Kingston’s Metalcraft Marine has plenty to be happy about heading into the holiday season.
The shipbuilder was recently awarded the “Significant Boat of the Year” award by U.S. publication Workboat Magazine, for Metalcraft Marine’s FireCat 25M boat.
“It is a great accomplishment for any team to win boat of the year and we’re extremely proud of this build,” said Bob Clark, Metalcraft Marine’s contracts manager.
“Something like this has never been done before. Not only can the FireCat 25M replace the old-style tug fireboats for half the cost, but it can also run at twice their speed. We are revolutionizing the concept of what a fireboat is and what it can do!”
According to MetalCraft Marine, thousands of hours were spent building the ship, which can travel at speeds of 32 kilometres per hour and can pump 12,000 gallons of water per minute with its 45-foot water cannons.
Industry peers, readers of WorkBoat Magazine and social media followers vote for the Significant Boat of the Year. The award is considered one of the most prestigious in the workboat industry.
This year MetalCraft Marine was a standout and won 50 per cent of the votes that were received.