In the spring of 2008, Carl A. Nix Welding took on its largest and most challenging project to date. Matthew Nix along with the help of brother, Adam Nix, custom fabricated this amazing steel vessel. She is the first of her kind in the United States. The original design came from modern Dutch barges of the United Kingdom. Matthew traveled with the owner to meet with the naval architect in Peterborough, England in 2008 before starting the lengthy build process.
The project contains about 30,000 pounds of steel all locally purchased and CNC cut. It took about 1,500 man-hours to complete the steel fabrication process. This includes everything from forming the curves in the 1/4″ steel hull to mounting the engines and building the steering system. The exterior and interior finish work was done by several teams of highly skilled craftsmen.
Passage at 50’ long is one of the most prestigious Dutch barges in the world. She was engineered by the very well respected English naval architect Nick Branson and designed by J.Z. Morris, who also designed the 55′ long mahogany daysailer, Patrician. Passage was constructed to thrive in warmer climates with all portholes opening and a large open air aft deck. Designer and owner, J.Z. Morris, spared no expense in the construction of this vessel. She is equipped with a modern “V-Hull” and stainless steel ship ports, making her much more seaworthy than traditional Dutch barges. The interior of Passage is spectacular. All furniture is made of solid cherry wood that is custom fabricated into appropriate curves with hand cut dovetails. Passage not only makes one take a second look, but it is also very economical to operate. At a hull speed of 7.5 knots (with the generator running), she only burns approximately two gallons of fuel per hour.
