Crowley welcomed the newest 400-ft by 105-ft, heavy-lift deck barge to its fleet August 29 at a christening celebration at the Gunderson Marine shipyard in Portland, Ore. Micki Harrison, Crowley's regional human resources manager, did the honors, smashing a bottle of champagne on the side shell of the barge 455 7 and sending it hurtling into the Willamette River.
The barge is the fourth heavy-lift deck barge christened by Crowley this year and the seventh in a series of heavy-lift deck barges slated to be built and put into service by 2013.
Crowley's heavy-lift 455 series deck barges with 25-ft side shells provide both the capacity and deck strength needed to accommodate larger drilling and production units used for deepwater offshore energy exploration and development. They provide increased deck strength for loads up to 4,200 pounds per square foot.