Vessel Name: LENA QUINN
Owner: Mulroy Bay Mussels
Type: Catamaran
Built by: Seabound Engineering Ltd
Length: 16.0m
Beam: 6.8 m
Draught:0.5M
Number of Crew: 4
At the end of August Greencastle, Co Donegal was a hive of activity as Seabound Engineering Ltd officially launched their newest vessel build, ‘LENA QUINN’ for the Donegal based company, Mulroy Bay Mussels owned by the Wilhare family.
The Lena Quinn is a twin hull double chined displacement catamaran fitted with an aft wheelhouse and powered by two outboard hydraulic thrusters. Wheelhouse and hull are fabricated from marine grade aluminium. Each hull is divided into four watertight compartments. Around the sides of the hull a solid aluminium fender is provided all the way to two large rubber fenders at the bow.
Lena Quinn is a purpose-built vessel, designed specifically to enhance mussel production. This 16-metre catamaran will allow Mulroy Bay Mussels to scale up their operations, reduce operational costs, and work more efficiently, further strengthening the ability to meet the growing demand for their mussels.
Built in house by Seabound Engineering, The Lena Quinn was designed by Atlantean Marine working in close consultation with owner Johnny Wilhare and boatbuilder Thomas Havlin.
Intemar designed the production systems on board in collaboration with hydraulic specialists SeaQuest Systems.
Lena Quinn is built to P5 licence standards. Structurally the hull was designed to Lloyd’s Register Rules for the Classification of Special Service Craft “G3 Service Group 3”. “G3” means craft intended for service in waters where the range to refuge is 150 nautical miles or less.
The Lena Quinn is designed with a ballast system to enable the vessel to be lowered to a working height for harvesting mussels, which also creates further stability for deck cargo. There are 4 large ballast tanks, 2 forward, 2 mid-ship to assist with heel trim and tow of the vessel while operating.
Vessel propulsion is a 300hp Scania main engine hooked to a hydraulic powerpack, supplied by Hydro Armor, which drives twin hydraulic thrust units mounted Port & Starboard aft of the hulls giving the vessel incredible manoeuvrability in deep and shallow waters. The Main engine room is located on the Portside aft with the Auxiliary engine room Starboard aft.
The spacious main deck has 4 double head Aluminium davits, designed and built by Seabound to streamline mussel harvesting supplemented with a Starboard side forward Hydro Amor Sea Crane type 12.
The wheelhouse is positioned aft to maximise the working deck space and to suit cargo offloading arrangements in Mulroy Bay. The Helm is also raised to provided good visibility when cargo is loaded on the deck. Gross clear deck space forward of the wheelhouse in 84 m2 .
The wheelhouse/ accommodation block includes a galley with bench type seating, a table, a workbench and a sink and storage cabinets plus a crew WC.
Farren Electrical fitted out the wheelhouse with an electronics package and installed and tested the complete electrical systems on board. Millbrook Joinery supplied and installed the vessels décor and Cavanagh Nets supplied the chandlery.
Mulroy Bay Mussels
Mulroy Bay Mussels was established in 1995 by Hugh and Bridget Wilhare, and has been a proud family-run business for over 30 years. Throughout the years, Mulroy Bay Mussels has continually evolved, adapting to advancements in mussel farming technology and techniques. Today, the business is co-managed by their son Johnny, who has served as the farm manager for the past 15 years, ensuring the business remains at the forefront of sustainable mussel production.
Mulroy Bay Mussels now utilises the highly effective New Zealand system for mussel farming. The typical production cycle lasts between 1.5 and 2 years, producing high-quality mussels that are sold both locally in the Irish market and through bulk exports. Mulroy Bay Mussels products can be found on menus in many top restaurants along the Wild Atlantic Way and further afield
Seabound Engineering
Seabound Engineering Ltd located on the harbour in Greencastle, Co. Donegal is an rapidly expanding boatbuilding company, with a client base extending throughout Ireland and the U.K.
Seabound Engineering Ltd is now Ireland’s leading boat-builders of aluminium vessels for the aquaculture and fishing sectors amassing a strong portfolio of vessels since 2020.
In addition to ongoing orders for fishing vessel equipment, aquaculture & fishing vessel builds, and servicing the commercial sector Seabound has rapidly expanded to also serve the Leisure and Offshore Energy sectors
Seabound has dedicated much time to designing these new builds with a great network of naval architects such as Atlantek, Poleson Marine, and Intermar while sourcing worldwide quality components to complete these working vessels to the highest standards for customers.
Seabound Engineering is an SCMS-certified shipyard, ensuring all orders are built to SCMS shipyard standards as well as SCMS Certification.
At last years Scottish Skipper Expo,Seabound Engineering announced the partnership with Poleson Marine Ltd, in Shetland. The partnership means that Seabound Engineering Ltd opened their order books to Irish, UK, and EU customers wanting a Poleson design vessel built by Seabound Engineering. Since the show Seabound has taken orders for both 8 Mtr Catamaran’s and 7 Mtr mono-hull builds.
From the completion of their first vessel build in March 2021, Seabound Engineering has since completed a further 23 builds ranging from 7 Mtr to 16 Mtr vessels, including Ireland’s largest Aluminium Catamaran and Ireland’s first Amphibious vessel build, each build is turn-key ready and built to the requirements for each customer.
Recently Seabound Engineering received two major contracts for a 15Mtr crew transfer vessel and a 24Mtr Mussel Harvesting vessel for the UK.
