Nichols Boat Company Nearing Completion Of Two Towboats

With a crew of 20 shipyard workers, Nichols Boat Company in Greenville, Miss., usually has no problem scheduling work. It normally staggers construction of the boats in order to even out the workload, but with more than one boat being worked on at the same time, as is now the case, it’s a different story, said Mark Nichols, engineering supervisor.

The shipyard presently has two boats nearing completion, one due out the end of June, and the other, the end of July. The first vessel is for Magnolia Marine Transport Company. At 120.5 by 35 feet, it is a stretch version of the other vessels Nichols Boat has built for Magnolia Marine, which were all 110 by 32 feet. It will be a retractable pilothouse vessel. The other boat, for Jantran Inc., is a sister vessel to the mv. David Choate, which Nichols Boat built for Jantran last year. It is a 114- by 35-foot, 3,400 hp. towboat with kort nozzles.

“It’s a challenge,” said Mark Nichols, referring to having two boats scheduled for completion within a month of one another. “But we’re able to make it work.”