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Ken Boothe Sr. is a 135-foot push tugwith MaK diesels and a Hydraconnarticulating coupler system.The company’s new barge, SeajonATB, will be competing with a fleet ofseveral dozen or more bulk cargo carrierson the Lakes. The barge’s coupler systemconsists of hydraulically operated pinswith toothed heads that project out fromthe tug’s sides to mate with a recessedand notched groove on each side of thebarge notch. A long ladder of notchesis matched to accept the toothed headsof the tug pins, thus locking the twovessels into synchronous motion. Thetug will thus roll in synch with the barge,but still be able to pitch independently.The system is similar to the couplersystem developed by IntercontinentalEngineering except that its pins arehydraulically operated, while theIntercon system works by extending pinswith a worm gear screw system.In related news, Rand Logisticsreported this past spring that it hadCourtesy Donjon Shipbuildingacquired two veteran self-unloading ATBunits operating on the Lakes for a reportedprice of close to $50 million in cash andpaper. Rand Logistics reported it hadacquired the 5,800-hp tug Olive L. Moorewith its 621-foot barge Lewis J. Kuber, builtin 1952, and the 8,000-hp tug Victory andits 767-foot barge James L. Kuber, built in1953. Both units were described as beingfully booked for the current Lakes tradingseason.Both the introduction of Ken Boothe Sr.and the recent acquisitions by Rand Logisticsindicate the significance that articulated tugbargeshave been playing in the recent GreatLakes maritime economy. •American Tugboat Review 2011 45