C&G Boat Works gets grant

MOBILE, Ala. - C&G Boat Works Inc. received a $1.2 million grant from the Maritime Administration for a new 220-ton crawler crane. The grant was one of 17 given out through the administrations Assistance to Small Shipyards program. The crane can be used on every project the shipyard undertakes, the company said. C&G employs about 200 people at its Mobile River shipyard. The company is building five U.S. Navy patrol ships left in a six-ship contract, along with two tugs, a riverboat and a ferry. (Source: Mobile Press Register, 04/17/10)

Barges to be finished by VT Halter

MOBILE, Ala. - Two unfinished vessels that played a role in the collapse of Bender Shipbuilding & Repair Co. are being completed by VT Halter Marine in Moss Point, Miss. Halter last week announced that it signed a $21 million contract with subsidiaries of Overseas Shipholding Group to complete two 8,000-ton articulated tug barges. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 04/14/10)

Keel laid for Egyptian ship

PASCAGOULA, Miss. - A keel laying ceremony was held Wednesday at VT Halter Marine to mark construction of an Egyptian ship. The state of the art missile ship will be 200 feet long and is designed to perform coastal patrol, surveillance, interdiction, surface strike and naval battle group support. VT Halter will build four of the ships for Egypt for $807 million. The first vessel is scheduled to be finished by mid 2012, and the fourth should be done by year-end of 2013. (Sources: Mississippi Press, WLOX-TV, 04/08/10)

Contract: Northrop Grumman, $17.1M

Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Bethpage, N.Y., is being awarded a $17,132,243 modification to previously awarded contract to provide engineering and production planning services for mission packages that will deploy from and integrate with the Littoral Combat Ship. The Navy's plan is to use continuous evaluation of system maturity through a disciplined system engineering framework to improve mission capability in identified mission areas. LCS mission packages will be optimized for flexibility in the littorals. Mission package capabilities are currently focused on primary mission areas of mine warfare emphasizing mine countermeasures, littoral anti-submarine warfare, and littoral surface warfare operations including prosecution of small boats. The LCS mission packages are developed and acquired separately from the LCS Sea Frame. Twelve percent of the work will be done in Panama City, Fla. Other work sites are in New York, Washington, D.C., Maryland, California and Virginia, and is expected to be completed by March 2011. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington Navy Yard, D.C., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 04/02/10)

Northrop changes shipyard workweek

PASCAGOULA, Miss. - Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding said today that beginning May 31, all the company's Gulf Coast facilities will change their work schedule to a five-day, eight-hour workweek from a four-day, 10-hour workweek. The company had worked the four-day workweek since late 2004. Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding Gulf Coast facilities are in Gulfport and Pascagoula as well as Avondale and Tallulah, La. (Source: Sun Herald, 04/01/10)

Contract: VT Halter, $165.4M

VT Halter Marine Inc, Pascagoula, Miss., is being awarded a $165,361,305 not-to-exceed firm-fixed-price modification to previously awarded contract for the detail, design, and construction of the fourth Egyptian navy Fast Missile Craft under the Foreign Military Sales program. The effort will also include technical manuals, crew familiarization training, and technical and supply support. The efforts required include all hardware, software, licensing, design engineering, production engineering, manufacturing, test engineering, technical documentation, training, spares procurement, and program management through delivery. Most of the work, 57 percent, will be done Pascagoula. Other work sites are in Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland and other locations. Work is expected to be completed by December 2013. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 03/26/10)

Independence goes on maiden voyage

MOBILE, Ala. - The Navy's newest littoral combat ship, the 419-foot USS Independence (LCS 2), sailed away from Mobile for the first time today. It marks commencement of initial testing and evaluation of the aluminum vessel. Independence's maiden voyage will include stops in Key West and Mayport, Fla., before pulling into Naval Station Norfolk, Va., for additional testing and specialized crew training. LCS features an interchangeable modular design that allows the ship to be reconfigured to meet mission requirements. Independence, the second LCS ship, was commissioned Jan. 16 in Mobile. It will be homeported in San Diego. (Source: NNS, 03/26/10)

Shipyard eyes changing workweek

PASCAGOULA, Miss. - Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding Gulf Coast is considering a shift from a four-day workweek to a five-day schedule, according to a letter from Irwin F. Edenzon, vice president and general manager of the shipyard. In December, unions approved a two-year labor contract extension that included pay raises, no change in health care insurance premiums and a $1,000 ratification bonus. The company has about 12,000 employees at its Pascagoula shipyard. (Source: Mississippi Press, 03/25/10)

Contract: LPI, $84.1M

LPI Technical Services, Chesapeake, Va., is being awarded a $84,140,685 contract to furnish repair, maintenance, modernization, logistical, and technical support services for material handling equipment and hull, mechanical, and electric machinery and systems in order to ensure continued ship operation and performance. Five percent of the work will be done in Pascagoula, Miss. Other locations are Virginia, Florida, Washington, California, Pennsylvania, Texas, New Jersey, and Italy. Work is expected to be completed by March 2015. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Carderock Division, Ship System Engineering Station, Philadelphia, is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 03/12/10)

Dewey commissioned Saturday

SEAL BEACH, Calif. - A Northrop Grumman-built Aegis guided missile destroyer was commissioned Saturday in California. The USS Dewey, the 26th Arleigh Burke-class destroyer built in the company's Pascagoula, Miss., shipyard, was delivered to the Navy in August. DDG 105 is 510 feet long and has four gas-turbine propulsion plants that can power the ship to speeds above 30 knots. (Source: Mississippi Press, 03/06/10)

GD, Austal part ways on LCS

MOBILE, Ala. - Austal USA and General Dynamics said they're parting ways in the competition to build littoral combat ships for the Navy. The split means Austal will bid as the lead contractor to build as many as 10 of the ships in the next four years. General Dynamics has been the lead contractor on the first two LCS won by the team, but Austal has been building the ships on the east bank of the Mobile River. The split means General Dynamics can bid separately in 2012 to build the ships. Meanwhile, Northrop Grumman is also looking into bidding for LCS work two years from now. That's what its top shipbuilding executive told a House panel Wednesday. The comment was reported by the trade publication Defense News.(Source: Mobile Press-Register, 03/05/10)

Austal increased profits

MOBILE, Ala. - Austal Ltd.'s Mobile shipyard increased its profit in the second half of 2009 compared with the previous year, despite an overall drop in both profit and revenue for the Australian company, according to a recent earnings report. The company's Mobile facility, which is producing joint high speed vessels and littoral combat ships for the U.S. Navy, employs about 1,000 people and is expected to hire another 400 this year. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 02/24/10)

ST Engineering profits down

Singapore Technologies Engineering said profit fell 6 percent for the year to $314.5 million while revenue grew 4 percent for the year to $3.93 billion. The company is the parent of VT Halter Marine, which employs 1,100-plus at shipyards in Pascagoula, Moss Point and Escatawpa, Miss., and ST Aerospace Mobile, which employs 1,300 at Mobile, Ala.'s Brookley Field Industrial Complex. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 02/19/10)

Contract: Northrop Grumman, $41.2M

Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding, Inc., Pascagoula, Miss., was awarded a $41,288,005 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for life cycle engineering and support services on the LPD 17 class amphibious transport dock ship program. Work will be performed in Pascagoula and is expected to be completed by December 2010. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 02/16/10)

East Bank to be cleaned up

PASCAGOULA, Miss. – Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding’s East Bank property will be cleaned up by the end of the year. A contractor will be demolishing all of the buildings and warehouses on the 166-acre area that Northrop Grumman no longer uses, spokesman Bill Glenn said. Work should begin in two weeks. The East Bank is the original site of the shipyard until it acquired land on the west side of the river. (Source: Mississippi Press, 02/16/10) Note: In 2004 Northrop Grumman looked into the possibility of converting the yard into an industrial park for contractors.

Chilean ship christened

MOBILE, Ala. - The Chilean Navy's newest ship was christened Wednesday at Atlantic Marine's shipyard. The 677-foot Almirante Montt will leave Mobile at the end of the month. The ship will be used to ferry fuel and supplies to other ships, serving both the Chilean and U.S. navies for the next 10 years, according to an agreement reached between the two countries. The ship was built in 1987 and used by the Navy until it was decommissioned in 1996. Atlantic Marine won the bid to refurbish the ship. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 02/11/10)

Contract: Northrop Grumman, $8.4M

Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding, Pascagoula, Miss., is being awarded an $8,362,542 modification to previously awarded contract to exercise options for the accomplishment of the follow yard class services for the DDG 51 class AEGIS destroyer Program. Northrop Grumman shipbuilding will provide expert design, planning, and material support services for both DDG 51 ship construction and modernization. Work will be performed in Pascagoula and is expected to be completed by August 2010. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington D.C., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 02/10/10)

30-year shipbuilding plan released

The Navy's new 30-year fleet plan calls for a ramp up construction of the Littoral Combat Ship and the Joint High Speed Vessel. A total of 66 LCS ships is now forecast to be bought over 30 years. The plan also affirms two earlier decisions: selecting a single design for the LCS program and the 2008 decision to end the DDG 1000 destroyer program at three ships. The plan also confirms the continued development of a new Advanced Missile Defense Radar for DDG 51-class destroyers, and plans to maintain an amphibious landing force of about 33 ships. The new plan was sent to the Hill this week to accompany the president's budget proposal. (Source: Defense News, 02/04/10) Gulf Coast note: The region’s shipyards are involved in building the LCS, JHSV, DDG-51 and amphibious vessels.

Northrop Grumman 4Q report

Northrop Grumman Corp. reported Thursday it posted a fourth-quarter net earnings of $413 million, and 2009 net earnings of $1.7 billion. Last year the company reported a fourth quarter net loss of $2.5 billion and net loss for the year of $1.3 billion. (Source: Northrop Grumman, 02/04/10) Gulf Coast note: Los Angeles-based Northrop Grumman has multiple operations in the Gulf Coast region, including shipyards in Pascagoula and Gulfport, Miss., and New Orleans.

NOAA takes delivery of survey ship

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has taken delivery of Bell M. Shimada, the agency's newest high-tech fisheries survey vessel. Built by VT Halter Marine in Moss Point, Miss., the ship's primary mission will be to study, monitor and collect data on a wide range of sea life and ocean conditions, primarily in U.S. waters from Washington state to southern California. The ship will also observe environmental conditions, conduct habitat assessments and survey marine mammal, sea turtle and marine bird populations. The $45 million, 208-foot ship was launched in late 2008. (Source: NOAA, 02/02/10)