Damaged LCS to return home under own power
APRIL 14, 2016 – The U.S.Pacific Fleet said yesterday that the Freedom Class littoral combat ship USS Fort Worth (LCS 3) will make preparations to get underway from Singapore on its own
littoral combat ship
BAE San Diego to perform LCS-7 and LCS-8 PSAs
FEBRUARY 22, 2016 —BAE Systems San Diego Ship Repair, San Diego, CA, is being awarded a $15,589,527 cost-plus-award-fee contract for the accomplishment of post shakedown availabilities (PSA) for the littoral combat ships
VIDEO: Fincantieri Marinette Marine launches LCS 11
FEBRUARY 1, 2016 — The Fincantieri Marinette Marine (FMM) shipyard, Marinette, WI, hosted a christening and launch ceremony this past Saturday for the christening of the eleventh Littoral Combat Ship, the future
Austal hosts LCS 16 keel laying ceremony
JANUARY 12, 2016 – Austal USA’s Mobile, AL, shipyard hosted a keel-laying ceremony yesterday for the future USS Tulsa (LCS 16), the first significant milestone in the ship’s construction. LCS 16 is
Mod could add $198.3 million to Austal LCS contract
DECEMBER 22, 2015 — Austal USA has been awarded a contract modification that adds$51,684,797 to its 10-ship $3.5 billion Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) contract for the U.S. Navy. The shipbuilder says the
Congressmen will resist SecDef effort to cut LCS buy
DECEMBER 17, 2015 — Congressional supporters of the Littoral Combat Ship are coming to its defense within hours of defense media reports of an intense internal battle between the Navy and Secretary
Austal lowers U.S. shipbuilding earnings forecast
In a stock exchange announcement, the company noted that in its FY2015 results it had reported experiencing schedule and margin pressure on Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) 6, the first that it is building as the prime contractor.
“Austal is building multiple LCS in parallel,” said the announcement, “with the impact of cost and schedule performance on LCS 6 continuing to impact LCS 8 and LCS 10 – both of which are in an advanced state of completion.
“Austal’s ability to apply lessons learnt and productivity enhancements from LCS 6 to vessels in advanced construction, namely LCS 8 and LCS 10, has been more limited than anticipated. As a result, FY2016 earnings from Austal’s U.S. shipyard are expected to be lower than in FY2015, with U.S. shipbuilding EBIT margin expected to be in the range of 4.5% to 6.5%. [Its U.S, shipbuilding EBIT margin was 5.2% in 2015 and 6.6% in 2014]
“Austal’s other major vessel program at its U.S. shipyard, the Expeditionary Fast Transport program (formerly called the Joint High Speed Vessel), has reached construction program maturity, with shipbuilding margin stable”.
Austal CEO Andrew Bellamy said that, while there were flow on effects from LCS 6 onto LCS 8 and 10, vessels at earlier stages of construction would benefit from the lessons learnt on LCS 6 to increase future US shipbuilding margin.
“The LCS program is maturing more slowly than we had expected, however we are working hard to manage the risks and expect an improvement across the program after delivery of LCS 10,” Mr. Bellamy said. “The ongoing strong performance of the US$1.6 billion Expeditionary Fast Transport program at our U.S. shipyard is a great illustration of the efficiencies we can deliver once a vessel program reaches the mature production phase and we are confident the LCS program will be no different.
“Austal has a strong balance sheet and is generating good cash flow, which is enabling further investment in the business during the 2016 financial year to best position the company to win additional contracts and service work to build our order book, revenue, and earnings into the future.”
Austal USA marks milestone with LCS delivery
AUGUST 13, 2015—Austal USA has delivered the USS Jackson (LCS 6), the first LCS ship built by Austal as the prime contractor as part of a 10-ship, $3.5 billion block-buy contract. It
Fincantieri Marine, Gibbs & Cox in joint R&D effort
AUGUST 7, 2015—Shipbuilder Fincantieri Marine Group LLC, Washington, DC, and naval architectural firm Gibbs & Cox, Inc., Arlington, VA, have announced a joint strategic R&D initiative to develop future ship and vessel
Austal lays keel for LCS 14
JUNE 30, 2015 — Austal USA’s Mobile, AL, shipyard yesterday hosted a keel-laying ceremony today for the future USS Manchester (LCS 14), marking the first significant milestone in the vessel’s construction. This