Aerospace News

Jorge Unda, until now the Managing Director of the Engineering and Construction area of the SENER Group, has been appointed CEO for the entire Group, replacing Jorge Sendagorta, who previously combined the positions of President and CEO. Unda becomes the top executive of the company, and Sendagorta remains as President of SENER’s Board of Directors.An industrial engineer in the field of Mechanics from the Higher School of Industrial Engineering of Bilbao (Spain), University of the Basque Country…

Rolls-Royce (RR.L) said it would exceed its 2020 guidance as it announced new ambitious mid-term goals, sending its shares to four-year highs and reflecting investor faith that CEO Warren East can transform Britain’s best known engineering firm.The maker of engines for civil planes, military jets and ships has been in turnaround mode since 2015. Having on Thursday announced plans to cut 4,600 jobs as part of cost-saving measures, it told shareholders on Friday the foundations…

BMT has appointed Anup Vittal as Managing Director in India.An aerospace and defense industry veteran, Anup has over 28 years’ experience working in both the private and government sectors. He joins BMT following his most recent role as an industry expert and external consultant with Ernst & Young and prior to this, as Managing Director and Member of the Board at Safran Engineering Services India.

Marine Hub Cornwall are on a mission to showcase the UK’s southwest coast as a world class center for marine technology and innovation. Working alongside Invest in Cornwall, which manages inward investment into the region, Marine Hub’s Operations Director, Matt Hodson, explains why he believes Cornwall is best positioned to be a global hub for the marine renewable industry.To kick off, can you give the readers a brief overview of your experience and what led you to become the…

In order to reflect the most important facts as regards projects, social initiatives and economic results from 2017, SENER has published its Annual Report for the ninth consecutive year, a bilingual (Spanish-English) document with the slogan “The drive to move forward” which also strengthens its commitment to transparency and responsible communication. One of the most important milestones was, after obtaining full authorization, the Group selling in December 2017 its shares in Industria de Turbopropulsores (ITP) to Rolls-Royce…

Solid-State Welding Processes Being Developed for NASA Manufacturing Programs Could Significantly Reduce Workboat Fabrication CostsWhether it is for a tug boat, cargo vessel, or an offshore supply ship, much of the workboat fabrication industry is located along the Southern Coast of the U.S. But a visit to any one of the workboat facilities in that area (or any other in the country) would reveal antiquated and archaic fabrication processes used seventy years ago. The workboat manufacturing process is very expensive, labor intensive, and has not really changed since World War II.

Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL) has confirmed the successful launch of two satellites, NovaSAR-1, a Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellite, and SSTL S1-4, a high resolution optical Earth Observation satellite. The two satellites were launched into a 580km sun-synchronous orbit on board the PSLV launch vehicle from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, India on 16 September at UTC 16:38 by Antrix Corporation Limited, the commercial arm of the Indian Space Research Organisation.Sir Martin Sweeting…

The Port of Everett hosted a groundbreaking to commemorate the start of construction on the Port’s South Terminal Modernization project – the largest capital project in Port history by dollar value, and the largest maritime construction project on the West Coast.The $36 million South Terminal Modernization project will ensure the Port’s facilities are ready to support the next generation of over-dimensional cargo, including aerospace parts for the new 777X.“I find it fitting that as we celebrate the Port of Everett’s centennial year in 2018…

ST Engineering announced the appointment of Tom Vecchiolla as President & CEO (Designate) of its US Headquarters, VT Systems. He will take over as President & CEO from General (Ret.) John Coburn on 1 December 2018, who will relinquish his CEO position but remain as non-executive Chairman of VT Systems.Gen. Coburn has been at the helm VT Systems for 17 years since it was set up in 2001 to support the Group’s overseas expansion. Today, the US is the Group’s single largest market outside of Singapore…

Diverse Newbuild & Repair Business Buoys 2018The year 2018 is off to good start at Vigor. The Harbor Island facility welcomed a new drydock christened the Evolution. The $20 million Evolution is the third drydock at Vigor’s Seattle facility and largest in the Puget Sound region, measuring 640 x 115.5 ft. with a lift capacity of 22,000 LT.Other investments in Seattle include a buildout of a dedicated aluminum production facility which greatly expands Vigor’s fabrication capabilities and capacity for workboats…

When it comes to shipbuilding, the numbers are staggering: hundreds of millions of parts in one aircraft carrier. Billions of dollars proposed for Naval fleet development in the latest NDAA. Hundreds of thousands of private sector jobs in the U.S. alone. A 2015 MARAD report, for example, pegged the total economic impact associate with the industry at 400,000 jobs, $25 billion in labor income, and 37 billion in GDP (based on data from 2013). When the financing, jobs, technological developments and supply chain trade dedicated to shipbuilding around the world are added in…

It is not business as usual in the world where we do business. Things are changing. Even regulations themselves are changing from less prescriptive in nature to more performance-based. As Chairman, President and CEO of a global classification and technology-centric company that operates in 70 countries with 5,000 employees, I am continually assessing the impact of these changes on the capabilities ABS needs to fulfill its mission and maintain its leadership position in the maritime, offshore and government industries it serves. To know where we are heading, we have to know where we began.

The U.S. Coast Guard is searching for an unresponsive aircraft that went missing in the Gulf of Mexico approximately 118 nautical miles north of the Yucatan Peninsula, Thursday. The Coast Guard said its watchstanders at the Eighth District command center in New Orleans received a report from the North American Aerospace Defense Command, Wednesday evening that one person aboard a privately owned Cirrus plane was unresponsive likely due to hypoxia. The pilot flew from Oklahoma City and was reportedly headed to Georgetown, Texas.

Bob Kunkel needs no introduction to Marine News readers. Kunkel, President of Alternative Marine Technologies, previously served as the Federal Chairman of the Short Sea Shipping Cooperative Program under the Maritime Administration and Department of Transportation from 2003 until 2008. A past Vice President of the Connecticut Maritime Association, he is a contributing writer for Maritime Logistics Professional magazine and of course, Marine News. A graduate of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy…

Under a new strategic partnership agreement, French offshore services firm Bourbon and testing, inspection and certification services provider Bureau Veritas will develop and deploy new digital technologies, including solutions for automation, real time fleet monitoring and mitigating cyber risks. For dynamic positioning systems in particular, the partnership will aim to deliver advanced automation of to enable real-time advisory tools for bridge operators and remote support for onshore teams…

Britain's Rolls-Royce said on Wednesday it was considering the sale of its commercial marine business, which has been hit by weak demand in offshore oil and gas markets, as part of a restructuring of the company into three core units. Shares in the company jumped after it said the loss-making unit could be sold. They were trading up 7.2 percent at 1330 GMT. The announcement came as part of a restructuring of the aero-engine maker into civil aerospace, defence and power systems units, with naval marine and nuclear submarines consolidated into defence and civil nuclear into power systems.

Industrial conglomerate Rolls-Royce is considering selling the bulk of its struggling marine business as the company embarks on another restructuring which aims to further slash costs. "We are embarking on a further simplification of the business, including the evaluation of strategic options for our Commercial Marine operation and a reduction from five operating businesses to three core units based around Civil Aerospace, Defence and Power Systems," said a press release from the company.

Danish inventor Peter Madsen tied up and abused Swedish journalist Kim Wall before murdering her on board his home-built submarine, according to the indictment published on Tuesday. Madsen planned the murder by bringing items, including a saw and screwdrivers, which were used to hit, cut and stab Wall while she was alive, the prosecutors said. Wall, a 30-year-old freelance journalist who was researching a story on the entrepreneur and aerospace engineer, went missing after Madsen took her out to sea in his 17-metre (56-foot) submarine in August last year.

Engineering and technology group SENER has named Mercedes Sierra CEO of SENER in the United States. Sierra joined SENER in 1985, growing within the organization and functioning in many management roles. This experience includes leading many of the international and multidisciplinary contracts for SENER in the aerospace field. In 2005 Spain’s Ministry of Economy appointed Sierra the Director of Aeronautics and Space of the Agency for Technology & Innovation where she served on a number of international oversight organizations and committees.

Seaspan Shipyards (Seaspan) has appointed Christof Brass as Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Christof brings over 20 years of experience successfully delivering large, complex programs for multinational companies. With an extensive back-ground in strategic financial planning and analysis, Christof will help drive the continued success and improvement of Seaspan. “As a leader with experience in transforming international finance teams, Christof has all of the skills that we were looking for to lead the financial components of our business…

China State Shipbuilding Corp (CSSC) said on Monday Lei Fanpei would become the Chinese state shipbuilder's new chairman, replacing the incumbent Dong Qiang. Lei will relinquish his duties as the chairman at the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp, the country's space agency, CSSC said in a statement on its website. It did not say where Dong would move to. CSSC is one of China's two largest shipbuilding conglomerates, alongside its rival China Shipbuilding Industry Corp.

The Ulven Companies has hired Steve Fournier as Vice President of Sales. Fournier will be responsible for strategic leadership, business development and management in building, driving and executing sales for all companies.   Fournier brings to the role more than 15 years of experience in the oil and gas industry, the last 11 years of his career in a number of leadership capacities at oilfield services firm Express Energy Services.    The Ulven Companies is a family of five companies (Ulven Forging, Ulven Aerospace, Skookum, Wolf Steel, and Houston Structures) providing a variety of forging, casting and machining processes.

While debates rage in regards to safety, insurance and cyber security, the tech powering autonomous maritime operations continues to power ahead.Advances in sensor technology, data analytics and bandwidth-to-shore are fundamentally changing the way shipping works. And as operations are digitalized, they become more automated, Dr. Pierre C. Sames, Director of Group Technology & Research at class society DNV GL, has stated.Governments around the world are looking into unmanned shipping…