New Workboat Replaces Venerable Nassco Yard Tug

When it came time to replace the venerable Mr. Ed, a yard tug that has served General Dynamics NASSCO for more than 35 years, there was no need to reinvent a proven performer — a couple of tweaks here, an equipment upgrade there and cleaner-burning engines filled the bill.

- Rich Miller

And the San Diego shipbuilder didn’t have to look far to find a production partner. Marine Group Boat Works, located less than five miles from NASSCO, built the new Workboat 38 at its solar powered facility in National City. The 38-footer, designed by Jensen Maritime Consultants of Seattle, is unofficially called Workboat 38. It was still awaiting an official name at press time as it neared completion.

The new boat’s duties will be much the same as Mr. Ed’s: repositioning hulls into dry docks, moving barges, deploying booms and helping to control newly launched ships. Like Mr. Ed, Workboat 38 is compact and has a flying bridge. Unlike its predecessor, the new boat has flanking rudders in addition to conventional rudders for increased maneuverability, and there are closed chocks in the hull form.

The biggest change is in the engine room. Workboat 38 has a pair of Cummins QSL9M Tier 3 diesels delivering a total 810 hp, a bollard pull of 16,000 pounds and a service speed of 8 knots.

“That was one of the drivers, getting cleaner environmentally with the regulations that we have,” said Vincent Magers, dock master for NASSCO in San Diego. “With Mr. Ed, we have the older diesel engines and they’re being regulated more and more out here. What we have in there right now are 1979 Detroit Diesels. They’re workhorses, but they’re old dirty diesels.”