For over 70 years, Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation, has built exceptional steel and aluminum commercial vessels. Located on the Taunton River in Somerset, Mass., the family-owned and operated shipyard counts more than 446 vessels built as proof of its longevity and vessel reliability.
In 1955, at the age of 22, George Duclos co-founded the yard with Pret Gladding and Richard Hearn, and bought out his partners in 1983. Today, the second generation of Duclos family members leads the shipyard into the future.
The Gladding-Hearn brand is synonymous with pilot boats, with more launches operating in the United States than any other shipyard. After building pilot boats designed by Pret Gladding for more than two decades, the yard joined forces with designer C. Raymond Hunt Associates in 1978 to build the first launch with a deep-V hull, soon to become the industry standard.
Gladding-Hearn’s capabilities also include construction of tugs, wind-farm crew transfer vessels, fireboats, police/patrol boats, research vessels, monohull ferries, and, since 1987, high-speed catamaran passenger ferries. As a licensee of designer Incat Crowther in Australia, Gladding-Hearn became the second shipyard in the country to build high-speed catamarans that performed as promised and has since built the lion’s share of fast cats on the East Coast and the Great Lakes. The shipyard built the first commercial application of Volvo Penta’s IPS drives in the United States, enabling its pilot boats to achieve higher speeds, improved comfort, and fuel conservation. The yard also delivered its first crew transfer vessel (CTV) to Patriot Offshore Maritime Services. The 88-foot vessel operates year-round, providing transportation service for 24 offshore workers and equipment to support the construction and O&M phases of offshore wind projects on the U.S. East Coast.
“From our chairman and other board members to our staff, we couldn’t be more pleased with how this vessel came out. We look forward to the improved comfort, reliability and the better sea-keeping ability than our other vessels.”
—Wayne Lamson, General Manager
Woods Hole, Martha’s Vineyard & Nantucket Steamship Authority