Markey Machine gained a first-ever contract from SAAM Towage to retrofit the controls on a Timberland towing winch aboard the Point Valiant, a tug based mostly in Vancouver, B.C.
SAAM first outlined the challenge to Markey final May, then employed Sentinel Survey, Markey’s after-market service division, to undertake on-site inspection of the winch. Following inspection, Markey provided its Class I winch-control bundle, and SAAM responded with an order close to the tip of December. The winch controls bundle might be supplied in mid-2024.
“Markey’s achievements in workboat winches are widely known, and especially in the sphere of winch control,” famous Pablo Caceres, Engineering and Development Director at SAAM Towage. “We considered use of the original OEM’s controls but wanted to see Markey’s technology in action for ourselves. We’ve sharpened our focus on future supportability and reliability factors, especially with this year’s fleet expansion,” he added, a reference to SAAM’s core give attention to security and reliability, in addition to acquisition of 21 tugs from Brazil’s STARNAV in 2023.
SAAM has two enterprise segments, SAAM Towage and AEROSAN, using over 4,000 folks in 13 international locations. With over 210 tugs based mostly at over 90 ports, SAAM Towage is the most important operator of tugs within the Americas. SAAM, headquartered in Santiago, Chile, is listed on Chile’s Santiago Exchange and is a part of the Dow Jones Sustainability Index Chile and DJSI MILA.
Markey’s CEO Blaine Dempke, mentioned, “We’ve met so many milestones recently, and winning SAAM’s business was an uppermost objective. We are honored by this vote of confidence from Pablo Caceres and the rest of the SAAM Team. We are excited to have gained a new partner in South America.”
Designed by Robert Allan Ltd., Point Valiant was constructed by Ocean Industries Inc. of Quebec within the late Nineteen Nineties. The 24.4-meter tug is powered by twin 2,038bhp Mitsubishi S16R-MPTA foremost engines and has a bollard pull of 45 tonnes.