UK naval architect firm Walker Marine Design (WMD) has announced that Rockledge Marine Services (RMS) has agreed to be its agent across the U.S. The news comes after the Florida-based company and WMD have worked closely for over a year. RMS is a marine industry consultancy and support services company with an emphasis on the offshore wind farm industry, workboats, high-speed craft, hovercraft and FRP composites.

Officials from both companies said the wind farm sector in the U.S. is due to expand significantly over the next few years and with both companies experience in this market, this partnership has come at a perfect time.

WMD have already had boats built in the UK and Asia, and several vessels are currently under construction for a variety of services. The U.S. market has become the next business step for the company.

“As the U.S. offshore wind industry ramps up, it will be important for US operators to be able to access vessel designs that are already well-proven in the European market,” Jim Cutts the engineering and business development director for RMS, said in a statement announcing the agreement. “We have comprehensive experience in the marine engineering and manufacturing industry and are extremely excited to be officially working with WMD.”

“The wind farm sector is a fast-establishing market in America and so having a representative like RMS is a big advantage for us,”  Nikki Walker, WMD's business development director, said. “We feel our designs will be ideal for the U.S. market and as such we have been speaking with Jim for over a year about this partnership and it’s great to have him on board with the WMD team.”

 

Ken Hocke has been the senior editor of WorkBoat since 1999. He was the associate editor of WorkBoat from 1997 to 1999. Prior to that, he was the editor of the Daily Shipping Guide, a transportation daily in New Orleans. He has written for other publications including The Times-Picayune. He graduated from Louisiana State University with an arts and sciences degree, with a concentration in English, in 1978.