Company Profile: Blount Boats
Blount Boats, a manufacturer of workboats, ferries and specialty
vessels, started in Bristol, Rhode Island, 70 years ago. Run by sisters, Marcia
and Julie Blount, the company built a custom 21-meter wind farm crew transfer
vessel called the Atlantic Pioneer. The vessel taxied crew back and forth
during the construction of the Block Island Wind Farm and continues to be used
for operations and maintenance runs.
Marcia Blount, president of Blount Boats, says that the Revolution
and Vineyard Wind Farms will need many boats to accommodate the construction
and maintenance of their wind turbines, but not just any boat will do. The Blount transfer
vessels are built specifically for the construction and maintenance of offshore
wind farms. For instance, they are designed to allow passengers to safely
disembark in rough seas, they are equipped with an elevated tower to allow the
captain to see over any cargo that may be carried on deck, and the catamaran
hull allows the vessel to be operated in shallow depths, such as rivers, where
a traditional boat would run aground.
While Blount Boats may have a specialty in wind farm transfer
vessels, the company’s other vessels are used throughout the world. Bloat boats
may be found ferrying passengers in the New York City bay and throughout New
England, Puerto Rico, and even the South Pacific. Many of the local vessels
will return home every few years to Blount’s dry dock in Bristol for
maintenance and repairs.
Blount Boats has about 40 employees and 30 subcontractors, with
about three-quarters of its workforce living in Rhode Island. Companies such as
Blount are part of the rapidly expanding offshore wind supply chain, which is
expected to bring nearly 1,000 jobs to Rhode Island.