All American Marine to build 500-passenger tour boat

SEPTEMBER 5, 2016—All American Marine, Inc. (AAM), Bellingham, WA, has signed a contract with Argosy Cruises, Seattle, WA, to build a 125 ft aluminum monohull for operation in Puget Sound’s Elliott Bay.

The contract with Argosy Cruises will also mark the first keel laid at All American Marine’s new shipyard currently under construction in Squalicum Harbor at the north edge of Bellingham Bay. AAM will to open the new state-of-the-art 57,000-sq. ft. boat building facility in January 2017. The Port of Bellingham is developing the new site to further support AAM’s ability to take on and pursue larger vessel projects with hulls over 100 ft in length alongside their regular production of mid-sized monohulls and catamarans.

The new monohull will be certified under the latest U.S. Coast Guard Subchapter-K regulations to carry 500 passengers. Argosy selected AAM and Teknicraft Design as the leaders in building high quality and fuel-efficient aluminum vessel designs.

Argosy Cruises President & CEO Kevin Clark, said, “The value of Teknicraft and All American Marine design teams working closely together to build us a quality boat, made the design and construction process absolutely seamless.”

Argosy intends to primarily deploy the new vessel on a route to ferry passengers between their Seattle waterfront location at Pier 55 and their long-standing concession at Tillicum Village on Blake Island State Park. The Tillicum Excursion provides visitors with a Northwest Native American cultural experience inclusive of a narrated cruise, traditional style dining in a cedar longhouse, and live stage performance. The vessel will also be adaptable to provide private event charters, as well as join Argosy’s legendary Christmas Ship Festival fleet.

While on board, passengers will enjoy panoramic windows from both the main deck and second deck cabins. The versatile floor plans of each cabin will offer both fixed and configurable interior seating, elevator accessibility, and fully-equipped service bars. The second deck aft viewing veranda and spacious bow foredeck will provide perfect platforms for capturing selfies or snapshots of Mt. Rainier and the Seattle cityscape. The upper deck features a 360-degree viewing experience, complete with elevated observation and ceremony platform.

Two Scania DI 16-080M main engines will provide propulsion power, with auxiliary power supplied by Northern Lights 65kW and 40 kW generators.

AAM’s CEO, Matt Mullett is proud to partner with Argosy on this project and believes the finished product will be remarkable. Mullett commented, “We have been working hard to reach this point and are truly excited about the comprehensive design and features that this new boat will offer to Argosy while moving the bar for our future designs.”