MULTIMISSION WORKBOATS
30’ Fire Boat built for Baytown, Texas Fire Department
North River Boats By Eric Haun
O
ne of the United States’ largest and most productive heavy-gauge aluminum boat builders has been humming along at its recently expanded manufacturing facility in Roseburg, Ore. Last spring, North River Boats added a new 33,750 square foot manufacturing building to house all commercial and large boat recreational fabrication. Additional remodeling of the existing factory was completed shortly after to expand small boat fabrication. The yard relocation of its canvas/upholstery
shop and received new paint preparation bays, a new 65-foot down draft paint booth, expanded outfitting bays, and solar panels installed on both the new building and existing factory. The upgrades have helped North River Boats set pace to build just over 300 vessels this year for a combination of commercial, government and recreational customers. Its current orderbook includes a mix of vessels ranging from fire, pilot and patrol boats to charter fishing vessels. “North River Boats has a very diverse strategy that includes offering several different boat models to many different market segments,” says Mike Blocker, the builder’s sales director. “We are also a very customer-oriented company with the ability and the willingness to build very custom vessels to exactly meet our customer’s needs. Over 15% of the commercial boats we build annually are highly customized to the point of being totally new builds each and every time,” Blocher says. Much of the company’s current vessels in production and on order fit into a specific part of the marine market. “Demand for patrol/mulitmission workboats seems to be hold-
A 27’ Alaska Fish & Game patrol boat 32 MN
June 2020
