C&C Expanding With 24 Acres, Adds Spool Shop

Belle Chasse, La.-based C&C Marine and Repair, a builder of towboats, tugboats, dredges, offshore supply vessels, barges and other marine craft, has grown its footprint with the addition of 24 acres and the development of a fully automated spool shop.

According to the shipyard, the facility will be the most advanced spool fabrication operation in the United States. The project is designed to accelerate production for current projects, while also opening the door for expanded participation in government-related marine construction projects.

“Expanding our footprint by 24 aces is a strategic investment in capacity, technology and the long-term needs of our customers,” said Tony Cibilich, owner of C&C Marine and Repair. “This spool shop is designed around automation and precision — so we can deliver more spools faster, with tighter tolerances and stronger documentation and traceability.”

Pipe spools, prefabricated sections of piping that are assembled in a controlled shop environment, offer improved quality control and schedule performance compared to fabrication in the field. The spool shop at C&C will feature an integrated, automation-first workflow including a pipe blasting machine, indoor paint booth, pipe bending machines, saw CNC machine, a custom beveling CNC machine, custom computer-automated feeding racks, a plasma cutting machine and advanced fit-up stations.

The shipyard expects housing more pipe-fitting work in a digitally controlled shop to reduce manual bottlenecks, particularly with measuring, alignment and fit-ups. The efficiency gains will support more aggressive project scheduling.

The 24 acres will also allow additional space for new construction bays, staging areas and production flow. The new acreage also strengthens C&C’s readiness for government-related new construction programs by allowing room for bay expansion that can accommodate larger and more complex builds, improved laydown and logistics and operational separation often required to execute multiple contracts simultaneously.

Construction on the spool shop is expected to be complete by the third quarter of 2026, with the shop operating at full capacity by the end of this year.

Beyond the spool shop, C&C Marine and Repair is in the midst of a four towboat build series for Canal Barge Company. The first in that series, the mv. Al Sloss, was delivered in January. The second, the mv. Deborah H. Valentine, was delivered earlier this month. The final two will be delivered in two-month intervals. The vessels, which measure 87 feet by 33 feet, 8 inches, offer 2,600 hp. from a pair of Mitsubishi Tier 4 main engines. The shipyard will build an additional six vessels in that series on spec.

C&C is also building a cutter suction dredge on spec, with that project expected to wrap up in late spring or early summer.

Featured image caption: The mv. Deborah H. Valentine, pictured at C&C Marine and Repair, located on the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway in Belle Chasse, La., is the second of four inland towboats C&C is building for Canal Barge Company. (Photo courtesy of C&C)