see WTF the DP on these boats is for other that to say they are DP which to me is stupid!

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Most of the companies like OCLLC, turdwater, Nolte Theroit, and several others have been getting out of the tug business for the last decade, because of everything going to deep water there is very little work for this class of boat in the GOM anymore. Harvey gulf is the only one that has built a tug in the last 15 years, everybody esle has been selling.

I know Crowley has brought a couple big material barges into the gulf to haul platforms offshore with, but they also have a couple old invader class tugs hanging around as well. I don’t think there is much salvage work in the GOM, taking down a platform every once in a while, not much else that I ever hear about.

If you can’t run anchors, I don’t really see the purpose of a tug in the gulf in todays market, especially with that HP and DP???

All you have to do is go past the public dock in Fourskin and see all the tugs sitting around that should tell you something.

I am with you, I don’t get it. Unless they have a grand plan of some kind, that none of us can imagine.

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They had a slick electronics/DP salesman that made his Christmas bonus early this year.

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[QUOTE=c.captain;82272]But towing is dynamic with a barge either ahead, alongside or on a hawser. The tug might be DP but the barge isn’t. Can a tug DP when in a notch or hipped up? I very much doubt it unless it’s dead flat calmd![/QUOTE]

The one big tug company I was with for many years, actually drew up some plans to build a ATB, that was DP, with it intergrated into the barge. They were going to put 2 big tunnel thrusters on the bow of the barge, one tunnel thruster on the stern of the barge, and independant rudders on the tug. It was going to have the Intercon system with the lightering mode. They had big plans of using them as shuttle tankers, here in the gulf.They had the blue prints made and they talked, and talked and talked about it, but nothing else ever happened.

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[QUOTE=rjbpilot;82265]Equipping these tugs with DP-2 probably makes them more marketable for Salvage work…[/QUOTE]

I believe you’re right. I’ve been on a few salvage jobs years ago when the captains and mates would have given their collective left nuts to have DP.
On another note, Crowley owns Titan Salvage.

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[QUOTE=injunear;82280]I believe you’re right. I’ve been on a few salvage jobs years ago when the captains and mates would have given their collective left nuts to have DP.
On another note, Crowley owns Titan Salvage.[/QUOTE]

But you certainly wouldn’t need DP2 class for that. I wonder what the additional cost was to get that notation for those boats? I guess someone at Crowley figured it would pay for itself but I am at a loss as to how?

Also, for salvage you need more deck than that imo?

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C, the only way you’ll get the reason behind this madness of making them DP-2, is to contact Thomas Crowley, Jr. and ask him: “WTF are you thinking!”

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I watched the Ocean Wave being built at Bollinger while we there undergoing conversion work. The captain and I were wondering why it would be DP as well. Here are a few shots before it was launched. I’ll see if a have some more and add them later.

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I was also at Bollinger at that time…Got a tour of the Ocean Wave. According to an article in Professional Mariner that I just happen to have on board, the naval architect at Jensen Maritime Consultants, stated that the vessels are DP due to the “customer demand for DP qualified vessels in the offshore oil and gas business in the GOM”… Shell and others require only DP vessels. Ocean Wave and Ocean Wind are DP-1. The next two being built, Ocean Sky and Ocean Sea are DP-2. I’m sure if it was Crowley’s choice they would not have considered it, however, the customer must be satisfied…so they added the DP.

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I don’t know, but I suspect that they just want to be able to have a few DP tugs so they can claim that they are the only ones that have the latest and greatest tugs. Someone will probably pay extra to hire them for that reason alone. Also, they probably want a few vessels to get some of their crew DP certified on.

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It’s all about securing the contracts…they had to have them DP to be considered…

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[QUOTE=rjbpilot;82296]I was also at Bollinger at that time…Got a tour of the Ocean Wave. According to an article in Professional Mariner that I just happen to have on board, the naval architect at Jensen Maritime Consultants, stated that the vessels are DP due to the “customer demand for DP qualified vessels in the offshore oil and gas business in the GOM”… Shell and others require only DP vessels. Ocean Wave and Ocean Wind are DP-1. The next two being built, Ocean Sky and Ocean Sea are DP-2. I’m sure if it was Crowley’s choice they would not have considered it, however, the customer must be satisfied…so they added the DP.[/QUOTE]

I worked for Shell and I don’t recall in their OPS#(?) that vessels working in the field or even alongside had to be DP. Hell we went round and round about the need for Yokohama fenders expecting that all vessels coming to us would be DP but were told to be ready for a non DP vessel just in case.

I still don’t see it except maybe for positioning production platforms and even that requires multiple tugs to do so no single DP tug can do the job.

The pair that are to be DP2 is really the big mystery to me?