McAllister Towing and Transportation Co. Inc.'s 6,770-hp escort Z-drive tug Capt. Jim McAllister arrived today at the Port of Charleston, S.C. The Capt. Jim was built by Eastern Shipbuilding Group (ESG), Panama City, Fla., and deliveredon Aug. 16.
The Capt. Jim is the fourth in a series of four 100'x40', 80-MT bollard pull tugboats. The tug is the 33rd tractor tug in New York-based McAllister’s fleet. Jensen Maritime Consultants, Seattle, designed the tug to full ABS Class Maltese Cross standards.
The vessel has been issued a Coast Guard Subchapter M Certificate of Inspection (COI). This is ESG’s second new USCG Subchapter M-qualified tugboat, with a COI under the new regulatory regime issued at delivery. McAllister Towing’s new construction delivery team worked closely with Eastern’s delivery supervisors during the Subchapter M COI inspection. The Capt. Jim McAllister’s vessel crew participated in the sea trials and performed the required vessel safety drills.
The Capt. Jim is powered by two Caterpillar 3561E Tier 4 engines, each rated at 3,386 hp at 1,800 rpm. The engines turn twin Schottel SRP4000FP drive units with nibral 2,800-mm 4-bladed propellers with SDN 55 high efficiency nozzles. The tug is also outfitted with three Cat Tier 3 C7.1 keel-cooled engines driving two 118-kW ship service generators with manual parallel, auto start and auto transfer.
The Tier 4 powered tug is designed to handle the new generation of neo-Panamax containerships now regularly calling at several East Coast ports. On the bow Capt. Jim has a Markey DEPCF-52 75 hp full render/recover Class II escort winch with 800' of 10" line. Aft, the tug has a Markey DEPC-42 hawser winch with 450' of 2 1/4" Amstel Blue line.
Rated for 80 metric tons of bollard pull, the new tug outperformed during sea trials and achieved 82.5 tons during her American Bureau of Shipping bollard pull certification and had a maximum pull of 83.70 tons. The tug has a maximum draft of 18'. Capacities include 58,710 gals. of fuel oil, 545 gals. of lube oil, and 3,075 gals. of potable water.
The Capt. Jim joins her sister vessels, the Capt. Brian McAllister, Rosemary McAllister and Ava McAllister, as the most powerful Tier 4 tugs in the McAllister fleet. Combining her eco-friendly Cat engines with Markey winches on the bow and stern puts the Capt. Jim at the forefront of shipdocking tugs on the U.S. East Coast, McAllister said in a statement.
The Rosemary McAllister was named one of the Significant Boats of 2018 by WorkBoat magazine at the 2018 International Workboat Show in New Orleans. The lead vessel of this four vessel series, the Capt. Brian, was delivered in 2017 by Horizon Shipbuilding Inc.
McAllister is eager to put the new tug into service.
“We are excited and proud to be able to bring the newest level of service to our customers in Charleston," said Capt. Steven Kicklighter, vice president and general manager of McAllister Towing of Charleston Inc. "The Capt. Jim will make a huge difference here. We are receiving 1,200’/14,000-TEU container ships on an almost daily basis. This tug, with her capabilities, will be able to safely handle these ships and even larger ones with exceptional control and power.”
The Capt. Jim is named after James P. McAllister the legendary second-generation McAllister who joined the company in 1885.
