Trawling for Scrap Metal
Cummins Vessel Reference #626
It looks like a typical Gulf of Mexico double-rigged shrimp trawler. However at 110 by 28-feet she will be bigger than most shrimpers. Like her sister, the Poncho, delivered in 2009 (see Cummins Hotips#576), the new vessel is also built with robust framing and extra power. Like the Poncho, the as yet unnamed vessel, will be trawling for scrap metal, old tires and any other scrap is at the site of a decommissioned oil rig.
The work, mandated by US Mineral Management Services in 1990, requires the site to be cleaned to the point that it can be safely trawled by typical Gulf shrimp gear. To get the site to this level of cleanliness the vessel owners, B & J Martin, use their proprietary Gorilla Net®. The gear employs a weave of 3/4-inch combination cable at the opening with a body made of twine five-times the strength of a standard trawl net. The boat tows two of these 80-foot nets each capable of recovering up to six tons of waste.
To manage a “catch” of this magnitude requires a lot of power. For this work, a pair of Cummins K38-M EPA Tier 2 certified engines turning into Twin Disc #MGX-5321 gears, with 5.96:1 ratios, power the boat. As installed in the new vessel these mechanical tier 2 engines are each rated for 850 hp at 1800 RPM. Deck winches include a CME Model 2FH-505-038-579 Double Drum Hydraulic as well as a CME Model 1A11-100A3-1-00 Single Drum Hydraulic Anchor winch.
The boat, designed by Joseph Rodriguez and built by Rodriguez Boat Builders, has a 3,000 cubic foot hold capacity. Tankage is provided for 30,000 gallons of fuel in seven separate tanks. Another three tanks hold up to 8,000 gallons of water, while two more tanks hold up to 750 gallons of lube oil.
For more information:
Mr. Jimmy Martin
B & J Martin, Inc.
Phone: 985 632 2727
Fax: 985 632 4481
Web: www.bjmartininc.com
Mr. Joseph Rodriguez
Rodriguez Boat Builders
14843 Alba Ave.
Coden, AL 36523
Phone: 251 824 4067
E-mail: joserodrig@aol.com
Mr. Larry Neff
Cummins Mid-South Inc.
1924 E I-65 Rd N
Mobile AL 36617
USA
Phone: 251 895 1590
E-mail: larry.e.neff@cummins.com
Alan Haig-Brown
Over 30 years as an author for global commercial marine and fishing publications backed with hands-on experience on commercial fishing boats and coastal freighters makes Alan Haig-Brown uniquely qualified to provide vessel reference articles for Cummins Marine. You can find him in shipyards around the world, and on his own website, www.haig-brown.com.
