A mix-and-match method for building boats: Washington's Munson Co. uses four basic designs to prosper in manufacturing of aluminum vessels - Marine Propulsion

Diesel Progress North American Edition,  March, 2002  by Mark Clevenger

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A variety of aluminum boat builders in the United States continue to find a surprisingly fertile market for small craft using a wide range of diesel and gasoline inboard and outboard motors, with propulsion increasingly employing jet drives and four-cycle outboards. Most of the boats headed for workboat service are built of heavy marine aluminum alloy and feature well developed hull forms. Most also employ internal structures and monocoque techniques that allow builders to claim hardiness and toughness. So how do the more successful builders compete in this very competitive market?

For the William E. Munson Co., Mount Vernon and Edmonds, Wash., the answer, developed over more than a generation of boat building, has been a unique "mix-and-match" philosophy of offering scores of predesigned and prepriced options that allow customers to customize boats using catalog pages.

Lists of options to basic hulls is standard in the industry. But few manufacturers have developed the practice to the extent as has Bill Munson. Munson has designed and built more than 2000 aluminum boats, most from four essential lines: the Packman monohull landing craft; the Packcat catamaran landing craft; the Chinook standard work and pleasure cruiser; and the Alaska Packer, an aluminum/fiberglass skiff Munson, who has a talent for the catchy word to promote his products, terms this an "alumiglass" boat.

The Munson story started many years ago. Bill Munson began fishing in Alaska as a teenager. In off seasons, he built aluminum boats in his backyard in Edmonds, Wash., on order. Eventually, he established Munson Manufacturing in Edmonds. His development of the "mix-and-match" buildup of boats owes much to his work under contract with the General Services Administration. A manufacturer's products are approved for purchase at set prices, prices which agencies can pay without the need for supplier bids. Builders gain approval from the GSA and products are listed in the GSA catalog. It is the way the GSA tries to realize economies of scale for all government agencies. Munson and his designers were able to develop economical fabricating and assembly methods, and track material and man-hour costs for each boat and option.

Many of the Munson boats are powered by outboards. However, a substantial number of the boats utilize inboard/outboard (IOs) and inboard jet-drive systems. An occasional customer will specify smaller inboard diesels as well.

Munson said that he bases his recommendations for propulsion on a number of factors -- size of vessel, its designed mission, and, of course, customer desires. However, he added, other considerations include what the customer is familiar with and extent of dealer and maintenance support in the areas in which the vessel will be used. This is all the more important, he said, when a vessel will be working in remote areas of the world.

Designed in 1984, the Packman has a deep vee monohull and wide forward chines with a 33[degrees] forefoot dead rise. Dead rise at the transom is 12[degrees] or 16[degrees]. Power options include single or twin outboards, IOs, and inboard jet drives. His catalog lists more than 100 standard outfitting options. Munson recently delivered five 34 x 12 ft. tenders for use on the icebreakers operated by the U.S. Coast Guard. The craft are termed Landing Craft Vehicle-Personnel (LCVP). They are installed on the USCG WAGB Polar Class vessels and the new WAGB-26 Healy. They have 6 x 6 enclosed cabins. Twin 230 hp Volvo KAD43-DP diesel IOs provide a 40 knot top speed and a 23 knot cruising speed burning under 10 gal. of diesel per hour. The 7 ft. wide bow door and 18 ft. cargo deck are used to transport cargo and crew to and from shore.

The LCVP on the Healy has a 10 x 12 cabin fitted with a galley, bunks, and a science station to allow the boat to undertake overnight missions in the ice. Outfitting includes a Northern Lights 8 kW diesel generator, True Charge multistage battery charger, davit with 12 V winch, microwave, fresh water system, head, and a diesel cabin heater.

A further sampling of the diverse versions of the Packman vessels includes:

* A 21 ft. boat for rapid response boom deployment along the world's longest pipeline, stationed in Kazakhstan, Russia.

* A 21 ft. vessel with a 150 hp Volvo AD31 diesel IO sent to the Mediterranean.

* A 21 ft. boat used for water quality and sediment research on the Columbia River.

* A 28 ft. boat in Alabama that is powered by a 315 hp Cummins 68TA turbodiesel coupled to a Hamilton 274 jet drive that will transport fill-sized vehicles.

* A 27 ft. vessel powered by a 230 hp Volvo KAD43 diesel used for halibut long lining in Alaska.

* A 28 ft. boat powered by a 250 hp Yanmar 6LPM-DTZE diesel with Bravo III sterndrive used for ferry service to Decatur Island in Washington.

A company in Juneau, Alaska, used a 32 ft. Packman to transport a backhoe excavator to isolated worksites in southeast Alaska. A Special Forces 32 ft. Packman has a fly bridge and will carry up to 8500 lb. at 50 knots, including such cargo as a 5000 lb. Navy Seal deep-diving mini submarine. It is powered by twin 650 hp gas turbine engines coupled to Mercury Speed-master sterndrives.