In 1901, engineer J. Bijvoet opened the NV Scheepswerf Dordrecht. For this purpose, he had a harbor basin constructed on the Merwede side. Further east, the De Biesbosch machine factory was established in 1917. The companies merged in 1927. The name Scheepswerf en Machinefabriek De Biesbosch was not used until 1938.
In 1924, the Societé Française de Remorquage sur le Rhin (SFRR) became a major shareholder in the De Biesbosch machine factory, and after 1927, in the merged company. This was because the French were looking for bases along the route from Strasbourg to the mouth of the Rhine. Because the French tugs in Dordrecht were being disbanded—some went to Antwerp, some to Rotterdam—a base in Dordrecht was the obvious choice. The French parent company ensured a well-filled order book. According to Kooij, the French stationed 20 tugboats in Dordrecht, all of which needed maintenance.
