Luedtke Engineering starts process to close business

Frankfort, MI ­­– A marine engineering company based in Frankfort is preparing to close its doors after over 92 years in business.

Luedtke Engineering is in the process of closing, according to Paul Luedtke, president of Luedtke engineering. Luedtke said the company will still be in business for a “couple of years” and that the company is currently downsizing and in the process of selling assets. Luedtke said further information on the company’s planned closure would be released at a later date.

According to the company’s website, Luedtke is a family-owned marine construction company started in 1930 by E.R. “Duke” Luedtke. The company expanded to a fleet of eight tugboats, 20 barges and completed over 1,000 projects on the Great Lakes.

Luedtke Engineering specializes in dredging, marina construction, subaqueous pipeline construction and habitat restoration.

Benzie County Record Patriot

Grayfox sea cadet training vessel sold to Sault Ste. Marie firm

Port Huron, MI – On Sept. 7, 2022, the NSCS Grayfox (TWR 825) was to MCM Marine Inc. of Sault Ste. Marie, MI, which operates a floating drydock and a small fleet of tugs and barges. It is active in the new Soo Lock project.

Grayfox Association, which was acquired the donated vessel in 1996 from the U.S. Navy, was unable to raise funds for drydocking and repairs are required by the U.S. Coast Guard. She arrived at Sault Ste. Marie under her own power last fall.

According to the group, the organization continues to operate the ADM Sherman (38ft Marine Trader), Seafarer (26ft Thompson Fisherman) and Grayfox II (24ft Searay) boats and the NSCS Grayfox Division of Adult Sea Cadets.  The future composition of the association is under evaluation.

The Grayfox began its service in 1985 as one of ten 120-foot Torpedo Weapons Retriever. It was assigned to the U.S. Navy’s Atlantic Undersea Testing and Evaluation Center (AUTEC) on Andros Island, Bahamas.

The Grayfox Association is dedicated to the education and training of youth (and adults) in maritime operations, character, and service.  The organization maintains a strong relationship with the Naval Sea Cadet Corps. The Grayfox Association has sponsored Sea Cadet training events attracting youth throughout Michigan and the United States.

Winter ship repair season begins

Erie, PA  ­– Although Great Lakes sailing peaks in the summertime, the opposite is true for repairs. A summertime lull is over, and crews at DonJon Shipbuilding and Repair are working overtime, racing to complete repairs before the lake locks reopen.

“All the boats come in, they all need to be repaired all at once, so that is definitely when we increase our activities,” said General Manager Rick Hammer.

He says the mild winter offers a mix of benefits and drawbacks. Above-freezing temperatures are great for workers, but a lack of ice is a problem. It might sound backwards, but Hammer says open water is not good news for ship repair crews.

Yes, ships need open water to sail, but every time the water moves, the ship does too.

“When the lake is not frozen, the vessel floats on the water, moves around and heaves, rocking,” he said. “Once it’s frozen, the vessel is basically stationary. It’s a lot easier to maintain a gangway, and when making crane lifts on or off a vessel, it’s not moving around.”

But if a warmer lake is the biggest challenge this winter, Hammer says he’ll be thrilled. After three years of pandemic-related headaches, it’s business as usual along the water, good news as the busy season begins.

“Labor shortages obviously impacted us throughout the bulk of the pandemic, but now, this year, we’ve done very well in getting people, and it’s looking better,” Hammer said.

So while the rest of Erie braces for the cold, DonJon welcomes it, as a cold lake wind carries the promise of a successful season. “The nastier the weather, usually the boat is a little more damaged, and we have a little more work,” Hammer said.

Erie News Now

Lake Superior Ports & Shipping 2022 season summary: Finishing with a flourish, especially iron ore

DULUTH, Minn.— Despite its biggest January throughput since 2010 (1.34 million short tons), total maritime tonnage for the Port of Duluth-Superior finished the 2022 navigation season down 7.6 percent compared to 2021 and down 7 percent against the five-season average.

Some 30.4 million short tons of cargo transited the port this season, including nearly 19 million tons of iron ore, which finished within 2.3 percent of the five-season average. Almost 970,000 tons of iron ore sailed from the port in January, which was the largest January iron ore float for Duluth-Superior since the Duluth Seaway Port Authority shifted to electronic record-keeping in 2003. Approximately 16,000 tons of that ore sailed for export aboard the 1953-built lake freighter Saginaw, which left Superior, Wisconsin, on Jan. 21 at 4:20 p.m. as the latest-departing ship from the Port of Duluth-Superior since 1975. Saginaw crossed Lake Superior and offloaded the iron ore in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, at the Algoma Steel facility located just above the Soo Locks (the locks closed Jan. 16). That shipment was part of more than 5.5 million tons of iron ore that sailed from Duluth-Superior for export during the 2022 season, a 1.9 percent year-over-year increase.

General cargo tonnage provided the season’s biggest highlight, much of it the high, wide and heavy ilk, for example, 260-foot wind turbine blades, a 125-ton Yankee dryer for ST Paper in West Duluth, and other huge industrial pieces that Duluth Cargo Connect received via ship or barge and then moved to sites throughout North America. That general cargo tonnage total more than quadrupled the five-season average, finishing at nearly 118,000 tons, the most for Duluth-Superior since 1986.

Salt tonnage, up 26 percent compared to 2021, and cement tonnage, down from a massive 2021 but still almost 6 percent above the five-season average, also emerged as 2022 highlights, as did the debut of maritime container shipping through Duluth Cargo Connect, which opened a new line of efficient cargo import and export for regional manufacturers, producers and retailers.

Coal and grain posted the season’s biggest declines, down 13 percent and 20.3 percent, respectively, compared to 2021. It was the port’s smallest grain throughput since 1890.

Even with the difficult season for grain, beet pulp pellets emerged as a highlight. Duluth-Superior exported 150,000 tons of beet pulp pellets this season, which was the most since 2014 and an 85 percent increase over last season.

“Grain is a very dynamic commodity in terms of supply, demand, pricing and routing, and the port faced a number of headwinds in 2022, including two years of tightening grain supplies worldwide, further exacerbated by the war in Ukraine, a very strong dollar, extremely elevated transportation costs and competition from other countries’ less expensive wheat,” said Deb DeLuca, executive director of the Duluth Seaway Port Authority.

“On the positive side, 2022 was a terrific season for general cargo tonnage, and while it doesn’t offset grain or coal in total tonnage, those general cargo shipments deliver outsized economic value per ton in comparison, and they also support development of regional industry and greener energy sources, so they represent a big win for our port and our region.”

David Schauer, Lake Superior Ports & Shipping

Winter lay-up drone footage of Mesabi Miner

Green Bay’s extended shipping season concludes

The last ship of the shipping season from the Port of Green Bay set sail on Wednesday.

Dean Haen, director for the Port of Green Bay, says warmer temperatures extended the season.

“The ships have been able to freely travel in and out of Green Bay with minor ice that they’ve been traveling through,” said Haen.

This year’s shipping season is ending, and it is one of the longest-lasting ones on record. The longest a shipping season has lasted was January 28.

“Our last vessels of the season are typically petroleum products coming in diesel, ethanol gasoline moving through the United States venture, and those are obviously consumables for northeast Wisconsin, so it’s the cheapest way to move fuel products into the area,” said Haen.

Officials with the Port of Green Bay say this season has been a good indicator of where things stand at this point in time.

“We are going to be down about 12 to 14 percent compared to last year, so that will be the lowest tonnage years in the last five years, the economy had been doing very good even though Covid, but indications are now that things are slowing down,” said Haen.

The next shipping season will begin in March or April. The Port of Green Bay says they are gathering research to find the economic impact of the port, its findings will be available in 2023.

We Are Green Bay

Algoma getting another bulk carrier from Croatia

Croatia’s 3. Maj gets nod to finish construction of bulk cargo ship for Canada’s Algoma

Croatian shipyard 3.Maj announced recently it received the green light to complete the construction of a bulk cargo vessel for Canadian marine shipping company Algoma Central Corporation.

On January 11, the supervisory board of 3. Maj gave its consent to the shipyard’s director to sign a contract with the Canadian company for completion of the construction of Vessel 527, the shipyard said in a filing to the Zagreb bourse.

In September, the 3. May shipyard said it was buying Vessel 527 for a token price of one kuna. According to earlier media reports, the vessel under construction was part of the assets of bankrupt Croatian shipyard Uljanik.

(1 euro=7.522 Croatian kuna)

SeeNews

Video captures Great Lakes vessels in action

With most ships in lay up, here’s a compilation of drone footage from 2022 by Sam Hankinson.

Ex-USCG cutter Bramble being scrapped in Louisiana

Social media reports indicate the former U.S. Coast Guard cutter Bramble is being scrapped at  Gibson, LA. A photo (see gallery below) shows her in rough shape and missing her main mast and other equipment.

USCGC Bramble (WLB-392) was one of the 39 original 180-foot seagoing buoy tenders built at Duluth, MN, between 1942 and 1944 for the Coast Guard. In commission from 1944 until 2003, she saw service in Pacific, Caribbean and Atlantic waters, as well as the Great Lakes. In 1947 Bramble was present at the nuclear testing at Bikini Atoll, and in 1957 a circumnavigation of North America involved a forced traverse of the Northwest Passage.

The Bramble began to call Port Huron home in 1975, and remained until 2019, even after being decommissioned, and was established as a museum in 2003.

In December 2018 Bramble was sold to Tom Clarke of Roanoke, VA. He announced plans to send the vessel to a Mobile, Alabama, shipyard in spring 2019 to prepare her for a voyage from Miami, replicating the circumnavigation of North America in 1957, including traverse of the Northwest Passage. The plan was cancelled as Bramble’s new owner ran out of funds, and the ship was taken from him to be auctioned off in Mobile. On December 4, 2019 the Bramble was sold at public auction by the United States Marshals Service for $80,000 to M.A.R.S., Modern American Recycling Services Inc.

Port Of Oswego achieves shipping record In 2022, re-establishes itself as Upstate commerce force

OSWEGO, NY – With a record year in 2022, the Port of Oswego Authority ( POA), staked its’ claim as a dominant force in maritime commerce for Central New York, the Great Lakes, and the world. Shipping alone was up over 300% compared to 2021 , said William, Scriber, POA executive director.  Recently, the Port received the U.S. Dept. of Transportation designation as a USDOT Marine Highway, one of only 32 in the United States.

 “Our performance in 2022 firmly establishes us as a Great Lakes commerce force and a gateway to the world. We’re also the gateway from Lake Ontario to the NY State Canal system with the first marine entrance on Lock 8 here in Oswego.”

Francis Enwright, chair of the Port of Oswego Authority board said: “Oswego’s history is maritime and boating. A key focus for our board is always bringing commerce and jobs to Oswego. The economic numbers from the past year bear this out and tell a remarkable success story of how we’ve transformed the Port into an international grain export center, a wind turbine component import hub, a vital aluminum receiver for Novelis, and a major innovator in Great Lakes shipping. This positions us a key player in economic development this year with the advent of new potential customers like Micron. ”

Read the full story here: https://oswegocountytoday.com/sponsored-content/news-from-the-port/port-of-oswego-achieves-shipping-record-in-2022-reestablishes-itself-as-upstate-commerce-force/?fbclid=IwAR2vG7mdcBE_S6mhfFRcM4FcGrgw8Zq-ZQ6x3pIVa39QZgaJcDT05WYX1tw

Milwaukee port project nearing completion 

The final shape of the largest port of Milwaukee investment in more than 60 years is now clearly visible.

The $40 million facility, to be operated by Clinton-based DeLong Company, will be primarily used for exporting a nutrient-rich byproduct from converting corn to ethanol to Europe, the Middle East and Africa. It’s being funded as a public-private partnership between the city, state and federal governments and the private company.

DeLong already coordinates the export of dry distillers grain with solubles (DDGS), via shipping containers and coastal ports, to Asia. But the new complex, formally the Agricultural Maritime Export Facility, will provide a purpose-built facility and logistics network to compete in many more markets. It will also allow DeLong to avoid using shipping containers, which are ill-suited for the moisture-laden product and in increasingly short supply.

The ship loader and stair-wrapped tower are now clearly visible from the Hoan Bridge and other points along the harbor. When complete, the large, overhead system will be used to load up to 40,000 bushels (1,100 metric tons) per hour onto either barges or ships. The facility is located along the inner harbor on the west side of S. Carferry Dr.

Read the rest of this story here: https://urbanmilwaukee.com/2023/01/21/friday-photos-massive-port-project-nears-completion/

Tawas Point Lighthouse remains closed in 2023 for tower restoration, repairs

Repair and restoration work beginning this spring at the historic Tawas Point Lighthouse will pause some of the lighthouse’s public programming through 2023.

The nearly 150-year-old lighthouse, an iconic sight at Tawas Point State Park, is receiving about $500,000 in federal and state funding for the repairs, according to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.

Read the full story here: https://www.mlive.com/news/2023/01/tawas-point-lighthouse-remains-closed-in-2023-for-tower-restoration-repairs.html?fbclid=IwAR3JbHepcTsTYtMmGOvRNPhgN934x2873J6Gg7OAIqv-bjfXFYQ40y5RJ4s

MLive

Great Lakes see near-record low ice for time of year

January has been much warmer than usual, allowing very little ice on the Great Lakes to form yet this winter season.

Every single day so far this month has been at or above freezing, with less than an inch of snow accumulating so far.

Lake Michigan typically sees maximum ice coverage sometime in the first half of February.

Many of our recent winters have featured low lake ice early in the season. Last winter season also started on a slow note but saw a rapid acceleration towards the end of January with ice concentration climbing to the 34% range during the middle of February.

It’s not impossible for big jumps in ice concentration to occur. Very cold stretches of weather or shots of cold air from a polar vortex event can be enough to add on the ice at a fast pace. Lake Superior, Lake Huron, Lake Ontario and Lake Erie are all also near record low for this time of year.

Lake Erie often sees erratic ice gains and losses through a winter season, so it is less remarkable that it is at a low currently.

Lake Superior’s low ice is more remarkable. It is the deepest Great Lake, but due to its far northerly location it usually is around 15% this time of year. As of now, it is sitting at 2.7%.

The last several winters have been slow to deliver on Great Lakes ice concentration. The last time Lake Michigan was able to top 50% ice concentration for the season was 2018-2019.

A flip to colder weather is expected towards the end of January into early February. While the exact forecast is not set in stone, a lean towards colder than average is looking much more likely than continued warmth, a good sign for snow lovers.

WoodTV8

Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding to build wind farm service operational vessel

You will see more activity soon on Sturgeon Bay’s working waterfront. Fincantieri Marine Group announced Wednesday that it would be building a 288-foot vessel at its Bay Shipbuilding location in Sturgeon Bay. The contract is with a joint venture between Crowley and ESVAGT. The ship will be a Service Operational Vessel (SOV)  that will transport technicians to service and sustain the operation of wind turbines at sea in the United States.

The building of the HAV 832 SOV vessel will allow it to be in service by 2026 and serve the Dominion Energy wind farm off the coast of Virginia.

Fincantieri Marine Group CEO Marco Galbiati said, “We are proud to be associated with important ‘green’ projects like this.

Several LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) bunkering barges are currently being built at Bay Shipbuilding, and more Winter Fleet vessels are arriving this month for service.

Fincantieri Press Release

Ashtabula/Defiance end Soo Locks Shipping Season

The Soo Locks are officially closed to shipping traffic as of 10 a.m. today, Monday. They were originally scheduled to close at 11:59 p.m. Sunday night, but the tug/barge Ashtabula/Defiance left Superior, WI, late due to loading and weather delays

The tug/barge closed out the 2022-2023 navigation season carrying the season’s final load, 24,680 long tons of taconite, which was headed for Burns Harbor, IN.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which operates and maintains the locks, makes exceptions such as this to keep the locks open a little longer to make sure late-running vessels lock through.

Only one operating laker is left above Gros Cap, the Saginaw loaded with iron ore for Algoma Steel. After she unloads late Monday, she will make another run up to Superior, WI, for another cargo of ore for the steel plant. She will lay up at either Algoma or at Thunder Bay.

Some 150 employees will now focus on the needed repairs and updates to the larger Poe Lock and the smaller MacArthur Lock. “Crews will be in today to set the bridge across the Poe Lock. That will be the first step,” Jeff Harrington, Sault Project Office Operations Branch Chief said.

“And with that in place, and some of the other preparations that are already being made, they are removing deck plates and removing snow and ice.” Harrington added that the construction of the new Soo Lock will continue as planned through the winter.

TV 9&10, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District

Tug Seahound sinks at Port Maitland

The McKeil Marine/Nadro Marine Services tug Seahound has sunk at Port Maitland, ON. Images on social media Monday showed her mostly submerged, with a crew working to mediate any pollution and determine a salvage plan. No further details are known at this time. The 65-foot tug was built in 1971, and is active in the Welland Canal area, often assisting vessels headed for scrap at Marine Recycling Corp. at Port Colborne.

Vision being developed for fledgling Great Lakes Authority

The Great Lakes region is in the early stages of knitting together economic development, transportation, and environmental improvement programs in a way that could leverage more federal investment and foster networking between academic and private-industry researchers.

But several people interviewed about the new Great Lakes Authority agree the success or failure of it will hinge on how ambitious and visionary it becomes as it is put together over the next couple of years.

“The devil’s in the details,” said Mark Fisher, chief executive officer of the Council of the Great Lakes Region in Cleveland.

For starters, the recently approved Great Lakes Authority will need to overcome somewhat of an identity crisis and distinguish itself from the similar-sounding Great Lakes Water Authority, created in 2016 as an independent body to streamline response to water and sewage programs in Detroit and other southeast Michigan communities.

That particular regional authority has a 40-year license for control of the financially strapped Detroit Water and Sewer Department, as well as major water mains, sewage interceptors, and related facilities for $50 million a year.

Read the rest of this story here: https://www.toledoblade.com/local/environment/2023/01/15/vision-being-developed-for-fledgling-great-lakes-authority-that-congress-approved/stories/20230113112

Soo Locks closing for seasonal repair on Sunday

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Detroit District announced that the Soo Locks in Sault Ste. Marie will close for seasonal repairs and maintenance on Sunday, Jan. 15.

The locks will close to marine traffic at 11:59 p.m. on the 15th, or until traffic through the locks ceases. They will reopen at 12:01 a.m. on March 25.

Read the full story here: https://www.9and10news.com/2023/01/13/soo-locks-closing-for-seasonal-repair-on-sunday/

World Ship Society report of casualties, demolitions

Vessels with a Great Lakes / Seaway connection reported as a casualty or sold for demolition. Taken from the January 2023 issue of Marine News – Journal of the World Ship Society.

Casualty: The littoral combat ship WICHITA (LCS-13) suffered a propulsion plant failure on 19th of October. It is not thought to be a similar issue that has plagued other Freedom-class ships in recent years, but was serious enough to be classed as a Class A mishap which involves damage exceeding $ 2.5 million. WICHITA returned to her homeport of Mayport, Fl., two days later under her own power (1st Seaway transit 2018 delivery trip from Finncantieri yard at Sturgeon Bay, WI. to Mayport, FL).

Sold for Demolition: LINDA STAR (8312100; Panama) (ALPHA-13, ISLAND TRIANGLE-09, ISLAND GEM-07 – 1st seaway transit 1985) – 17,065 / 1984 – bulk carrier.  By Jet Shipmanagement Marshall Islands, to New Choice Enterprises Pakistan, and arrived Gadani Beach 19.10.2022. Commenced demolition 1.11.2022

Report compiled by Barry Andersen and René Beauchamp

Coast Guard flies out to Great Lakes’ tallest lighthouse to make repairs after storm

Northern Lake Michigan – When your lights aren’t working and you are having technical difficulties, you punch in the number of your trusty tech guide or repair person. But when it happens to a pair of remote lighthouses in northern Lake Michigan in the middle of winter, you call in the U.S. Coast Guard.

A helicopter crew from the Coast Guard’s Air Station Traverse City recently worked with an Aids to Navigation Team from Coast Guard Sector Sault Ste Marie to get things working again at two lighthouses in Northern Michigan: the Grays Reef Light and the White Shoal Light.

White Shoal is a well-known landmark with its iconic red-and-white candy cane paint job. At 121 feet, it’s the tallest lighthouse in the Great Lakes. It’s also an active Aid to Navigation on the lakes. White Shoal’s location – about 20 miles west of the Mackinac Bridge – also makes it the most remote light in Lake Michigan.

Read more and view images at this MLive link: https://www.mlive.com/news/2023/01/coast-guard-flies-out-to-great-lakes-tallest-lighthouse-to-make-repairs-after-storm.html?utm_campaign=aanews_sf&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwAR2fx83orkASv-NkMNg5pydg2r-k1Cm–cw4LyOO1zNiA0CA7mSY3f6OeB0

VIDEO: CCGS Griffon breaks ice at Midland, ON

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uv1j3aBoV8

St. Marys River Channel Closures

Sault Ste. Marie, Mi – In accordance with 33 CFR 162.117, Vessel Traffic Service St. Marys River will close the West Neebish Channel and Pipe Island Passage (East of Pipe Island Shoal and North of Pipe Island Twins from Watson Reef Light to Sweets Point). The channels will close effective 0800 EST on 17 January 2023. Alternating one-way traffic will be established in the Munuscong and Middle Neebish Channels. The Pipe Island Course will become a two-way route.

The Coast Guard would like to remind all recreational ice users to plan their activity carefully, use caution on the ice, and stay away from shipping channels.

USCG

Jackie Q. Carter to Serve as Director at Port Milwaukee

Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson has selected Jackie Q. Carter to serve as Municipal Port Director. In this position, Carter will direct commercial and recreational operations at Port Milwaukee, oversee a staff of 20 people, and administer Foreign Trade Zone No. 41. The appointment is subject to Common Council approval.

A lifelong resident of Milwaukee, Carter has worked in the local non-profit and public sector for more than 20 years. She most recently served as the Finance & Administration Officer for Port Milwaukee, where she provided oversight of all Port business operations, including its financial, human resource, and administrative functions. She has been integral in helping to shape the department’s strategic planning and grant funding efforts.

Upon confirmation, Carter will become the first woman, and the first Black person to serve as Director of Port Milwaukee. She will also be the only Black person to serve as director of a port authority in the State of Wisconsin.

“I am honored to select Jackie Q. Carter for this historic appointment to lead Milwaukee’s port,” Mayor Cavalier Johnson said. “After listening to applicants with expertise from around the world, Jackie is simply the best choice to carry out the Port’s mission of promoting commerce and supporting the local economy. I am confident Jackie will accelerate the excellent work underway at Port Milwaukee.”

Carter earned a Master of Business Administration with an emphasis in Public Administration from Concordia University. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Alverno College, with a double major in Business & Management and Professional Communication. She is a wife, mother, and minister who plays an integral role in reshaping the spiritual and socio-economic legacy of her family and community.

Carter succeeds former port director Adam Tindall-Schlicht, who was appointed the Administrator of the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation