NAVAL ARCHITECTS & Marine Engineers
FAMILY OWNED & OPERATED since 1978
ABOUT US
CT Marine is a naval architecture and marine engineering firm based in Portland, Maine. Founded in 1978 by Capt. Corning Townsend III, the firm has spent nearly five decades at the forefront of global inland vessel design, building a body of work that has fundamentally shaped the inland waterway system as it exists today.
CT Marine has designed every towboat on the Mississippi River over 6,600 horsepower since 1988, accumulating nearly two thousand projects and over forty million hours of proven engineering operating on the water. That record reflects not only the breadth of the firm's experience, but the depth of its technical commitment at every stage of the design and construction process.
The firm's approach to vessel design is rooted in hydrodynamic research that predates CT Marine itself. Founder Corning Townsend spent years working in the University of Michigan's ship model basin and as a guest scientific officer at MARIN in the Netherlands before establishing the firm. That foundation has informed every design CT Marine has produced since, and has given rise to a series of patented technologies, including the CT28 and CTSL nozzle systems and the TwinDIFF differential rudder system, that define the performance characteristics of the modern high-horsepower river towboat.
CT Marine is led today by Christian Townsend, who joined the firm in 1992 and assumed ownership in 2015. That same year, CT Marine partnered with Buoyancy Consultants to form Hyperion Marine Group, extending the firm's capabilities through a network of engineers and designers operating across North America, Europe, India, and Southeast Asia. Modern tools including 3D modeling, virtual reality design review, computational fluid dynamics, and advanced hydrodynamic simulation are now central to the firm's practice, complementing a design philosophy built on decades of physical testing and direct operational experience.
CT Marine remains a family firm across three generations, with each successive generation of Townsends trained within the firm and grounded in the same principles that have guided its work from the beginning: rigorous engineering, an uncompromising standard for vessel performance, and a firsthand understanding of the boats and the people who operate them.
M/V ACBL Mariner
USS Cairo
M/V Cindy L. Erickson
Crown Point
Stock Boat Program
CT Marine offers a library of stock towboat designs available for immediate purchase. Each design includes a complete drawing package and full production engineering. Designs can be modified to suit specific operational requirements.
| Design | HP | Propellers | Propulsion | LOA | Beam | Draft |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| + Truckable Tug | 600 | 2 | Open-Wheel | 25' 11" | 15' | 5' |
| Harbor Tug | 1,200 | 2 | Open-Wheel | 62' | 26' | 7' |
| + CTM / NetZERO Electric Tug | 1,500 | 2 | Any | 70' | 33' | 8' |
| + Fleeting Boat | 1,600 | 2 | CT28-SL Nozzle | 68' | 28' | 7' 6" |
| Short Line Haul | 2,000 | 2 | Nozzle or Z-Drive | 78' | 34' | 9' |
on the water
Live vessel positions - click any boat for details
Our Clients
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Submit a Project Inquiry
Or contact us at:
+1 (207) 232-7209
towboats@ctmarine.com