The recognition ceremony took place at Conrad's Amelia, La., facility. Ken Hocke photo
Conrad Shipyard LLC, Morgan City, La., held a first-in-class recognition ceremony in July at Conrad’s Amelia, La., shipyard for the new 151'4"×49'4"×14' yard, repair, berthing, and messing (YRBM) barge — YRBM 57 — for the U.S. Navy.
Back in 2022, Conrad signed a contract worth up to $140 million to build up to eight YRBMs.
A YRBM barge provides a temporary home away from home and workplace for service men and women whose vessels are in port for repairs and/or maintenance.
Though Conrad Shipyard has been in existence since 1948, this is the yard’s first U.S. Navy contract. YRBMs are not technically considered naval vessels.
“What you guys out here are doing matters,” the Navy's Capt. Gregory Mitchell told the shipyard’s workers during his remarks. “This barge will take the place of a barge that’s 60- to 70-years old.”
Conrad’s YRBMs incorporate functional spaces which are designed to allow the sailors to work, sleep and eat comfortably.
YRBM 57, which has a full load draft of 6'8", an air draft of 60'11", and a full displacement of 1,270 LT, is an American Bureau of Shipping A1 accommodation barge that provides pier-side living accommodations capable of berthing 199 duty crew mixed-gender personnel, messing for 300, and space for medical offices, classrooms, workspaces, laundry rooms, storerooms, and lounge areas.
“We went through builders’ trials recently,” said Mitchell, “and it was one of the best builders’ trials I’ve ever been a part of. Our expectations were far exceeded.”
Among the YRBMs features are a 12-person officers’ mess, 12-person chief petty officer mess, 60-person enlisted mess, five-person medical examination area, four-person medical officer’s office, five-person officer’s lounge, nine-person chief petty officers’ lounge, 24-person enlisted lounge, classrooms for 72 personnel, and a 25-person conference room.
The contract is the first U.S. Navy contract in the shipyard's long history. “This is an historic event in the history of Conrad Shipyard,” Dan Conrad, the shipyard’s senior vice president, said in his remarks.
YRBM 57 will move on to San Diego for additional outfitting before eventually making its home in Japan.
Ken Hocke has been the senior editor of WorkBoat since 1999. He was the associate editor of WorkBoat from 1997 to 1999. Prior to that, he was the editor of the Daily Shipping Guide, a transportation daily in New Orleans. He has written for other publications including The Times-Picayune. He graduated from Louisiana State University with an arts and sciences degree, with a concentration in English, in 1978.
