What Ocean Crest Marine does

Ocean Crest Marine is a marine plant hire company headquartered in Galway, Ireland, that provides modular jack-up barges, spud barges, and associated support vessels to marine construction, geotechnical, and offshore wind sector clients across the UK and Ireland. The company operates what it describes as the largest fleet of modular jack-up barges in the UK and Ireland market, with ten units in service alongside multiple spud barges and six-plus support boats. The firm cites more than 20 years of sector experience on its own website, with firmographic data placing incorporation around 2006.

The company's core product is the Combifloat modular pontoon-based jack-up barge system, configurable across different platform sizes (including the C7, C5, and C4 series, plus the recently acquired Admiral 1 unit) and capable of operating as self-elevating work platforms in sheltered and nearshore waters. These assets are deployed for geotechnical site-investigation drilling, marine construction support, and logistics staging for offshore wind installation work. Ocean Crest holds ISO 9001, ISO 14001, and ISO 45001 certifications and is an IJUBOA Gold Member, satisfying pre-qualification requirements for major UK and Irish marine contractors and offshore wind developers.

Revenue is generated primarily through project-based charter hire of barges and support vessels, with day rates determined by platform size, configuration, project duration, and mobilisation scope. The customer base is anchored by enterprise contractors — notably BAM UK & Ireland — and a stable of specialist geotechnical firms (Dunelm Geotechnical, Ground Investigation Ireland, James & Milton Drilling, CC Geotechnical), with growing exposure to offshore wind developers. In September 2023 the company received a multi-million euro growth investment from BGF to fund fleet expansion and UK market entry, and has since opened a Fermanagh office in Northern Ireland to anchor cross-border expansion.

Name

Ocean Crest Marine

Legal name

Ocean Crest Marine Ltd

Website

https://oceancrestmarine.ie

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Ocean Crest Marine is a Galway-based marine plant hire company operating the largest fleet of modular jack-up barges in the UK and Ireland, serving geotechnical, marine construction, and offshore wind clients through project-based charter of self-elevating platforms and support vessels.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Marine Plant Hire

NAICS

Support Activities for Water Transportation (4883), Ship and Boat Building (33661)

SIC

Ship & Boat Building & Repairing (3730), Water Transportation (4400)

akta.pro primary industry

Hatch Covers, Ramps & Ro-Ro Access Systems (IMAJAIAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Pipe-lay & Heavy-lift Offshore Vessel Construction (IMAJACAE)

Keywords

• Marine plant hire
• Jack-up barges
• Spud barges
• Support boats
• Marine construction equipment

Headquarters

HQ city

Galway

HQ country

Ireland

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Infrastructure, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Marine Plant Hire / Charter: Ocean Crest Marine earns revenue through the charter/hire of its modular jack-up barges, spud barges, and support boats to marine contractors, geotechnical firms, and construction companies. The company provides tailored solutions to clients across the UK and Ireland for marine construction, site investigation, piling, dredging, and other marine works.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Ocean Crest Marine charters a fleet of modular jack-up barges, spud barges, and support boats to marine contractors, geotechnical firms, construction companies, and offshore wind developers across the UK and Ireland. Assets are built from interlocking steel pontoons (Combifloat and Ravestein systems) for rapid mobilisation, road or sea transport, and bespoke configurations supporting heavy equipment such as 300t cranes and 120t excavators. All hires are tailored, project-based, and supported by in-house technical expertise and ISO-accredited safety and quality systems.

Product overview

Ocean Crest Marine operates the largest fleet of modular jack-up barges in the UK and Ireland, offering a comprehensive marine plant hire service. The fleet consists of 10 Jack-up Barges (OCM 50, OCM 80, OCM 81, OCM 100, OCM 101, OCM 102, OCM 300, OCM 400/Admiral 1, OCM 401, OCM 402), multiple Spud Barge configurations including NATO Pontoons, OCM Baby Blue Barges, Ravestein 4084 systems, and OCM RCP series (3612, 4212), plus Support Boats (OCM Fortess, OCM GEO, OCM Bully & Stubby, OCM Supporter, OCM Safety Boats). These modular, road-transportable assets provide flexible, tailored solutions for marine construction, geotechnical site investigation, piling, and offshore wind projects throughout Ireland and the UK.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• OCM 50 Jack-up Barge C5-110 Modular Self Elevation Platform, 15m x 12m with 50T deck load and leg length up to 27m, built by Combifloat with MCA/Loadline classification; chartered for marine construction and site investigation projects.
• OCM 80 Mariner Jack-up Barge Modular self-elevating platform used for marine construction and site investigation, including nearshore site investigation campaigns on the UK East Coast.
• OCM 81 Jack-up Barge C5 Combifloat JU Modular Pontoon, 18m x 12m with 80T deck load and 216m2 available deck area; chartered for marine construction and site investigation.
• OCM 100 Jack-up Barge Modular self-elevating platform chartered for geotechnical surveys, piling, and marine construction operations.
• OCM 101 Jack-up Barge Modular self-elevating platform chartered for marine construction and site investigation projects.
• OCM 102 Jack-up Barge 18m x 18m modular platform with 100T deck load and 288m2 available deck area, chartered for marine construction and site investigation.
• OCM 300 Jack-up Barge Modular platform (24m or 30m length) with 300T deck load and configurable leg length up to 48m (1.1m diameter); chartered for heavy-duty marine construction and site investigation.
• OCM 400 Jack-up Barge C7 Combifloat JU Modular Pontoon, 30.5m x 18.5m with 400T deck load, 504m2 deck area, leg length up to 48m (1.1m diameter), 2 Deutz F6L912 power packs and 4 15T mooring winches; chartered for heavy marine construction projects including Birkenhead Ferry Landing Stage.
• OCM 401 Jack-up Barge C7 Combifloat JU Modular Pontoon, 30.5m x 18.5m with Class RPS certification; chartered for marine construction and site investigation.
• OCM 402 Jack-up Barge Combifloat/Flexifloat builder platform with Bureau Veritas classification and Volvo Penta power packs; chartered for marine construction.
• Admiral 1 Jack-up Barge Combifloat Systems B.V. 400t C7 unit, 30m x 18m with 36m legs; added to the fleet in December 2023 to complement the OCM 400 and smaller C5 barges and currently working on the UK South Coast.
• NATO Pontoon Spud Barge Modular road-transportable Ravestein NATO pontoon spud barge configuration (15 units in fleet, 40 available) suitable for dredging, piling, or crane barge operations.
• OCM Baby Blue Barges (Spud Barge) Set of 9 NATO pontoons with folding spud legs (6m or 12m leg options), enabling bridge transit and configurable deck area for marine construction projects.
• OCM Ravestein 4084 Spud Barge 18 road-transportable Ravestein 4084 units forming a 12m x 12.1m configuration with 360m2 total deck area, suitable for dredging, piling, or crane barge operations.
• OCM RCP-3612 Spud Barge 36m x 12/15m Ravestein platform with up to 780T deck load, 5t/m2 deck strength, 450m2 deck area, and leg length up to 24m; chartered for dredging, piling, or crane operations.
• OCM RCP-4212 Spud Barge 42.5m spud barge with up to 884T deck load and 510m2 available deck area; chartered for heavy marine construction.
• Ravestein Container Pontoon Spud Leg Barge 12m x 36m road-transportable spud leg barge formed from 15 RCP CP-4088 Ravestein units, with capacity to carry a 300T crane or 120T excavator and 24m spud legs for deep water; added to the fleet in October 2023.
• OCM Fortess Support Boat Road-transportable aluminium work boat (11m x 3m) with 215Hp Perkins engine, 16 knot speed, Work Boat Code classification and 7T weight; chartered for logistical support and transportation during marine projects.
• OCM GEO Support Boat Work/crew/survey/safety boat with P4 license, 8m x 2.3m, 220Hp Mercruiser engine, 19 knot speed and 1.5T weight; chartered for survey and crew transfer during marine projects.
• OCM Bully & Stubby Support Boats Road-transportable work boat pair (7.45m x 2.48m steel hull) with 250Hp Deutz engine, 6 knot speed, 2T bollard pull and twin Schottel propulsion; chartered for heavy-duty marine support work.
• OCM Supporter Support Boat Aluminium work boat (7.1m x 2.4m) with 115Hp Suzuki outboard engine, 20 knot speed and 400mm draft; chartered for crew and equipment transfer.
• OCM Safety Boats Fleet of 6 road-transportable crew/push safety boats (3-7m length, 10-115HP outboard engines, MSO P4 license, ~400kg each); chartered for safety cover and crew transfer during marine projects.

Quantifiable outcome

• Largest fleet of modular jack-up barges in UK & Ireland with 10 units
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• IJUBOA (International Jack-up Barge Owners Association)coreOthersOcean Crest Marine is a long-term Gold Member of the IJUBOA, an international association for jack-up barge owners. Membership provides industry representation, standards development, and networking within the specialist jack-up barge sector.
• BIMCO (The Baltic and International Maritime Council)minorOthersOcean Crest Marine is a member of BIMCO, one of the largest international shipping and maritime organisations, providing access to industry standards, contracts, and global maritime network.
• MIIN (Marine Industry International Network)minorOthersOcean Crest Marine is a member of the Marine Industry International Network, providing industry connections and collaborative opportunities within the marine sector.
• UK Ports AssociationminorOthersOcean Crest Marine is a member of the UK Ports Association, supporting its operations and visibility within the UK ports and maritime infrastructure sector.
• Wind Energy IrelandminorOthersOcean Crest Marine maintains membership in Wind Energy Ireland, an organisation representing the wind energy sector in Ireland. The company actively participates in Wind Energy Ireland trade shows and events.
• DNVcoreOthersOcean Crest Marine is accredited by DNV, a global quality assurance and risk management company, holding ISO 9001, 14001, and 45001 certifications.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Brimmond Group: Aberdeen-headquartered marine equipment hire company providing jack-up barges, modular pontoons, and support vessels to UK offshore energy and construction markets. Closely comparable product offering and customer overlap with OCM.
• Red7Marine: UK-based specialist in jack-up barge and marine plant hire serving construction, geotechnical, and offshore wind clients. Directly comparable to Ocean Crest Marine in fleet composition, customer base, and charter-based revenue model.

Broad incumbents

• Vroon Offshore: Dutch offshore vessel operator with a fleet of platform supply, anchor handling, and subsea support vessels serving the North Sea offshore wind market. Adjacent player in marine services for the same end customers.
• Royal IHC: Dutch marine equipment manufacturer and service provider specialising in dredging, offshore, and subsea vessels. While primarily a builder, Royal IHC's installed base competes with OCM in offshore wind installation support and could bundle competing services.
• Saam Smit Towage: International harbour towage and terminal services operator active across European and Latin American ports. While focused on towage, it competes for marine service work and could expand into offshore wind support.
• Jan De Nul: Belgian marine contractor with significant offshore wind, cable installation, and dredging operations across Europe. Operates its own jack-up vessel fleet and competes for the same project work as OCM.
• DEME Group: Belgian marine contractor with extensive offshore wind, dredging, and marine infrastructure activities. Operates a large fleet of offshore vessels including jack-ups and competes for UK/Irish offshore wind contracts.
• Van Oord: Global Dutch marine contractor active in offshore wind, dredging, and subsea construction. While a much broader player, Van Oord directly competes for the same offshore wind marine plant work and represents the integrated-services threat to OCM's charter model.
• Boskalis: Global marine services and offshore contractor with major offshore wind and subsea operations in UK and Irish waters. Competes indirectly through integrated vessel packages and is a potential acquirer of specialist plant hire businesses.

Others

• Combifloat Systems: Dutch OEM of the modular pontoon and jack-up barge systems that underpin Ocean Crest Marine's fleet. Functions primarily as a supplier/partner rather than direct competitor, but also operates its own rental fleet in some markets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ocean-crest-marine
• Xx.com/LallyMarcus
• Facebookfacebook.com/OceanCrestMarine

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ocean Crest Marine