Maritime activities are centred at the company's marine base in Southampton's Eastern Docks under the control of Director Mr Philip Williams, a fifth generation family member. It was there that Mr Williams described to Maritime Journal the rationale behind the recent purchase of the new tug Wilanne , its remarkably rapid delivery, and other projects coming to fruition. The Williams fleet includes over a dozen barges of various types, involved in a wide range of marine civil engineering and transportation projects, many taking them a considerable distance from their home-port. In order to support this barge fleet and other marine operations an efficient tug fleet has become increasingly important. Although the company have operated small tugs for many decades the necessity for a more powerful vessel to handle the larger pontoon barges had become a pressing issue. To that end the new flagship Wilanne was purchased and the chartered Wilfreedom has been added to the fleet.

Wilanne was delivered by Damen Shipyards of Gorinchem on the 10 May - just one month after the order was signed by Mr Williams. The vessel is a twin-screw Damen Stantug 1605 built and fitted out as a 'stock vessel' by Damen Galatz in Romania and available for rapid delivery in the Netherlands. After preliminary trials the tug was taken into the Damen fitting out hall at Gorinchem and repainted in the livery of Williams Shipping Marine, some additional customisation was carried out and the vessel fully commissioned ready for collection by the company's own crew. Wilanne is a name that has been traditionally associated with tugs of the Williams fleet since the days of a twin-screw, wooden hull, vessel built in 1932 and remaining in service for nearly 45 years.

The present Wilanne is very much a 'standard' Damen product with a lengthy pedigree and turned out with a very high quality finish. An all steel welded hull has an overall length of 16.89m, a beam of 5.29m and draft (aft) of 2.25m. Bureau Veritas Classification 1+ Hull MACH TUG, Coastal Area, incl - tonnage certificate applies, along with British MCA Workboat Code Cat 2. Two Caterpillar 3408C TA/B main engines generate a total of 960bhp to drive a pair of fixed pitch Promarin propellers via Reintjes WAF 164L/5.044:1 gearboxes. The 1300mm diameter, Kaplan 11 style, propellers rotate within Van der Giesen fixed nozzles with stainless steel liners.

On trials this arrangement gave the tug a bollard pull of 12.8 tonnes and a free running speed of 10 knots.

The main engines are keel-cooled and under all normal circumstances are started and controlled from the wheelhouse with all the appropriate alarms.

Electrical power is provided by main engine driven alternators and a dedicated Lister-Stamford LPW4 generator set rated at 11kVA at 230v single-phase 50Hz.

A Mampaey quick release tow hook, with a safe working load of 15 tonnes, is fitted on the usual 'Dutch style bitts' aft and a small windlass on the foredeck handles a pair of 'Pool' high holding power anchors.

The wheelhouse has the usual single, central, control position and is equipped with a Furuno Radar, GPS and Echosounder, Sailor VHF RT 2048 radios with DSC and a Navtex receiver.

Accommodation, with berths for four persons is provided below deck, along with a galley and sanitary facilities. A Dampa acoustic ceiling is fitted in the wheelhouse and thermal insulation and linings are applied throughout the accommodation as appropriate. Both wheelhouse and accommodation are heated and air-conditioned.

Another significant addition to the Williams tug fleet is the Wilfreedom , a Damen Stan Tug 1800 currently on charter. Built by Damen at Gorinchem in 1989 as the Albatros , this twin-screw vessel is 19.36m in length, with a beam of 6,17m and an average draft of just over 2.00m. The tug has been considerably updated and modified and now sports a small flying bridge above the wheelhouse. Two Caterpillar 3408B main engines provide propulsion power, each with a rating of 443bhp at 1800rev/min.

Wilfreedom has a useful bollard pull of 11 tonnes and is equipped with a quick release tow hook.

A substantial push-knee on the bow and a pair of hydraulicallyoperated tension winches enable the tug to push barges effectively, while the raised wheelhouse and additional flying bridge afford good forward visibility over the tow.

Wilfreedom also has the advantage of a large clear after-deck useful for transporting palletised stores and equipment.

The latter is a service frequently provided by Williams to ships lying in the local Nab anchorage.

Other tug/workboats in the company's fleet are the Damen Stan Tug 1 Wilchallenge , Pushycat 42 Wiljay , and the Hofland , all of which are capable of handling barges and other floating equipment in shallow water.

Wilchallenge , a well-fitted twin-screw vessel of 632bhp, was previously the flagship of the tug fleet and has now been largely superseded by the new additions.

Another major acquisition is that of the fast passenger launch Wilventure II . At the time of writing this vessel was about to be redelivered after being subjected to a major reconstruction at the hands of The Holyhead Boatyard in North Wales. Originally one of two former Ministry of Defence Police launches built in 1988, Wilventure II has been completely stripped, re-engined and refurbished to a very high standard. The second vessel has been offered for resale.

The 15m launch is licensed to carry up to 12 passengers and a crew of two and certificated to MCA Workboat Code Cat 2 standards - allowing operation 60 miles from a safe haven.

Included in the reconstruction was the installation of a pair of Scania D19 diesels, running at up to 2200rev/min for a maximum of 704bhp. Power is transmitted through Twin Disc MG-507-1 (1:1.1 ratio) gearboxes to twin three blade fixed pitch propellers, thus achieving a maximum free running speed of 22 knots and cruising speed of 20 knots.

A full outfit of navigational and communications equipment has been installed, including a Furuno radar, Raymarine echosounder and log, a Seiwa 12 inch Chartplotter, and Icom M601, M401 and M3 VHF radios. Accommodation includes the usual passenger and crew seating, and a forward cabin equipped with two berths, a galley, heads and shower facilities.

Also incorporated in the Williams workboat fleet are two multipurpose work vessels of the pontoon type, Wilcat and Wilflow .Wilcat is a road transportable vessel of 14m x 6.4m x 1.2m, fitted with a 23 tonnes/metre crane and grab.

Wilflow is a recently refurbished Damen 'Multi-Cat' of similar dimensions, equipped with a twin-screw propulsion system of 320bhp.

The latter complies with the MCA Workboat Code Cat 3.

Vessels in the Williams 14 strong barge fleet range in size from the well-equipped, self-propelled, workbarge Wilcarry , down to pontoons of just 12m x 5m x 0.9m. Included in this fleet are flat-top barges, flat-top barges with spuds, a 200 tonne lighter and two accommodation barges.