In just three weeks, it will be time for another International WorkBoat Show.
The 37th installment of the show kicks off on Nov. 30 in New Orleans and runs through Dec. 2. Each year, the show is a must for the industry, a chance for companies to show off the latest products and services.
In our annual WorkBoat Show issue that is due out soon, we show off what this industry is all about — building some of the world’s best and most diverse brownwater vessels, from ferries to towboats to tugs to patrol boats and fireboats.
In our annual Boatbuilding Review each year, we feature these vessels and barges — about 50 this year — that appeared in the pages of WorkBoat.
Of these boats, we will once again honor 10 of them in a special breakfast ceremony before the show opens three weeks from today on Thursday, Dec. 1. From these 10 Significant Boats, we will choose WorkBoat’s Boat of Year for 2016. This year’s list includes two fireboats, a tug, a towboat, a passenger vessel, a patrol boat and a pilot boat.
Each year in our show issue, we also highlight the top 10 news stories of the year. Again, the top story is the offshore energy slump. Yes, it continues to be extremely tough for those with close ties to the offshore sector, but there were other big stories out there that highlight the diversity of the workboat industry.
One of these stories was offshore wind energy, which finally got going in U.S. waters in 2016. A year after installing foundations from Gulf Island Fabrication, Houma, La., Deepwater Wind LLC erected five 6-MW GE Haliade turbines at its Block Island, R.I., location. The big part of the story for the workboat industry was on the water, where the first U.S.-built offshore wind crew transfer vessel, the Atlantic Pioneer, was christened in April by Atlantic Wind Transfers of North Kingston, R.I. The $4 million, 70'6"×24'×4' aluminum catamaran was built by Blount Boats at its Warren, R.I., yard and entered service in May. The Atlantic Pioneer is one of our 10 Significant Boats of 2016.
This is just one example of how diversified this industry is. So be sure to sample this diversification at the WorkBoat Show. For more information on the show, visit the show website or call 800-454-3007.
See you there.
