by Hans – TowingLine.com
An expert in ocean and coastal towing, Smith Maritime, needed
dependable diesel power when its 90 ft Elsbeth III was in need of repowering
prior to towing the 520 ft USS Hoyt S. Vandenberg to the Florida Keys. The Vandenberg was sunk six miles offshore,
becoming Florida’s largest artificial reef.
The company turned to Laborde Products, who had previously supplied
Smith Maritime with Mitsubishi heavy-duty marine propulsion engines and ordered
three new 1,180 hp Mitsubishi S12R-Y1MPTA engines. elizabeth-ii
"We’re 100% satisfied with these engines,” said Capt. Latham
Smith, Smith Maritime founder. "They’re
quieter and very responsive. The engine
room is even cooler now.”
The vessel’s maiden voyage with the new engines began in
Jacksonville, Florida continued to Norfolk, Virginia and ended in Key West,
Florida. The Elsbeth III traveled over
1,498 nautical miles. Equipped with a
Mitsubishi S16-MPTA as center main engine supplied by Laborde, another Smith
Maritime deep sea tug, Elsbeth II, served as the lead vessel for the sinking of
the Vandenberg.
"We’ve worked with Laborde in the past when powering other
vessels, such as the Elsbeth II, and they’ve always been first-class people,”
said Smith. "They respond quickly to
parts orders and our calls for information, while providing great support for
their products. If a problem ever
arises, they go all out to correct it.”
Elsbeth III continued 3,827 nautical miles from Key West to
Ensenada, Mexico to pick up a 300′ construction barge and will
route back through the Panama Canal and travel 4,598 nautical miles to Oran,
Algeria. By the time the tug returns to
homeport in Green Cove Springs, Florida, she will have covered over 17,000
nautical miles with very few stops and three, new reliable Mitsubishi engines.
Smith Maritime’s vessels operate primarily between the US,
Caribbean and South America. Throughout
its 38 years, it has towed craft of every description all over the world. The company designed its four tugs, Elsbeth,
Elsbeth II, Elsbeth III and Rhea, with maximum horsepower packaged in a stable,
shallow draft hull.