MADISON – If you think Great Lakes freighters are cool, Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce wants to hear from you.
That’s because one such, especially noteworthy vessel built in Door County is one of the nominees in the seventh annual “Coolest Thing Made in Wisconsin” contest sponsored by WMC and Johnson Financial Group, and the public is invited to cast its votes for its favorites.
The sole local nominee is the M/V Mark W. Barker, which is significant — and potentially cool — because it’s the first U.S.-flagged, Great Lakes freighter to be built on the lakes in almost 40 years (since 1983). Built by Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding in Sturgeon Bay for Ohio-based Interlake Shipping Co., the Barker had its launching ceremony Oct. 28 of last year and set off on its maiden voyage July 27.
The goal of the contest is to highlight the state’s diverse manufacturing industry. Among the 121 nominees this year are mining equipment, yachts and canoes, an EV fire truck, fly fishing reels, arcade cabinets, circuit boards, cast iron skillets, cheeses, soda pop, a home generator, beef jerky, sports complex lighting and frozen pizzas.
Fincantieri, Interlake and Bay Engineering jointly designed the Barker, a River-class, self-unloading freighter with advanced vessel automation. It is 639 feet long, 78 feet wide, 45 feet high, and is 28,000 DWT (deadweight tonnage, or how much weight it can carry, including cargo, crew, fuel, fresh and ballast water, among other items). Its duties are to transport raw materials such as salt, iron ore and stone to customers throughout the Great Lakes region.
The first round of “Coolest Thing Made in Wisconsin” voting opened Monday and continues through Tuesday, Sept. 27, with 130 products nominated. The public can cast a vote every day on any device.
The top 16 vote-getters will be announced Sept. 28 and placed into brackets for tournament-style, head-to-head matchups in what WMC calls “Manufacturing Madness.”
Online voting to determine the top 8 runs from Sept. 29 to Oct. 4, followed by the vote from Oct. 6 to 11 to narrow the bracket to the top 4 and the final round to determine the “Coolest Thing” from Oct. 13 to 19. The winner will be announced Oct. 19 during WMC’s Business Day event in Madison.
To vote, visit madeinwis.com, then click on the “Contest Information” tab at the top of the page and scroll down to “Vote.” Nominees are spread across seven pages, listed in alphabetical order by company; Fincantieri Bay Ship is on the second page.
Contact Christopher Clough at 920-741-7952, 920-562-8900 or cclough@doorcountyadvocate.com.
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