Ship Production News

A flourishing cruise market and European shipbuilders’ unerring contractual success in the sector has taken orderbooks into the middle of the next decade, ensuring production continuity and underpinning fresh capital expenditure and R&D commitments by the continent’s foremost players.Just how important the segment is to the industry and supply chain may be gauged from the fact that at least three-quarters of the value of European yards’ commercial orderbooks is attributable to…

The European Commission has adopted a comprehensive Industrial Maritime Strategy to drive competitiveness, innovation and technological leadership in Europe’s maritime manufacturing and shipping industries. The strategy sets out a vision and concrete actions to reinforce Europe’s industrial sovereignty, trade and economic security, while supporting the sectors’ clean and digital transition.EU shipbuilding and shipping are vital to the Union's strategic autonomy, trade flows, mobility…

Huntington Ingalls said on Thursday that it had expected free cash flow for the current quarter to be negative, despite beating quarterly profit estimates, sending its shares down 11% at midday.CEO Chris Kastner said on a post-earnings call that the negative cash flow represented use of about $600 million, "as some of the fourth-quarter working capital benefit unwinds".Rising global tensions are driving up demand for Huntington Ingalls' nuclear-powered Columbia-class submarines, and the company is also positioned to benefit from U.S.

The military and Coast Guard budgets are established that will benefit the U.S. ship building and repair sector, but what will stimulate the commercial yards?This author has been scratching his head of late, after a thrilling dive into July’s U.S. Big Beautiful Bill Act, and has asked several colleagues where the funding for support commercial shipbuilding can be found? To answer that, we need to look elsewhere and to future programs.Setting the SceneMany column inches have been dedicated to the decline U.S. shipbuilding, whether signaled by the relatively small presence of a U.S.

Konecranes has completed an order for BAE System’s new Govan shipbuilding hall that includes two 20t x 56m electric overhead travelling (EOT) cranes and two 100t x 70m Goliath cranes. The hall will be able to build two Type 26 naval frigates at the same time, accelerating efficiency and removing any impact of the Scottish weather on production. The order was completed in June 2025.Measuring 170m long and 80m wide, the hall consists of more than 6,000 tonnes of steel and 20,000m3 of concrete, and accommodate up to 500 workers per shift.

Davie, a leader in icebreaker and specialized vessel construction, announced plans to acquire shipbuilding assets in Galveston and Port Arthur from Gulf Copper & Manufacturing Corporation — marking a major step toward revitalizing large-scale shipbuilding of icebreakers in the United States. The move underscores growing momentum behind domestic production of ice-capable vessels and aligns with U.S. maritime security and industrial revitalization goals.The deal, expected to close in summer 2025…

U.S.-based military shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) today to explore opportunities to collaborate on accelerating ship production in support of defense and commercial shipbuilding projects.This strategic partnership aims to leverage the combined expertise and resources of both companies to advance technological innovation, maximize production efficiency, and strengthen the global defense industry.The efforts applied under the MoU aim to increase the collective maritime industrial base strength of both the U.S.

In his address to Congress on March 4, 2025, President Donald Trump unveiled a comprehensive strategy aimed at revitalizing the U.S. shipbuilding industry and strengthening the maritime sector. This initiative seeks to counter China's dominance in global shipbuilding and bolster national security by enhancing domestic maritime capabilities.Central to the President's plan is an executive order comprising 18 measures designed to rejuvenate U.S. shipbuilding. Key components include imposing fees on Chinese-built ships and cranes entering U.S.

India is set to establish a 250-billion-rupee ($2.9 billion) maritime development fund to provide long-term financing for the country's shipbuilding and repair sector, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced on Saturday.The initiative aligns with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of transforming India into a developed nation by 2047. As part of this effort, the government is investing heavily in infrastructure to enhance its manufacturing capabilities on a global scale.Presenting the budget for the fiscal year beginning April 1…

A few weeks ago, a U.S. Coast Guard cutter spotted several Chinese military ships within the U.S. exclusive economic zone just 200 nautical miles off the shores of Alaska. This incident underscores how brazen our adversaries are becoming in the face of a diminished U.S. maritime presence. China’s brazen actions are backed by the world’s largest naval fleet that they have accumulated over the past several years while our maritime capacity has declined. There is a real threat that…

Big data, advanced computers and AI are allowing vessel designers to prepare models that leave essentially nothing to chance.“Lastly, it may be of considerable importance to form from the draught a block model of the vessel from which a still more accurate judgment may be formed of the fitness and beauty of the body. And should any defect be discovered, farther alterations must still be made, till the draught and the model are perfectly approved of. These different alterations and repeated calculations may appear very tedious…

A new council aiming to improve the way U.S. government does business in ship acquisition and ship maintenance convened at the Coast Guard Yard in Baltimore on Thursday.In kicking off the inaugural meeting of the Government Shipbuilders Council (GSC), Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro underscored the council’s mission to address common and singular challenges among those that contract in shipbuilding; identify opportunities to leverage each organization’s resources to maximize government savings in costs…

Austal USA Vice President of Engineering, Tom Perrine, has retired after eight years of service with the company and over 40 years in the shipbuilding industry. During his tenure, Perrine led Austal USA’s engineering department overseeing the work of over 250 engineers, naval architects, designers, and other engineering support staff and overseeing the department’s shift to include steel design and construction.During Perrine’s tenure with the company, Austal USA delivered 23 surface combatants and auxiliaries to the U.S.

Tom Perrine, Austal USA vice president of engineering, was recognized by the University of Michigan as the 2022 Rosenblatt-Michigan Award recipient. The award is presented annually by the University of Michigan College of Engineering’s Department of Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering in recognition of outstanding professional achievement, integrity and devotion to excellence and innovation in ship design.The award honors the name of its first recipient, Lester Rosenblatt…

U.S. shipyards are making improvements to building ships for the Navy and Coast Guard today and in the future. In some cases, it means phasing out one class of ship and getting ready for the next. Or, it can be a drastic make-over.The yards include mid-tier yards all the way up to very large facilities devoted exclusively to warships. The ships range from the 353-ton Fast Response Cutter to the 100,000-ton nuclear-powered aircraft carriers. Fincantieri Marinette Marine in Wisconsin…

As a rudderless U.S. Navy debates maritime strategy, fleet futures and platform performance, America’s naval shipbuilding industry can look forward to another year of relative stasis.Barring a major geopolitical incident or unexpected maritime provocation, government shipbuilding isn’t going to change course. With Admiral Michael Gilday approaching the final “lame duck” year of his four-year term as Chief of Naval Operations and the 2024 election season looming, the prospect for major changes in the Navy’s demand signal seems limited.Aside from the U.S.

As the geopolitical landscape continues to quickly transform with the Russia/Ukraine war, Europe's over-dependence on Russian energy has become painfully apparent. VSM – the German Shipbuilding and Ocean Industries Association that represents the political and commercial interests of the German maritime over a diversity of maritime market segments – issued the following statement and overview of the global shipbuilding market, highlighting how highly subsidized shipbuilding markets…

Finnish shipbuilder Meyer Turku on Monday commenced production of Royal Caribbean International's next cruise ship Icon of the Seas. The start of production and the revealing of the ship’s name were celebrated at the shipyard's plate hall, where Meyer Turku CEO Tim Meyer, Chairman of the Board of Meyer Turku , Bernard Meyer, Chairman and CEO of Royal Caribbean Group, Richard Fain, and Harri Kulovaara, Executive Vice President of Maritime & Newbuilds, were present. CEO and president of Royal Caribbean International…

CADMATIC Ltd and Floorganise BV have entered into a strategic partnership to expand their product porfolios and enhance production planning and control at shipyards. The partnership includes joint software products as well as technical and commercial cooperation under the Cadmatic Floorganise brand name. Building on previous cooperation on integration projects with customers in the superyacht and workboat industries, the partnership facilitates joint development of a shipbuilding planning and control platform that integrates engineering data with planning and control functions.

Japan's biggest shipbuilders Imabari Shipbuilding and Japan Marine United (JMU) have formalized their business alliance by agreeing to enter into a capital tie-up amid blockbuster mergers in South Korea and China.According to Jiji Press, with the alliance, the shipbuilders aim to strengthen their international competitiveness at a time when South Korean and Chinese rivals are going through major realignment to grow stronger.Under the basic deal Imabari Shipbuilding plans to buy a nearly 30 pct stake in JMU via a shares purchase. The duo plans to finalize the agreement within the 2019 fiscal year, ending in March 2020.The partners will establish a new company that will design, build and market commercial vessels, including tankers, cargo ships and vehicle carriers.

The engineering and technology SENER and the world's largest shipbuilding company Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)  to work together in the field of computer-aided systems for ship design and production.Both companies agreed to share knowledge on requirements and roadmaps to set new paradigms for the design, building and operation of future ships, including Artificial Intelligence, Digital Twin, Internet of Things and Virtual Commissioning, among other conceptsSENER will continuously monitor HHI requirements to promote the collaboration for the development of new systems and facilitate the…

Secretary of the Navy, The Honorable Richard V. Spencer, visited the Fincantieri Marinette Marine shipyard, the home of Freedom-Variant Littoral Combat Ship production. The Lockheed Martin-led Team Freedom has delivered five ships to the U.S. Navy to date, with two more scheduled for delivery this year. "It is truly great to see what is being produced up here with the American worker," Secretary Spencer said during a shipyard tour. "We're producing a ship that based on price is exceptional. Spencer visited to view the modernized production line and tour LCS 13, the future USS WICHITA. Over the past 10 years, the Freedom-variant industry team invested more than $120 million to modernize the shipyard, hire more than 1,000 people and train a new workforce.

While orders for new vessels have continued to decline worldwide in 2017, the situation in the German and European shipbuilding market is different, with an increase of incoming orders. As shipping experts state: “…this is not a trend but a snapshot, but it indicates a high competitiveness of the German shipbuilding industry, particularly on technologically advanced projects.”The global mood barometer of the maritime industry had reached its lowest point in 2016. From the abyss confidence and order have carefully increased…