Manufacturing Capabilities News

President Biden on Wednesday signed an Executive Order aiming to strengthen cybersecurity at U.S. ports amid growing threats to America's vital maritime supply chains.The directive bolsters the Department of Homeland Security’s authority to address maritime cyber threats, including through the creation of new standards to ensure the security of networks and systems throughout the nation’s marine transportation system (MTS), which supports $5.4 trillion in economic activity each year."Most critical infrastructure owners and operators have a list of safety regulations they have to comply with…

Navico Group, a division of Brunswick Corporation, announced a multimillion-dollar investment in its Lowell, Mich. facility to create two Centers of Excellence in metal fabrication and electrification. The investment is intended to increase quality, capacity and efficiency, as well as improve product manufacturing capabilities, the company said.“Navico Group is committed to being a leader in metal fabrication and electrification for the industries we serve, and this investment is a testament to that” said Brett Dibkey, Navico Group President.

This is the dawning of the age of AI and Big Data, huge agglomerations of new and transformative energy; almost self-generating, always strengthening and pulling at the reins, seeking to break free and run, a prospect both exciting and terrifying. That image can imply a human is holding the reins. How quaint: these days, AI itself may be holding the reins.In a review of innovation in 2023 – across any industrial or economic sector, not just maritime – AI looms large, a game-changer equivalent to IBM’s programming advances in the 1940s.

Austal USA Advanced Technologies is working with the US Navy on technical solutions that will power the next-gen of navy assets. Don Hairston recently took the helm of the AAT team, and discusses how additive manufacturing and artificial intelligence are powering the future of naval asset design, construction and lifecycle maintenance.Don, what specifically attracted you to the position as GM of Austal USA Advanced Technologies?I liked Austal USA as an up-and-comer; it offers tremendous growth opportunities.

Ocean Craft Marine (OCM), a builder of boats for military, law enforcement and first responder maritime end-users, announced the expansion of its manufacturing capabilities and footprint in Maryland.According to OCM, the decision to expand its manufacturing capabilities comes in response to increasing demand. The move positions OCM to proactively cater to large contracts from the U.S. Navy (NAVSEA) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the company said.“We are thrilled to announce the expansion of our manufacturing capabilities in Maryland,” said Roy Nouhra, CEO of Ocean Craft Marine.

UK-based Submarine Manufacturing and Products (SMP) will provide its new submarine rescue system (SRS) to the Indonesian Navy.The SRS will be hosted on a mothership designed by independent design and engineering consultancy Houlder and delivered by its Indonesian strategic partner, BTI Defence.The three-year build contract will include the UK design and manufacture of the SRS, centered around SMP's new SRV-F Mk3 rescue submersible. The custom build of the mothership will take place in region…

Shipbuilder Austal USA and has formed a strategic partnership with Saildrone, Inc to build cutting-edge, autonomous uncrewed surface vehicles.The partnership  ensures that production of the autonomous and uncrewed Saildrone Surveyor will accelerate to meet the growing demand of the U.S. Navy and other government customers for the cutting-edge solution for maritime domain awareness, hydrographic survey, and other missions requiring persistent wide area coverage. Autonomous vessel capability has been identified as an area of strategic importance by the U.S. Navy.

Satellite communications solutions company Intellian is set to launch another factory in Pyeongtaek, South Korea, marking an expansion of the company’s HQ base. The new factory, expected to be operational from August 2022, is located 4 km from the existing factory."The new facility and existing factory will run simultaneously, providing unparalleled production capacity of all existing product lines across maritime and land sectors, including gateway antenna systems, and the recently announced range of flat panel antennas.

Parts fabricated by additive manufacturing (AM) – also known as 3D printing – and installed on an oil tanker for operational testing have been validated to be in good working condition, marking a significant step for the technology's implementation in the marine industry.The project involving ABS, ConocoPhillips Polar Tankers, Sembcorp Marine Ltd and 3D Metalforge started in February 2021 with the fabrication and lab-testing of functional additive manufactured parts, which were then installed on board the oil tanker Polar Endeavour.

Known best for its construction of U.S. Navy warships, Austal USA in September 2020 acquired waterfront property along the Mobile River and established a commercial ship repair facility. Mike Bell, Austal’s VP Operations and Harley Combs, Director, Austal West Campus Ship Repair discuss the plan. Austal USA’s long-established shipbuilding facility in Mobile, Ala., is a modern ship manufacturing factory, one of the largest aluminum warship builders in the world producing new ships for the U.S. Navy.

Following the acquisition of additional waterfront along the Mobile River in September 2020, Austal USA reports it quickly established a ship repair facility that has had a booming response.“Almost immediately after word got out Austal USA had purchased the additional waterfront property, we were inundated with calls from commercial captains looking to return to Mobile to have their ships serviced,” Austal USA’s Senior Vice President of Operations Mike Bell said.Austal’s acquisition included 15 acres of waterfront property spanning almost 3…

U.S. shipbuilder SAFE Boats International will reopen its Tacoma, Wash. facility following the award of a $20 million lead contract for the U.S. Navy to start construction of the Mark VI patrol boats headed for the government of Ukraine.The U.S. Navy announced in January it had awarded SAFE Boats a portion of the contract to purchase long-lead material and associated pre-production and planning support with the remaining $80 million award anticipated in June.SAFE Boats’ Tacoma…

A newly launched multipurpose vessel is destined for for the Gulf of Guinea where it will be utilized for international oil company (IOC)-related assignments as well as escort patrols for larger vessels that have experienced an escalation of pirate attacks within 200 nautical miles of the West African coastline.The new flagship of shipbuilder and maritime services provider Nautic Africa, the 35-meter vessel is the second in the Sentinel class, fully compliant to the standards…

Singapore, which counts decarbonization among its top priorities, holds a key role in the maritime industry's push toward environmental sustainability, the nation's transport minister Ong Ye Kung said Thursday during the Future of Shipping Webinar on Decarbonization.One-third of world trade funnels through the narrow Straits of Malacca and Singapore, giving the small city state prominence and influence as the world's most important shipping hub."Being so dependent on the maritime economy as a city state…

ABB signs Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Hydrogène de France to jointly manufacture megawatt-scale fuel cell systems capable of powering oceangoing vessels.The MOU between ABB and hydrogen technologies specialist Hydrogène de France (HDF) envisages close collaboration on the assembly and production of the fuel cell power plant for marine applications.Building on an existing collaboration announced on June 27, 2018 with Ballard Power Systems, a global provider of proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell solutions…

Global shipping holds its breath as the coronavirus continues to spread and generates massive economic and financial uncertainty.Two weeks ago, BIMCO argued that – from an economic perspective - when China sneezes, we all catch the flu. Since the SARS outbreak in 2003, the global economy has become much more interlinked with China and the Chinese economy has grown to become the second largest in the world.While hard facts and reliable data are in high demand, they are in short supply, nevertheless it’s time for a more thorough diagnosis on how this affects the global shipping industry.The coronavirus outbreak coincided with the Lunar New Year, which led to nation-wide extensions of the holiday. However, even with the passing of the holiday extensions, large parts of China remain closed.

The global marine and offshore engineering group Sembcorp Marine and Singapore's Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star) have agreed to deepen their research and development (R&D) collaboration for the offshore marine and clean energy sectors.By signing a master research collaboration agreement (MRCA) the two parties aim to “shorten the development cycle and time-to-market of new offshore, marine and clean energy solutions achieved through their research efforts”.Sembmarine and A*Star will set up Joint Lab@TBY, a research laboratory and work space at Sembmarine Tuas Boulevard Yard that will facilitate the test-bedding and commercialization of new digital design solutions…

Saudi-based International Maritime Industries (IMI) has announced that it had signed a licence agreement with GustoMSC, a subsidiary of Houston rig and equipment builder National Oilwell Varco (NOV).The agreement entails a new GustoMSC drilling jack-up design which will utilize the modern manufacturing capabilities currently planned for at IMI, said a press note.As a result of the agreement IMI will be fully prepared for its first production operations anticipated in 2021.Fathi K Al Saleem, CEO of IMI, said: "This is a major step for IMI in securing the required knowledge and getting the best rig design which will be tailored to our state of the art construction capabilities…

On August 24, 2018, the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Chung-Hoon (DDG 93) faced a problem that didn’t have a quick solution: A bolt from a hangar bay door roller assembly was stressed to the point of breaking, rendering the door unable to perform its basic task of opening and closing. In order for Chung-Hoon to get this one bolt, they would need to order a whole new roller assembly, which would take time Chung-Hoon didn’t have.Underway as part of Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 3, Chung-Hoon was in close proximity to the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS John C.

China’s Dongfang Electric Corp. (DEC) has unveiled  what it claims will be the country’s first 10MW offshore wind turbine after successfully developing a direct-drive permanent-magnet generator (PMG) for the super-sized machine.The company reported that it underwent testing and is now ready for commercial operations.The new generator is by far the largest of its kind in the country in terms of rotor diameter and unit capacity, according to its developer, Dongfang Electric Corporation.Based on the working conditions in Chinese waters, permanent magnet direct drive and full power conversion technologies were used to achieve active typhoon-resistant performance.The successful delivery of the generator indicates the R&D and manufacturing capabilities of high-power offshore wind turbines…

Mitsubishi Shipbuilding Co.held a christening ceremony for a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carrier currently under construction for Astomos Energy Corporation. The christening ceremony was held at the Koyagi Plant of MHI's Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works for the ship named “Laurel Prime” by Seiya Araki, president of Astomos Energy Corporation.NYK has traditionally given LPG carriers two-word names that begin with the letters “L” and “P” respectively. This ship was named Laurel Prime with the wish that it will represent superior achievement and honor…

When talk turns to the digital revolution sweeping through the maritime industry, one need look no further than Wärtsilä, which has evolved from a shipbuilding company to an engine manufacturer, and is now embarked on a historic digital transformation led by Marco Ryan, Chief Digital Officer & EVP. We met with Ryan recently in Hamburg, Germany, to discuss the path and pace forward.To start, please lay out the scope of your responsibilities.At a high-level my job is to architect and deliver the transformation (of Wärtsilä) to a smart technology company.

Subsea technology developer Sonardyne International Ltd. said it has acquired maritime and marine science technology specialist Chelsea Technologies Group Ltd. as part of a long-term growth strategy that includes market diversification.In acquiring Chelsea (also known as CTG), Sonardyne said it looks to strengthen its presence in the maritime, marine and ocean science sectors and create new opportunities in the water environmental, defense and process control markets. Chelsea will gain access to Sonardyne’s considerable research…