Navy awards Ingalls $200 million LPD 28 contract

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According to defense media, BIW will get the additional destroyer under a “hull swap” agreement in a 2002 MOU between the Navy and its two largest shipbuilders that, among other things, reportedly included an agreement that, should a twelfth LPD be ordered,a fourth DDG 51-class ship or equivalent workload would be awarded to BIW.

Apparently, that’s likely to happen and that destroyer will be DDG 127, once Congress comes through with the funding.

However all that works out, the funds awarded Huntington Ingalls under the contract announced today will be used to purchase long-lead-time material and major equipment, including main engines, diesel generators, deck equipment, shafting, propellers, valves and other long-lead systems.

“This funding demonstrates the priority the Navy places on Ingalls getting started on this important ship,” said Ingalls Shipbuilding President Brian Cuccias. “Our shipbuilders have made great strides in the LPD program, and we are performing well. Building LPD 28 is key to maintaining a reliable supplier base and leverages our hot production line, enabling our team of shipbuilders to build this ship and future amphibious warships as efficiently and as affordably as possible.”

Ingalls’ 10th San Antonio-class LPD, John P. Murtha (LPD 26), was the most complete and lowest-cost LPD when launched, with many key systems finished months ahead of the shipyard’s historic best in the program.

Though LPD 28 will be substantially similar to its predecessors, it won’t have quite the same appearance. Gone will be the towering enclosed masts that had been built at HII’s now-closed Gulfport, MS Composites Center of Excellence facility, in their place will be open masts similar to those on the DDG 51 destroyers.

The 684-foot-long, 105-foot-wide LPD 17 class ships are used to embark and land Marines, their equipment and supplies ashore via air cushion or conventional landing craft and amphibious assault vehicles, augmented by helicopters or vertical takeoff and landing aircraft such as the MV-22 Osprey. The ships support a Marine Air Ground Task Force across the spectrum of operations, conducting amphibious and expeditionary missions of sea control and power projection to humanitarian assistance and disaster relief missions throughout the first half of the 21st century.

Vigor awarded $8.9 million for T-AO 202 drydocking

Work by the shipyard will include general services for ship, clean and gas free tanks void and cofferdams and spaces, number seven port and starboard cargo tanks preservation, number two center cargo tank preservation, number ten center cargo tank preservation, close survey inspection, main deck overhead preservation, main house preservation, main engine exhaust insulation replacement, lifeboat repair and maintenance, reefer container installation and underwater hull preservation.

The contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the total contract value to $9,788,394.

Work will be performed in Portland and is expected to be completed by March 2, 2016. If options are exercised, work will continue through March 12, 2016. Fiscal 2016 maintenance and repair contract funds in the amount of $8,931,411 are being obligated at the time of award. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year.

This contract was competitively procured, with proposals solicited via the Federal Business Opportunities website, with two offers received.

Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding delivers ATB

DECEMBER 1, 2015 — Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding (FBS), Sturgeon Bay, WI, has delivered the Articulated Tug Barge Unit (ATB), tug Leigh Ann Moran and tank barge Mississippi, to Moran Towing Corporation. It

Canada to go ahead with box ship to oiler conversion at Davie

The project will see the Quebec shipbuilder continue with the conversion of a containership into an interim fleet oiler for the Royal Canadian Navy. Until now, Davie has been working on the basis of an letter of intent from the previous government.

Timely continuation of the project was put in doubt when rival Irving Shipbuilding wrote letters to members of the incoming cabinet asking that its alternative solution be considered. That move provoked a lot of unhappiness among the rest of the Canadian shipbuilding community.

Today, though, Minister of Public Services and Procurement Judy M. Foote and Minister of National Defence Harjit Singh Sajjan issued the following statement:

The Government of Canada was recently briefed on the interim auxiliary oil replenishment file. We know that this process commenced as a result of an expression of interest by Chantier Davie Canada Inc. We also know that the previous government made a decision to proceed with this proposal through a sole-source rather than a competitive process. The previous government also modified the long-standing procurement rules governing contracts for interim defence requirements.

We have taken time to assess all these facts and have also taken the following into consideration:The process is at an advanced stage. If we restarted this initiative by launching a competition, we would lose precious time in providing the Navy with a critical refuelling and naval support capability.

The ship has been purchased by Chantier Davie Canada Inc. and is in the shipyard undergoing conversion.

According to public reports, several hundred employees have already been hired.

Due to the structure of the agreement entered into by the previous government, we will be required to pay up to $89 million in expenses should we not proceed with this initiative.

After amassing the facts and carefully deliberating, The Government of Canada determined that proceeding with Project Resolve is the most viable course of action to provide the Navy’s at-sea oil replenishment capability until the Joint Support Ships, to be built by Seaspan’s Vancouver Shipyards, are operational. The Government of Canada is committed to ensuring that competitions for major military procurements stand up to the highest standards of openness and transparency.

Furthermore, The Government of Canada will undertake a review of the process for sole-source contracts for military procurements, including looking at current regulations and policies and those regulations amended by the previous government.
vailability of RCN ships has increased in the immediate term with the completion of the first modernized frigates and now that the Victoria-class submarines have achieved a steady state level of readiness, and will further increase in the short-term with interim AOR capability and in the medium-to-longer term with the Joint Support Ships, Arctic/Offshore Patrol Ships, and Canadian Surface Combatants that will be delivered as part of Government shipbuilding.

Davie box ship to oiler conversion gets go ahead

The project will see the Quebec shipbuilder continue with the conversion of a containership into an interim fleet oiler for the Royal Canadian Navy. Until now, Davie has been working on the basis of an letter of intent from the previous government.

Timely continuation of the project was put in doubt when rival Irving Shipbuilding wrote letters to members of the incoming cabinet asking that its alternative solution be considered. That move provoked a lot of unhappiness among the rest of the Canadian shipbuilding community.

Today, though, Minister of Public Services and Procurement Judy M. Foote and Minister of National Defence Harjit Singh Sajjan issued the following statement:

The Government of Canada was recently briefed on the interim auxiliary oil replenishment file. We know that this process commenced as a result of an expression of interest by Chantier Davie Canada Inc. We also know that the previous government made a decision to proceed with this proposal through a sole-source rather than a competitive process. The previous government also modified the long-standing procurement rules governing contracts for interim defence requirements.

We have taken time to assess all these facts and have also taken the following into consideration:The process is at an advanced stage. If we restarted this initiative by launching a competition, we would lose precious time in providing the Navy with a critical refuelling and naval support capability.

The ship has been purchased by Chantier Davie Canada Inc. and is in the shipyard undergoing conversion.

According to public reports, several hundred employees have already been hired.

Due to the structure of the agreement entered into by the previous government, we will be required to pay up to $89 million in expenses should we not proceed with this initiative.

After amassing the facts and carefully deliberating, The Government of Canada determined that proceeding with Project Resolve is the most viable course of action to provide the Navy’s at-sea oil replenishment capability until the Joint Support Ships, to be built by Seaspan’s Vancouver Shipyards, are operational. The Government of Canada is committed to ensuring that competitions for major military procurements stand up to the highest standards of openness and transparency.

Furthermore, The Government of Canada will undertake a review of the process for sole-source contracts for military procurements, including looking at current regulations and policies and those regulations amended by the previous government.
vailability of RCN ships has increased in the immediate term with the completion of the first modernized frigates and now that the Victoria-class submarines have achieved a steady state level of readiness, and will further increase in the short-term with interim AOR capability and in the medium-to-longer term with the Joint Support Ships, Arctic/Offshore Patrol Ships, and Canadian Surface Combatants that will be delivered as part of Government shipbuilding.

Two Tampa shipyards combine operations

“Gulf Marine is known for its quality repairs,” said Rick Watts, the newly appointed President of Gulf Marine. “The intent of this consolidation is to create a focus, flexibility, and competitiveness that will meet both the needs of existing customers and the emerging markets.”

Though the combined operations will be carried out under the name Gulf Marine, Hendry Corporation will maintain its identity. It has a rich history in Port Tampa Bay. The original company was started by Captain F.M. Hendry in 1926 as Shell Producers Company, and in 1942, the name was changed to Hendry Corporation.

“This 89-year-old company was founded by owner Aaron Hendry’s father. We value this history and want to continue Mr. Hendry’s long-lived success,” said Mr. Watts.

The transition will result in the combination of shipyard assets and work forces, creating a seamless service provider with a much broader customer offering and a much deeper talent pool.

“We value all of our employees and want to keep them here,” said Mr. Watts. “Repairing tug/barge units and ships is not an easy job. Our employees take pride in what they do, and we take pride in our relationship with our employees.”

The combined companies recently created an Employee Stock Ownership Plan, which will allow all team members to participate in the success of the newly combined company. The plan is one of the first of its kind in the ship repair industry and is designed to reflect the company’s commitment to engaging and maintaining a world class ship repair work force.

“Employees now have the added incentive to remain with our company because each employee will benefit from his/her ownership interest in the company,” said Mr. Watts.

Gulf Marine’s facilities provide vessel owners with a one-stop shop for quality, efficient, and innovative ship repair. In addition to ship repair services, the shipyard offers maritime remediation and gas-freeing services through its affiliate, Universal Environmental Solutions, allowing vessels to conveniently undergo all services at one location.

In addition to commercial and government ship repair, Gulf Marine and its affiliated companies offer a range of maritime services that include drydock construction, steel fabrication, stevedoring and marine terminal operations, marine environmental services, and maritime employee staffing

Electric Boat gets Navy awards worth $149.4 million

NOVEMBER 25, 2015 —General Dynamics Electric Boat, Groton, CT,  has received modifications worth a total of $149.4 million to two Navy contracts. The larger award, worth $102,876,417, is for additional lead yard

Canadian shipbuilders in spat over interim oiler contract

NOVEMBER 24, 2015 — Canadian shipbuilders are embroiled in a spat over the Resolve-Class AOR interim fleet oiler being created by Chantier Davie Canada Inc. by converting a 183 m containership to

Metal Shark delivers multipurpose port security vessel

 

Based on Metal Shark’s Defiant-class monohull pilothouse design, the welded aluminum vessel is designed to support port security efforts and firefighting missions at the port district, located 20 miles south of New Orleans at the mouth of the Mississippi River.

For this application, Metal Shark equipped the vessel with twin Cat C-18 diesel engines mated to Hamilton water jets. The 55 Defiant is also available with straight shaft inboards or pods.

To meet the customer’s fire fighting requirements, Metal Shark employed twin Darley fire pumps driven by PTO from the main engines. Water is pumped to an oversized main where it is distributed via electronic valves to three radio frequency-controlled monitors – one on the bow, and two mounted on the roof of the vessel. In this configuration, the 55 Defiant delivers water flow of up to 10,000 gallons per minute. Two 5″ hydrant outlet locations, an additional 2.5″ hydrant outlet, and a 300-gallon foam reservoir provide maximum flexibility across the widest possible range of tactical firefighting scenarios.

Metal Shark’s use of “pillarless” pilothouse glass gives the vessel’s roomy wheelhouse substantially increased visibility compared to pilothouses of conventional design.

With belowdecks quarters offering enclosed head, galley, and bunking capacity for a crew of four, the 55 Defiant is equipped to stay on station for extended periods and to accommodate crews during lengthy patrols.

A state of the art, positive-pressure Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, and high-yield Explosive (CBRNE) ventilation system provides crew protection in disaster response situations.

“Metal Shark has worked closely with fire departments, law enforcement agencies, and the military to develop what we feel are the most advanced and crew friendly fire rescue patrol vessels available today,” says Metal Shark’s president Chris Allard. “It was an honor to be selected by the Plaquemines Port Harbor and Terminal District for this project and we are pleased to add them to the growing list of Metal Shark customers.”

A product of Metal Shark’s Franklin, LA, shipyard, the 55′ Defiant can be custom-configured to suit a wide range of mission profiles. Metal Shark offers the vessel with a wide range of power and propulsion systems to meet various performance requirements. Virtually every vessel feature can be adapted to suit the needs of individual customers and agencies.

In addition to port security and fire rescue, the 55 Defiant can be configured for dive support, law enforcement, defense, pilot operations, and numerous commercial markets.

Defiant-class vessels are available in a wide range of sizes for inshore, nearshore, and offshore patrol.
Established in 1986, Gravois Aluminum Boats LLC, and its government/commercial boat entity Metal Shark Boats are leading suppliers of custom boats for defense, law enforcement, and commercial entities.

 

Donjon Shipbuilding makes major lighting upgrade

Located on the Lake Erie shore, the over 200,000 sq. ft. shipyard facility has a 92-foot ceiling height on the main floor, plus a 125-foot high ceiling over a portion of the massive graving dock, one of only two on the Great Lakes able to accommodate 1,000-foot self-unloading vessels for construction, repair, conversion, repowering and maintenance.

With conventional metal halide fixtures, lighting maintenance was a major headache. Even with no fewer than 266 metal halide fixtures in place, fewer than 60 of the 1,000 W lights were typically in operation at any given time.

In addition to the notoriously short life of the metal halide lamps, the damp, harsh, high-vibration environment inside the open air facility took a major toll on both bulbs and ballasts. And the exceptional ceiling height was a major obstacle to easily changing bulbs and fixtures.

Without proper lighting, the sheer size of Donjon’s facilities made them appear cavernous and dark even on the brightest, sunny days. The lackluster color rendering of the metal halides even contributed to visibility issues with their unnatural orange glow. And, when it came time to turn on the lights at the start of their 24-hour, 5 day-a-week operation, the metal halides took nearly 20 minutes to come up to full output.

“The lighting was not sufficient enough to fully light the facility. There were places in the building where we had to use a flashlight, even when we weren’t inside a ballast tank,” said Caleb Hoffman, Electrical Lead Man. “A flashlight was on everyone’s required tool list. It was difficult to read a tape measure without one, and accuracy in measurement is very important in our work.”

The Solution: Dialight 60,000 Lumen LED

Aiming to end its lighting woes with an upgrade, Donjon began looking at vendor proposals. It didn’t take long to realize that LED was the way to go and Donjon opted to replace the metal halide fixtures with  60,000 lumen Vigilant High Bay LED fixtures from Dialight plc, an international market leader in LED lighting with North American headquarters in Farmingdale, NJ.

“We assumed LED is the latest and greatest technology, giving us the best bang for the buck,” Mr. Hoffman said. “We chose Dialight because it best suited our application, and the warranty was a huge factor.”

Dialight’s 60,000 lumen Vigilant High Bay is the first LED fixture of its kind to offer a true one-to-one replacement for conventional 1,000W high output fixtures. Delivering 115 lumens per Watt with the 480 V top hat transformer at half the power consumption of the existing metal halides, the high-output Vigilant provided more than enough light to meet Donjon’s needs, while also drastically reducing per-fixture electricity costs.

The new Vigilants are so bright thar Donjon was able to eliminate two-thirds of the fixtures in the facility, replacing 266 metal halides with  79 Dialight 60,000 lumen Vigilants.

At roughly half the weight of conventional fixtures, the Dialight Vigilants were easy for Donjon’s in-house electrical crew to install on the existing circuits. With an ambient temperature rating of -40°F to + 149°F and high-durability fixture design, the new Vigilants can easily tolerate the harsh Lake Erie weather.

The entire fixture is backed by Dialight’s 10-year, full-performance warranty, so Donjon is now guaranteed to have ample lighting with zero maintenance for a decade or more.

The clear, bright white output of the Dialight LEDs makes a difference in visibility that is like “night and day” compared to the old fixtures, according to Donjon staff. Flashlights are no longer required on the shop floor, even in the graving dock where the lights are 125-feet off the ground. The high-performance optics deliver directional light exactly where it’s needed, with no dark spots or harsh glare.

“We compared three different manufacturers, and Dialight was hands-down the best fit for our application,” Mr. Hoffman said. “One other company promised more hours on the fixtures, but couldn’t back it with a warranty. The 10-year warranty, ease of installation and energy efficiency―Dialight offered the whole package that was better for our situation.”

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