The Business of Camden Shipping
Based in Port Elizabeth, New Jersey, near where the Maurice River enters Delaware Bay, Camden Shipping is a long-established marine transport company that has remained singularly focused on waterborne cargoes and, eventually, petroleum products.
The Camden Fleet
Beginning 1993, Camden acquired or constructed a total of 14 articulated tug barges (ATB’s). In addition, the company operates four product tankers. All 18 vessels are dedicated to freight operations for refined petroleum products and non-hazardous chemicals. The product tankers are all Jones Act vessels of the Carlsbad class, with capacities limited to the range 240,000 to 300,000 barrels. The specifications for this vessel class are: Length overall (LOA) = 658.5′ x Beam = 100′ x Depth or Draft = 49.5′ x Displacement = 33.3′. A diesel power plant rated at 13,000 shaft horsepower attains normal cruising speed of 15.5 knots (NASSCO/General Dynamics Corporation, 2010).
Articulated Tug Barges
The ATB is essentially an ordinary barge propelled by a high-powered tug that provides forward power from the stern via an articulated or hinged link embedded in a notch on the barge (Crowley Maritime Corp., 2003a). At Camden, all ATB’s are equipped with the Intercon Coupler System, a “rigid and mechanically locked…coupling… accomplished with two independently mounted ram assemblies (and) gear driven… The rams stroke transversely, engaging the vertical ladder structures incorporated into both walls of the stern notch.” (Intercontinental Engineering – Manufacturing Corporation, n.d., para 2). As a result, the two vessels can pitch independently (to allow for wave motion) but manoeuvring is rather more slowly done.
Compared to the traditional towed-barge arrangement, the ITB set-up boasts tangible operating efficiency and safety because both vessels nearly always move at the same speed whereas a towed barge continues in motion even when the tug is already at full-stop. Secondly, a new barge (and therefore, new capacity for the freight company) can be constructed more quickly and without the capital cost of a power plant, bridge and crew quarters for Carlsbad-class tankers (Crowley Maritime Corp., 2003b). Thirdly, the shipper has logistical efficiency for mating tugs to barges wherever market demand is greater.
The Petroleum and Chemical Transportation Business
The vessel size and seaworthiness of the Camden fleet means that they are essentially limited to servicing the US Gulf and East Coast markets. This basically means the Mississippi River system that permits access from St. Louis to as far west as Corpus Christi (via the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway), north to Minnesota, Chicago, the Lake Michigan environs (thence as far as the Ontario ports), and Pennsylvania. Operating from the Gulf Coast is strategic for Camden because the major propane hub is in southern Texas; as well, a great volume of either crude or diesel enters Gulf Coast ports from producer-nations in Central and Southern America (U.S. Energy Information Administration, 2010).
Regulatory Matters
Whether oceangoing or confined to coastal waters, all vessels are subject to Coast Guard inspection for safety and completeness of equipment (United States Coast Guard, 2010). The Camden fleet conforms to the original Jones Act definition of “covered vessels”, i.e. “a structure designed for and being used for the transportation of passengers, cargo or equipment across navigable waters”. Being U.S.-flagged and hiring only American citizens for its crews, the ATB’s and tankers are allowed to transit the inland waterways. Crews are also entitled to injury benefits under the Jones Act (Ogletree Abbott Law Firm, L.L.P, 2008).
References
Crowley Maritime Corp. (2003a). What is an ATB? Web.
Crowley Maritime Corp. (2003b). Advantages of ATBs. Web.
Intercontinental Engineering – Manufacturing Corporation (n.d.). Tug-barge couplers. Web.
NASSCO/General Dynamics Corporation. (2010). Commercial ship portfolio. Web.
Ogletree Abbott Law Firm, L.L.P (2008). Jones Act: Merchant Seaman Protection and Relief 46 USCS Appx § 688 (2002) Title 46. Appendix. Shipping Chapter 18. Web.
United States Coast Guard (2010). Missions: Ready today…preparing for tomorrow. Web.
U.S. Energy Information Administration. (2010). Gulf of Mexico factsheet.