Designated the ASD Tug 2411, the vessel is the result of extensive market research and intended to compete with some of the recent designs currently being offered by specialists in the small tug field elsewhere in the world. Naval architects from Damen have been working on this new project for over a year and good results from tank-testing at MARIN has led to a prototype being added to the company's production schedule.

The outline specification for the ASD 2411 shows a vessel with an overall length of 24.55m and a beam of 11.49m, with a draft aft of 4.7m. Caterpillar or Wartsila main engines are suggested with a maximum power output of up to 5,500bhp.

Two Rolls Royce Ulstein US 255 fully azimuthing propulsion units are to be installed, giving a bollard pull of up to 65 tonnes.

The heavily fendered vessel is designed, as with most ASDs, to carry out shiphandling from a winch in the bow. Provision is made to install a towing winch aft if required.

Another new product in the Damen range is the ASD Tug 2810. This is a development of the very successful ASD 3111 design built previously for Smit and Howard Smith towage. With a length of 28.74m, the vessel has the same configuration and a similar hull form. A range of engines are offered up to a total of 4828bhp, to give a maximum bollard pull of 56 tonnes. Two such vessels have been ordered by an operator in Italy and one for a company in Denmark.

Prospects for tug deliveries during 2002 look good for Damen. Their production schedule in January showed a total of 45 tugs (of all sizes and types over 12m) earmarked for construction, a substantial increase on last year. Of these 11 will be fully fitted vessels to be held as 'stock', thus allowing almost immediate delivery of popular tug and tug/workboat designs. Clients looking for very short delivery times on a standard Damen product can expect to be offered a completion date just a very few weeks from placing an order. This approach to marketing indicates the growing confidence Damen has in the range of tugs on offer, particularly among the smaller sizes. Such confidence can be attributed to careful market research, feedback from established clients, and confidence in the quality systems that now govern the entire production process. Many companies previously used as subcontractors, producing hulls and major steelwork in particular, have now become an integral part of the Damen Shipyards Group and therefore operate under the same tight production controls as the parent organisation - thus reducing the need for additional supervision by clients representatives.