Bollinger to Build Four More Fast Response Cutters for U.S. Coast Guard
Bollinger Shipyards will build four more Sentinel-class Fast Response Cutters (FRC) for the United States Coast Guard after U.S. President Trump last Sunday signed into law the omnibus spending bill for Fiscal Year 2021, which included funding for four more such vessels.
This increases the total number of funded boats to 64, Bollinger said.
“It’s a great honor to have the confidence of the U.S. Congress to continue the work we’re doing in support of the U.S. Coast Guard,” said Bollinger Shipyards President & CEO Ben Bordelon. “The Fast Response Cutter program is something we’re all proud of here in Louisiana. Delivering vessels on schedule and on budget to the Coast Guard during these challenging times shows the determination and resiliency of our workforce.”
To remind, Bollinger Shipyards last week has delivered the USCGC Robert Goldman to the U.S. Coast Guard in Key West, Fla. This is the 165th vessel Bollinger has delivered to the U.S. Coast Guard over a 35-year period and the 42nd Fast Response Cutter (FRC) delivered under the current program.
As for the four newly appropriated Fast Response Cutters, they will all be built at Bollinger’s Lockport, La. facility.
Per Bollinger, the FRC program has had a total economic impact of $1.2 billion since inception and directly supports 650 jobs in Southeast Louisiana.
The program has indirectly created 1,690 new jobs from operations and capital investment and has an annual economic impact on GDP of $202 million, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD) on the economic importance of the U.S. Shipbuilding and Repair Industry, Bollinger said.
Bollinger sources over 271,000 different items for the FRC consisting of 282 million components and parts from 965 suppliers in 37 states.
“We’re proud that Bollinger continues to be an economic pillar and job creator in south Louisiana,” Bordelon said. “More than 600 of our 1,500-plus employees have important roles related to the FRC program. Without the support of the Coast Guard and Congress for the continuation of this critical program, the security of these jobs would be thrown into question.”
In addition to the construction of the FRC, Bollinger is also participating in industry studies for five programs, including the U.S. Coast Guard’s Offshore Patrol Cutter (OPC) program, the U.S. Navy’s Common Hull Auxiliary Multi-Mission Platform (CHAMP) program, the U.S. Navy’s Auxiliary General Ocean Surveillance (T-AGOS(X)) program, The U.S. Navy’s Large Unmanned Surface Vehicle (LUSV) program and the U.S. Navy’s Light Amphibious Warship (LAW) program.