Cummins Cederberg led the engineering design and regulatory permitting for a new port of call in Ft. Pierce by Derecktor, an American ship building company. The team designed a haul-out basin for a 1,500-ton mobile lift inside of an existing pier. Following field work, permitting, and design of the project, construction began with the excavation and infrastructure of the haul-out basin where the mobile boat hoist currently operates.

Designing the haul-out basin inside of an existing pier proved to be challenging due to existing foundations from a historic refrigeration building, adjacent bulkhead anchoring systems, and variable soil conditions. It required creativity from the Cummins Cederberg team as limited information was available on the bulkheads, the oldest of which is estimated at 100 years.

The team performed multiple exploratory excavations and a ground-penetrating radar survey to confirm conditions prior, and ultimately a supplementary anchoring system for the new and existing bulkheads was implemented. In addition, Cummins Cederberg provided an active construction support role to rapidly evaluate and address field conditions as they may arise. Hauling operations at the 12.5-acre facility began spring of 2021.

Derecktor Ft. Pierce is now home to a 1,500-ton mobile lift—the largest of its kind in the world at the time the project was completed. The shipyard was specifically designed to accommodate megayachts – power and sail vessels over 200 feet and 900 tons. It offers deep-water (28 feet / 8 meters) and unobstructed overhead access to the Atlantic Ocean, a key benefit to large vessel traffic traveling to and from the Caribbean, South Florida, and the northeast. Only 90 nautical miles north of Fort Lauderdale, the new facility is conveniently located near South Florida’s diverse network of highly skilled tradespeople as well as regional and international airports.