October, 2011 - Volume 1
Hello from the Bahamas! I'm happy to introduce the latest edition of the Bradford Marine Bahamas e-newsletter, and I hope you find the articles here informative and interesting.
 As we move out of the tropical weather season and prepare for the upcoming boat shows, Holidays, and the Caribbean charter season, our team at Bradford Marine Bahamas is busy with several exciting projects and yard improvements. Our commercial side has seen some significant repairs completed on a variety of vessels (see the article below on the Royal Bahamas Defense Force and G&G Shipping), and we are excited about the high level of interest that we have seen from some of our customers regarding our service agreement with Grand Bahama Shipyard.
Most of you know that Bradford Marine Bahamas provides a full line of quality services for yachts, commercial vessels, tugs, sportfishermen, cruisers, and many other types of vessels. What you may not know is that Bradford Marine Bahamas also manufactures concrete floating docks, oil containment booms, and durable canvas and fabric structures. We are also currently completing the construction of a 110' x 40' steel deck barge, and we will continue to further our new construction capability here in the Bahamas.
Make sure to check our our websites for more updates, current listings from our Brokerage, and all the services that we can provide including easy access deep water dockage, and bonded fuel.
bradfordmarinebahamas.com
bradfordmarinebahamasbrokerage.com
Happy Cruising,
Dan Romence
General Manager
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Bradford Marine Bahamas felt well protected over the last three months as the Royal Bahamas Defense Force drydocked and completed routine maintenance on their two 60 meter Patrol Craft. HMBS Bahamas P-60 and HMBS Nassau P-61 are the pride of the Defense Force fleet, and Bradford Marine Bahamas was honored to provide them the service they needed to get these craft back to full readiness to support the Bahamas Government in their activities to protect territorial waters and provide relief to the out-islands that experienced hurricane damage this fall.
 
G&G Shipping has again chosen Bradford Marine Bahamas for dry docking one of the largest cargo vessels in their fleet, the Gulfstream Express. This project was undertaken with additional shift work scheduled so that the repairs can get the boat back to its scheduled run as quickly as possible. Routine welding and paint work was completed, as well as inspection of the propulsion systems per flag requirements. At 235 feet long, the Gulfstream Express is one of the largest vessels that can be hauled out in Diver, Bradford Marine's floating drydock.
 
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 Lone Ranger:
Now operating as an ocean research vessel, the M/Y Lone Ranger spent 5 months alongside Bradford Marine Bahamas in between research voyages. With a draft of 25 feet, the Lone Ranger is a deep-hulled vessel that requires deep water dockage.The owners, managers, and crew were very pleased to be able to have the boat alongside the West Dock at Bradford Marine Bahamas to be able to facilitate their maintenance work, provisioning, and loading of scientific equipment.The crew was also pleased to find the fabric structure and BBQ grille available for use by yacht crews, visiting boat owners and shipyard friends.
You can find information on the research being done by the Lone Ranger through the following link:
schmidtocean.org
 Yacht Storage:
Many sailboat owners and cruisers choose Bradford Marine Bahamas as their long-term storage location due to our ample space, affordable rates, and friendly professional service. Our marine Travelift™ is able to haul out vessels of up to 33 feet beam, which is an exceptional width valued by many catamaran owners and captains for use in haul outs for maintenance as well as long-term storage. One owner was pleased to take advantage of the shrink wrap capability of the yard to have his vessel completly wrapped for storage. Other services offered include hurricane-rated tie down straps, buffing and waxing.
 Mistral:
Tip of the hat to the Classics! The S/Y Mistral, a 64 foot schooner designed by L. Frances Herreshoff and built by Legendary Yachts Inc., was recently hauled at Bradford Marine Bahamas for maintenance of the bottom and topside paint finishes.A beautiful yacht in pristine condition, the Mistral is an excellent example of the vision of Legendary Yachts to bring to reality some of the great designs of the golden age of yacht design.
Link: legendaryyachts.com
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 Bradford Marine Bahamas Brokerage reports brisk sales activity so far this year, including two vessels being shipped to Australia, one sold and shipped already and the other being prepared for departure. Mike Stafford feels that one reason for the increase in activity may be our "Boat of the Week" feature, which focuses on one effectively-priced vessel per week in the Brokerage print and electronic media releases. The synergy between the shipyard and Bradford Marine Bahamas Brokerage is proving to be advantageous for customers who use our yard services and then utilize the Brokerage's network to increase visibility for their vessel for sale.
Bradford Marine Bahamas Brokerage offers free out-of-the-water storage at their Freeport shipyard for qualified yachts and commercial vessels centrally-listed with us for sale. For more information visit www.bradfordmarinebahamasbrokerage.com or call Mike Stafford at 242-727-1176.
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On July 29th, Orfilio Borrego from Risk Control Consulting conducted a scaffolding training and certification class for some of our shipyard employees. This class taught the use of scaffolding on most paint or repair jobs on the dry dock and hard surfaces, including painting. Also, four employees completed their STWC95 (Standard Training & Watch Keeping Certification for Seafarers) which is done every five years to renew their Captain licenses.
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Whilst most school's summer camps on Grand Bahama offer fun activities for their students during the summer, Bradford Marine Bahamas is pleased to be offering tours to students that are not only fun but are very educational as well. St. Vincent de Paul's school recently took students of all ages on tour through the yard. The children visited our Marine Travelift™, Dry Dock, Machine Shop, and Mechanics and Hydraulic Shop. The tour included the display of various skills and jobs that are available to the marine industry. They were surprised to learn that these kinds of jobs are available right here in the Bahamas. They also learned how to be environmentally responsible for our waters, not only in Grand Bahama but throughout the neighboring islands.
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The Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show
- Fort Lauderdale, Florida the "Yachting Capital of the World" will host the 52nd Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show on October 27th - 31st, 2011. Show exhibits range from yacht builders and designers to exotic cars and brokerage yachts which covers five locations and over 3 million square feet of space. This year, like last year, on Friday the 28th, Bradford Marine Bahamas will participate in "Breakfast at Bradford" at Bradford Marine's Fort Lauderdale shipyard. This special event for our customers will feature a fresh breakfast with coffee, cappuccinos and lattes and include a reception and shipyard tour.
Our Capabilities
- Our 1200 tonne dry dock gives Bradford Marine Bahamas the ability to provide quality service to the larger vessels in the Bahamas, and our arrangement with Grand Bahama Shipyard to utilize their 27,000 tonne dry-dock gives us the ability to haul the world's largest pleasure yachts.On the other end of the spectrum, we haul and service small to mid-sized boats on our 150 tonne Travelift™. Many catamarans choose to utilize Bradford Marine Bahamas to haul out due to the width of our Travelift™, which can handle vessels up to 33 feet wide.
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