Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Company held a naming ceremony for its new trailing suction hopper dredger Galveston Island today.
The new dredger – the first of two new 6,500 cubic yard capacity TSHDs – was built by Conrad Shipyard at its Deepwater South shipyard in Amelia, Louisiana, USA.
According to GLDD, the dredger is equipped with a direct high-power pump-ashore installation, dredging system automation, dynamic positioning and tracking, U.S. EPA Tier 4 compliant engines, and has capabilities of running on biofuel to minimize the environmental impact.
“ The Tier 4-compliant engines significantly reduce the vessel’s climate footprint, while other incorporated features minimize turbidity and marine species entrainment ,” said GLDD.
The newly built Galveston Island will replace one of the older hopper dredges in the Great lakes fleet, Terrapin Island, which was taken out of service after more than 40 years in operation.
This will be the third GLDD vessel fitted with VOSTA LMG DCMS , designed to control and monitor all dredging equipment onboard the vessel.