GAO rejects protest of Aegis contract

Raytheon's protest of the Navy's decision to award sole-source contracts to Lockheed Martin for its Aegis modernization program has been denied by the Government Accountability Office. Naval Sea Systems Command can now proceed with its plans to procure the ship-based Aegis Combat System Modernization on Ticonderoga-class cruisers and Arleigh Burke-class destroyers. (Source: AviationWeek, 12/31/08)

Contract: ABS, $55M

American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), Houston, Texas, is being awarded a $55,000,000 contract to provide for ship classification and classification-related services for surface ships procured by Navy. New construction contracts require the ships be designed and constructed in accordance with ABS rules. About 46 percent of the work will be in support of new DDG ships in Pascagoula and Gulfport, Miss., and in Bath, Maine. Another 46 percent will be in support of future LCS construction at sites to be determined. The remaining 8 percent of services will be performed in Norfolk, Va., San Diego, Calif. and various worldwide points. Work will be completed by December 2013. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C. is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 12/29/08)

Ship set for commissioning

LONG BEACH, Calif. - The Navy returns to Long Beach to commission a new amphibious transport dock ship, the USS Green Bay (LPD 20) on Jan. 24, 2009. The Green Bay is the fourth of nine in a new class of amphibious ships. The Green Bay was built by Northrop Grumman in New Orleans. The 684-foot long ship will be used to transport Marines, equipment and supplies. San Diego, Calif., will be the Green Bay's home port. (Source: Contra Costa Times, 12/25/08)

P-8 funds to be shifted to DDG-1000?

Boeing's new P-8 patrol aircraft faces a cut of more than $900 million in the proposed fiscal 2010 defense budget to pay for a new DDG-1000 destroyer, according to budget documents. The ship is the last of three the Navy will buy from Northrop Grumman and General Dynamics. The fiscal 2010 ship plan also includes the purchase of two more DDG-51 destroyers. (Source: Bloomberg, 12/23/08). Northrop Grumman’s Pascagoula, Miss., shipyard is involved in both DDG-51 and DDG-1000 construction.

Ship performs well in builders trial

The Northrop Grumman-built Makin Island, the Navy's eighth and final Wasp-class amphibious assault ship, performed well during five days of builder trials earlier this month, Navy crewmembers from the ship's pre-commissioning unit reported. (Source: Mississippi Press, 12/23/08)

GD, Northrop to build subs

Electric Boat Corp., of Groton, Conn., is being awarded a $14 billion multiyear contract to build eight Virginia class submarines from fiscal year 2009 to fiscal year 2013. General Dynamics' Electric Boat is the prime contractor for the Virginia sub program. Construction will be split between GD facilities in Quonset Point, R.I., and Groton, Conn., and Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding's Newport News, Va., shipyard. (Source: DoD, 12/22/08). Northrop Grumman also has shipyards for surface vessels in New Orleans, La., and Pascagoula, Miss.

Contract: Lockheed, $43.7M

Lockheed Martin Maritime Systems and Sensors, Moorestown, N.J., is being awarded a $43,665,000 modification to previously awarded contract for engineering services for DDG 51 Class Aegis Combat System Installation, Integration and Test. Pascagoula, Miss., will perform 22 percent of the work that's expected to be completed by April 2010. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington Navy Yard, D.C., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 12/19/08)

Contract: Northrop, $9.9M

Northrop Grumman Ship Systems Inc., Pascagoula, Miss., is being awarded a $9,950,000 firm fixed price contract modification to a previously awarded contract for the procurement of long lead time materials in support of LPD 26. Work will be performed in Pascagoula and is expected to be completed by December 2010. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 12/19/08)

Keel ceremony held for LPD 24

PASCAGOULA, Miss. - In a traditional Navy ceremony Thursday, the keel of the Navy's eighth amphibious transport dock ship, the Northrop Grumman-built Arlington (LPD 24), was authenticated. More than 100 people attended. The ship is named for the county where the Pentagon is located and honors those killed in the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. LPD 24 is a 684-foot-long, 105-foot-wide LPD 17-class transport dock ship. (Source: Globe Newswire, 12/18/08)

VT Halter may add positions

PASCAGOULA, Miss. - VT Halter Marine could create 180 full-time jobs if it receives $5 million via federal grants to construct an $8 million pipe and marine fabrication building at its Pascagoula yard. The jobs would be mostly craftsmen positions, such as welders and shipfitters. (Source: Mississippi Press, 12/10/08)

Signal cuts positions

PASCAGOULA, Miss. - Signal International has let go 200 to 250 workers at its Pascagoula shipyards over the past month. The cut positions were mostly for craftsmen, including welders, fitters and electricians. About 20 salaried support staff workers were also laid off, he said, while others were transferred to other positions. The cuts were brought about by the completion of several contracts. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 12/10/08)

Contract: Power Dynamics, $5.6M

Power Dynamics LLC, Stennis Space Center, Miss., is being awarded a $5,666,580 modification under a previously awarded contract to exercise an option that provides for the refurbishment of 10 Lighter, Amphibious, Re-Supply, Cargo amphibious landing craft. The total contract amount after exercise of this option will be $23,270,388. Work will be performed at Stennis Space Center, Miss., and is expected to be completed by Sept. 2010. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command Headquarters, Washington Navy Yard, D.C., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 12/08/08)

Contract: Northrop, $16.8M

Northrop Grumman Ship Systems, New Orleans, La., is being awarded a $16,801,209 modification to previously awarded contract for Life Cycle Engineering and Support services on the LPD 17 Class Amphibious Transport Dock Ship Program. Work will be performed in Pascagoula, Miss. (60 percent) and New Orleans, La. (40 percent), and work is expected to be completed by Sept. 30, 2009. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 12/04/08)

Workboat show begins

NEW ORLEANS, La. - The 29th annual International WorkBoat Show got underway Wednesday at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. The largest maritime trade show in North America is expected to draw 10,000 visitors. The show has attracted more than 1,000 exhibitors. (Source: Times-Picayune, 12/03/08)

Zumwalt contract change awarded

Bath Iron Works of Bath, Maine, is being awarded a $45.8 million modification to a previously awarded contract to exercise an option for services associated with the detail design and construction of the DDG 1000 Zumwalt class destroyer. Work is expected to be completed by November 2010. (Source: DoD, 12/01/08) Northrop Grumman, Pascagoula, Miss., is also involved in the DDG 1000 program.

New date set for ship delivery

The Navy and Northrop Grumman settled on new goals for delivery of the next big-deck amphibious assault ship. The original date for delivery of Makin Island, under construction in Pascagoula, Miss., had been Nov. 14. But wiring problems required rework, and Northrop Grumman will bear the $360 million cost. The ship's new schedule calls for builders' trials to begin in late January with the new delivery date of May 15. (Source: Navy Times, 11/26/08)

GCRL hosts fisheries workshop

OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. - The University of Southern Mississippi Gulf Coast Research Laboratory will present a free workshop on Mississippi’s marine fisheries at 7 p.m. Dec. 4 in the Caylor Auditorium. It's open to the general public. Topics will include Mississippi’s spotted seatrout population monitoring, Tag and Release Program updates, tarpon occurrences in Mississippi, striped bass habitat and tracking, spotted seatrout spawning habitat and other issues pertinent to Mississippi’s fisheries. For more information, contact Read Hendon, GCRL fisheries biologist, at 228.872.4202. (Source: University of Southern Mississippi, 11/24/08)

VT Halter launches barge

MOSS POINT, Miss. - VT Halter Marine christened and launched a $14.7 million, 80,000-barrel oil tank barge for Barges Unlimited Friday after 14 months of work on the vessel. The double-hulled barge is 332 feet long and was constructed entirely at the Moss Point yard, which employs about 175 workers. (Source: Mississippi Press, 11/22/08)

Winter still unhappy with LPD 17

WASHINGTON - Navy Secretary Donald Winter is still unhappy with the USS San Antonio, the first in a new class of LPD 17 amphibious ships. But builder Northrop Grumman says the Navy changed the design too often, and Hurricane Katrina also affected work at the Gulf Coast shipyard where it was built. (Source: Reuters, 11/18/08)

Marine scientist gets USM award

OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. - Dr. Robin Overstreet, marine parasitologist at the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory and professor in the Department of Coastal Sciences, received The University of Southern Mississippi's Innovation Lifetime Achievement Award. Overstreet is recognized as a world authority on fish parasites and disease, and is credited with the discovery of hundreds of new species. He joined GCRL in 1969. (Source: University of Southern Mississippi, 11/17/08)

LCS to use Army FCS weapon

The Navy is borrowing a page from the Army's Future Combat Systems playbook, integrating four Non-Line of Sight Launch Systems on the deck of its Littoral Combat Ship. In August off the coast of the Florida Panhandle, tests were conducted to prove NLOS-LS effectiveness. The next test is scheduled for 2009 and will evaluate capabilities in a different water environment. (Source: Aviation Week, 11/14/08)

Contract: Austal, $185M

Austal USA of Mobile Ala., is being awarded a $185 million modification to a previously awarded contract for one Joint High Speed Vessel with options for up to nine additional ships and associated shore-based spares for the Phase II down-select of the JHSV Program - a potential value of $1.6 billion. The JHSV program provides high speed, shallow draft transportation capability to support the intra-theater maneuver of personnel, supplies and equipment for the Navy, Marine Corps, and Army. Work will be performed in Mobile and is expected to be completed by November 2010. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington Navy Yard, D.C., is the contracting activity. (Source: Tcp, DoD, 11/13/08)

Austal USA wins $1.6B contract

MOBILE, Ala. - Austal USA has won a $1.6 billion contract to build up to 10 high-speed transport ships for the military, U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby said Wednesday. Neither Austal nor the U.S. Navy would confirm Wednesday's announcement. The award would be significant for Austal, which has about 1,000 employees at its facility on the Mobile River. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 11/13/08)

Taylor expects 10 warships in budget

GAUTIER, Miss. - The next congressional budget will likely seek 10 new Navy ships, according to Rep. Gene Taylor, D-Miss. Taylor, who was re-elected this year, made the comment after the ninth annual Veterans Breakfast at Gautier High School on Monday. Taylor expects to remain on the Armed Services Committee and chair the Seapower and Expeditionary Forces Subcommittee. (Source: Mississippi Press, 11/12/08)

First LCS commissioned

MILWAUKEE, Wisc. - USS Freedom, the nation's first littoral combat ship (LCS), was commissioned Saturday. The 378-foot ship is a semi-planing steel monohull designed for close-to-shore work. It can reach speeds over 40 knots and is intended for mine, anti-submarine and surface warfare. The ship, which will be homeported in San Diego, Calif., was built by Lockheed Martin with team members Gibbs & Cox, Marinette Marine Corp., and Bollinger Shipyards. (Source: PRNewswire, 11/08/08)

Northrop holds career day

PASCAGOULA, Miss. - About 1,000 Jackson County high school students learned about some of the 2,715 job titles involved in building ships. Resurrection, Pascagoula, Gautier, St. Martin and East Central high schools were represented. The career day was held in the new 46,000-square-foot Propulsion Building. (Source: Mississippi Press, 11/08/08)

VT Halter signs $8.9M contract

PASCAGOULA, Miss. - VT Halter Marine has signed an $8.9 million contract with Candies Shipbuilders LLC to construct a 285-foot platform supply vessel. VT Halter Marine will fabricate the vessel hull with deckhouses. The hull will be towed to Candies Louisiana shipyard for final outfitting. Delivery of the vessel is scheduled for January 2010. (Source: Sun Herald, 11/06/08)

Navy to commission first LCS

The Navy's first littoral combat ship, USS Freedom, will be commissioned Nov. 8 at a 10 a.m. EST ceremony at Veterans Park, Milwaukee, Wis. Secretary of the Navy Donald Winter will deliver the principal address. A Northrop Grumman Fire Scout helicopter drone is on the ship and will remain onboard as it transits from Milwaukee to Norfolk, Va. Fire Scouts are built in part in Moss Point, Miss. (Source: Navy, Northrop Grumman, 11/05/08)

Austal eyes more ships

MOBILE, Ala. - Austal USA's Mobile shipyard will likely build at least two additional shallow-water combat ships for the U.S. Navy. Austal is part of a General Dynamics Corp.-led team competing with Lockheed Martin Corp. to build littoral combat ships. Both teams have built prototypes. The Navy has asked that each submit bids on five LCS with the intention of giving three to the winning contractor and two to the rival team. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 11/05/08)

ST Engineering 3Q report

Singapore Technologies Engineering said Tuesday that third quarter profit rose 3 percent, though earnings in the aerospace division fell. The company owns Mississippi's VT Halter Marine, whose 1,700 workers in Pascagoula, Moss Point and Escatawpa build and repair ships. It also owns ST Mobile Aerospace Engineering, whose 1,600 employees at Mobile's Brookley Field Industrial Complex repair and modify jetliners. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 11/05/08)

Bender family to sell Florida yard

MOBILE, Ala. - Members of Mobile's Bender family have agreed to sell Tampa Bay Shipbuilding & Repair Co. to Galliano, La.-based Edison Chouest Offshore for undisclosed terms. The deal is subject to approval of the Tampa Port Authority, which must approve a lease transfer. The Florida shipyard covers 62 acres. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 11/04/08)

Northrop ship workers OK contract

Workers approved a labor agreement with Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding's Virginia shipyard that includes a provision allowing the company to temporarily reassign workers to other yards, including those in the Gulf Coast. The 52-month agreement covers more than 8,000 hourly workers at the company's Newport News, Va., shipyard. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 10/31/08)

Destroyer delivered ahead of schedule

PASCAGOULA, Miss. - Northrop Grumman says it delivered the 510-foot Truxtun guided missile destroyer 10 weeks ahead of schedule to the Navy. The crew is scheduled to move aboard Dec. 8. The Truxtun, DDG 103, is the 25th Aegis guided missile destroyer produced by Northrop Grumman. The Arleigh Burke class destroyer is expected to be commissioned in spring 2009. The previous DDG-51 built at Pascagoula, the USS Kidd, was delivered to the Navy on Dec. 18, 2006. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 10/30/08)

Vote on aquaculture delayed

MOBILE, Ala. - Federal fishery regulators delayed a vote on a proposal that would open the Gulf of Mexico to fish farms. The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council will consider the aquaculture plan at a January meeting in Bay St. Louis, Miss. The proposal would create a permitting process for developers to raise fish in underwater cages in federal waters 3 to 200 miles offshore. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 10/29/08)

Crozier returns to Mobile's Sea Lab

MOBILE, Ala. - George Crozier will return to the Dauphin Island Sea Lab as executive director for the next two years. The lab’s board voted Wednesday to hire Crozier, who retired in 2007 after directing the lab for 30 years. The post became vacant this month when new director L. Scott Quackenbush died. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 10/29/08)

Vote near on shipbuilder contract

Hundreds of Newport News shipbuilders got copies of a proposed new contract Sunday, and 6,000 members of the United Steelworkers of America will vote Wednesday. Proposed is a 16.4 percent pay raise over four years, increased pensions and benefits, and a provision allowing Northrop Grumman to shuffle workers among shipyards. (Source: The Virginia Pilot, 10/27/08)

Vote expected on Gulf fish farms

MOBILE, Ala. - Federal fisheries regulators this week will decide whether to open the Gulf of Mexico to industrial-scale fish farms – fish raised in underwater cages and pens – that could yield more than 60 million pounds of additional seafood from the ocean. The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council will hold a public hearing Wednesday in Mobile before voting on the issue. The plan would create a permitting process for aquaculturists to develop large-scale fish farms, raising only native species in underwater cages. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, New Orleans Times-Picayune, 10/27/08)

Euronaval begins in Paris

Euronaval, the international naval defense exhibition, is being held Oct. 27 to 31 at the Paris Le Bourget Exhibition Center. Some 345 companies and organizations from 27 countries will have exhibits. Northrop Grumman will display ship and marine navigation system, showcasing among other things its San Antonio-class amphibious warfare transport ship, a patrol frigate based on the Coast Guard National Security Cutter and the Sa'ar 5B littoral corvette, an enhanced version of the Sa'ar 5 corvette in service with the Israeli navy. (Source: Tcp, PRNewswire, 10/24/08)

Taylor: Northrop hasn't lost destroyer pacts

PASCAGOULA, Miss. - Northrop Grumman has not lost contracts for a half dozen new Navy destroyers, despite a document quoted by a trade publication, U.S. Rep. Gene Taylor said Friday. Inside the Navy said the service plans to award contracts for six of the proposed eight DDG-51 destroyers to Bath Iron Works in Maine and two to Northrop Grumman in Pascagoula. Taylor said it was a memo stating someone's thoughts and should not have been released. He said the Navy assured him it's not a done deal. (Source: Mississippi Press, 10/25/08)

NOAA announces plan to upgrade ships

WASHINGTON - The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has completed a detailed plan to modernize its marine operations by replacing nine research ships and refurbishing a 10th in the next 15 years. The 19-ship fleet supports a wide range of activities, including fisheries and coastal research, nautical charting, and long-range ocean and climate studies. Nine vessels entered into service since 2001. Two additional ships will enter service in the next year, with one homeported in Mississippi and the other on the West Coast. VT Halter Marine of Pascagoula, Miss. is a major builder of NOAA ships. (Source: NOAA, 10/23/08)

NOAA announces plan to upgrade ships

WASHINGTON - The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has completed a detailed plan to modernize its marine operations by replacing nine research ships and refurbishing a 10th in the next 15 years. The 19-ship fleet supports a wide range of activities, including fisheries and coastal research, nautical charting, and long-range ocean and climate studies. Nine vessels entered into service since 2001. Two additional ships will enter service in the next year, with one homeported in Mississippi and one on the West Coast. VT Halter Marine of Pascagoula, Miss., is a major builder of NOAA ships. (Source: NOAA, 10/23/08)

Raytheon gets LPD 17 support contract

TEWKSBURY, Mass. - Raytheon has been awarded a Navy contract for up to $23 million for lifecycle engineering and support for the LPD 17 class of amphibious warfare ships. This award exercises the third of three one-year options included in the original contract awarded to Raytheon in 2005. The work is performed at the Expeditionary Warfare Center, San Diego, Calif.; Seapower Capability Center, Portsmouth, R.I.; and by Raytheon Technical Services Company in New Orleans and SanDiego. (Source: PRNewswire, 10/22/08)

Austal gets $150K tax break

MOBILE, Ala. - The Mobile City Council on Tuesday gave Austal USA a $150,000 break in permitting fees for a new facility on Mobile River that company officials said could employ 1,000 additional workers. Austal is spending $151 million to expand its existing shipbuilding operation by constructing a modular assembly line. The new facility should be running by late summer 2009. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 10/22/08)

GCRL professor gets $2.3M grant

OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. - Microbiologist Crystal Johnson at the Gulf Coast Research Laboratory has been awarded a four-year, $2.3 million grant from the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health to study pathogenic vibrios. Johnson and colleagues from the University of Southern Mississippi Department of Coastal Sciences at GCRL and the Department of Marine Science at Stennis Space Center will collaborate with researchers at the University of Maryland and the NOAA Northwest Fisheries Science Center in Seattle, Wash. (Source: Hattiesburg American, 10/20/08)

Maritime center eyes groundbreaking

MOBILE, Ala. - Ground is expected to be broken in the next two months on a $12 million maritime training center on the east bank of the Mobile River. The 60,000-square-foot center is being spearheaded by Alabama Industrial Development Training. The center will offer free programs and is expected to help answer local shipyards’ demand for up to 1,800 workers over the next several years. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 10/19/08)

Signal to repair two offshore rigs

MOBILE, Ala. - Signal International said Thursday that it has won a $10 million contract to repair two offshore oil rigs damaged last month by Hurricane Ike. Signal, which is moving its headquarters from Pascagoula to Mobile, said it expects to add 200 workers to the 2,500 it has at two Pascagoula shipyards. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 10/17/08)

Navy buying more LCS ships

MOBILE, Ala. - The Navy said Thursday it plans to buy three littoral combat ships in fiscal 2010, in addition to the two it will buy next year. But it wants contractors to amend bids to reflect cost savings that come with building multiple ships. The Navy intends to award one boat in 2009 to each of two teams competing to build as many as 55 of the warships. One team, General Dynamics Corp., builds its sea frames at Austal USA in Mobile. (Source: Mobile Press Register, 10/17/08)

Bollinger sues Northrop Grumman

NEW ORLEANS. La. - Bollinger Shipyards filed a $12 million suit against Northrop Grumman in a dispute involving renovation of Coast Guard cutters that were later taken out of service. Bollinger was ordered by Northrop to stop work on the contract after Bollinger delivered six boats and had begun work on six others. Bollinger said it demanded Northrop pay it $12.1 million to terminate the work, but the company refused. (Source: AP, 10/15/08)

DI sea lab director dies

DAUPHIN ISLAND, Ala. - Marine scientist L. Scott Quackenbush, executive director of the Dauphin Island Sea Lab, died Sunday after a brief illness, officials said. He was 56. Quackenbush, a native of Baltimore, assumed the top job in July. He had previously worked as associate dean for marine science programs at Humbolt State University in Arcata, Calif. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 10/14/08)

NGI: Focusing on the big picture

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. - It's been part of the local economy for more than two years now, yet most residents are likely to know little about it. But the Northern Gulf Institute is becoming a heavyweight research operation, and hopes to begin work soon on a new $9 million building at Stennis. (Source: Alliance Insight, October 2008)

Gulf Island Fab gets state help

Gulf Island Fabrication Inc. will receive $2.3 million in state assistance for a $29.3 million expansion in Terrebonne Parish. The money will help Gulf Island, which has built offshore drilling platforms since 1985, open a new division to build barges and other marine vessels on the Houma Navigational Channel that leads south from the city to the Gulf of Mexico. The company employes 1,100 people in the Houma area. (Source: Baton Rouge Advocate, 10/11/08)

Mullen: Navy faces challenges

WASHINGTON - The Navy's shipbuilding program faces continuing challenges from cost growth and other issues, Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at a breakfast meeting Thursday. Mullen also praised the quality of today's armed forces, but voiced concern about violence in Afghanistan. He also said military officials must do more to encourage troops with post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms to seek help. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 10/10/08)

Contract: Gravois, $6M

Gravois Aluminum Boats, doing business as Metal Shark Inc, Jeanerette, La., was awarded a $6 million firm fixed price contract for 54 Fast Attack Boats with Active RFID Tags. Work will be performed in Jeanerette, with an completion date of June 30, 2010. TACOM, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 10/08/08)

Destroyer passes tests

PASCAGOULA, Miss. - Northrop Grumman officials say the 510-foot Truxtun, DDG 103, went through acceptance trial in the Gulf of Mexico last week and passed. The Navy is scheduled to accept delivery Oct. 24, and the crew will move aboard Dec. 8. The ship will be commissioned in the spring. The Truxtun is the 25th Aegis guided-missile destroyer built by Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding. (Source: The Mississippi Press, 10/08/08)

LCS christened in Mobile

MOBILE, Ala. - A littoral combat ship christened over the weekend at the Austal USA shipyard in Mobile Bay will be delivered to the Navy next year. The Independence, LCS 2, was built by prime contractor General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, along with Austal USA, BAE Systems, L3 Communications Marine Systems, Maritime Applied Physics Corporation and Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems. It’s the first U.S. trimaran warship. (Source: Multiple, 10/06/08)

Rolls-Royce to power UK ships

Rolls-Royce won a contract to provide power and propulsion equipment for two of the world's largest warships - the UK’s new 65,000 ton aircraft carriers, HMS Queen Elizabeth, and HMS Prince of Wales. Rolls-Royce is supplying the MT30 gas turbine as part of an integrated system that includes the carrier's propellers. Rolls-Royce has a propeller foundry in Pascagoula, Miss. (Source; Rolls-Royce, 10/06/08)

CG cutter power up successful

PASCAGOULA, Miss. - The Lockheed Martin Coast Guard Systems team participated in the successful power up of the first set of electronic cabinets and consoles of the command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance system onboard the Coast Guard's National Security Cutter, Waesche. The 418-foot ship, built at Northrop Grumman's Pascagoula shipyard, is the second ship in a class of multi-mission cutters. The first one, USCGC Bertholf, was commissioned Aug. 4, in Alameda, Calif. (Source: Lockheed Martin, 10/02/08)

Contract: Gryphon, $17.1M

Gryphon Technologies, Greenbelt, Md., awarded $17.1 million contract for procurement of Expeditionary Warfare Program and Landing Craft Air Cushion maintenance, modification, repair, and trial support engineering support services. Work will be performed in Panama City, Fla., and is expected to be completed by October 2013. The Naval Surface Warfare Center Panama City Division, Panama City, is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 10/02/08)

Study sees shortage of marine scientists

The departments of commerce and education are forecasting a serious shortage of scientists trained to do the research required to rebuild fish stocks and restore marine species in the next decade. A new joint report to Congress estimates the nation will need between 180 and 340 new fishery stock assessment scientists in the next 10 years, but current institutions will produce only 160. (Source: Department of Commerce, Department of Education, 09/29/08)

Bollinger gets Coast Guard contract

NEW ORLEANS, La. - Bollinger Shipyards landed a contract valued at $88 million over the next decade to build a new class of faster Coast Guard patrol boats. Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Thad Allen announced the award Monday at Coast Guard headquarters in Washington. The Fast Response Cutter Sentinel Class patrol boat, or FRC, is a 153-foot cutter capable of speeds of more than 28 knots. (Source: New Orleans Times-Picayune, 09/30/08)

Austal turns out second ferry

MOBILE, Ala. - The second Hawaii Superferry left Austal's ship shed on the Mobile River into a floating dry dock Monday. The unnamed vessel should be floated off the dry dock at Atlantic Marine Tuesday, then will head back to Austal for final work before sea trials later this year. The ferry is part of a two-vessel, $190 million deal Austal landed in April 2004. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 09/30/08)

Contract: Northrop Grumman, $8.2M

Northrup Grumman Corp., Ships Systems, Pascagoula, Miss., has been awarded an $8.2 million cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for asperstructures. Asperstructure incorporates the structural component of an aperture into a load-carrying member of a ship superstructure. The program will demonstrate the ability of integrated antenna and structure concepts to improve radar functionality, reduce weight and complexity and reduce costs. Work will be performed in Pascagoula. (Source: DefenseLink, 09/29/08)

Contract: Northrop Grumman, $76.6M

Northrop Grumman Ship Systems, Pascagoula, Miss., has been awarded a $76.6 million modification to a previously awarded Navy contract to exercise an option for CG 47 and DD 963 Class integrated planning yard services. Work will be performed in Pascagoula and is expected to be completed by Sept. 2009. (Source: DefenseLink, 09/29/08)

Interview: Northrop's Michael Petters

Michael Petters, Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding president, says integrating the operations of Northrop Grumman’s shipyards and some 40,000 employees on the Gulf Coast and in Virginia is one of his top challenges. Petters discusses a wide range of topics with the Mississippi Press. (Source: Mississippi Press, 09/28/08)

Survey vessel launched

MOSS POINT, Miss. - VT Halter Marine launched the last in a line of government fisheries survey vessels Friday when the Bell M. Shimada was launched into the Escatawpa River. The fourth ship of its class, the Shimada is also the last that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration contracted VT Halter to build. The Shimada and its sister ships incorporate acoustic quieting technology that enables them to study fish and other marine life without making enough sound to alter their behavior. (Source: The Sun Herald, 09/27/08)

Contract: VT Halter, $393.7M

VT Halter Marine, Inc., Pascagoula, Miss., was awarded a $393.7 million firm fixed price not-to-exceed modification to previously awarded contract for the detail, design and construction of three Fast Missile Crafts for the Egyptian Navy. Work will be performed at Pascagoula, Manassas, Va., Detroit, Mich., Baltimore, Md., Pittsburgh, Pa., Philadelphia, Pa., Camden, N.J., New Orleans, La., Thibodaux, La., Boca Raton, Fla., and other sites. Work is expected to be completed April 2013. (Source: DefenseLink, 09/26/08)

GCRL hosts oceans celebration

OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. - The Gulf Coast Research Laboratory and its J.L. Scott Marine Education Center will celebrate the opening of its Ocean Today Kiosk with a free event Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. GCRL is one of five pilot sites debuting the kiosk, an interactive interpretive learning station featuring national ocean news and video from the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration. The address is 703 East Beach Drive, Ocean Springs, Miss. (Source: University of Southern Mississippi, 09/24/0)

DoD industry day at Moss Point

MOSS POINT, Miss. - The South Mississippi Contract Procurement Center in Biloxi is sponsoring a Department of Defense Industry Day Nov. 5 at Pelican Landing Conference Center in Moss Point. Participating organizations include the Department of the Navy Supervisor of shipbuilding and shipbuilders from Louisiana to Alabama. (Source: The Sun Herald, 09/24/08)

Lockheed LCS delivered to Navy

MARINETTE, Wis. - Lockheed Martin delivered “Freedom,” the nation’s first Littoral Combat Ship, to the Navy on Thursday. It's the Navy’s preliminary acceptance of LCS 1. The 378-foot Freedom, a steel monohull, was christened and launched in September 2006 and completed sea trials last month. It will be commissioned Nov. 8 in Milwaukee and homeported in San Diego, Calif. Austal USA in Mobile, Ala., is building another LCS. (Source: Lockheed Martin, 09/18/08)

Atlantic Marine eyes renovations

MOBILE, Ala. - Atlantic Marine plans to overhaul several of the existing piers at its Pinto Island shipyard on the Mobile River's east bank, creating a deepwater berth to dock oil rigs. Herschel Vinyard, vice president of Atlantic Marine Holding Co., said the company expects to do more repair and conversions. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 09/10/08)

Signal headquarter move stalled

MOBILE, Ala. - The move of Signal International's headquarters from Pascagoula to Mobile has been delayed to late February or early March 2009. The company says weather issues and negotiations with architects and decorators about the build-out delayed things. Fewer than a dozen employees will be based in Mobile. (Source: Mobile Press-Register, 09/09/08)

Storms scaring away workers?

WASHINGTON - U.S. Navy Secretary Donald Winter is worried the specter of repeated hurricanes is taking a toll on the shipbuilding workers on the Gulf Coast. Rep. Gene Taylor of Mississippi agrees that the prospect of a major storm takes a toll. (Source: The Sun Herald, 09/05/08)

Oceans '09 set for Biloxi

BILOXI, Miss. - The Oceans 2009 conference for marine science and engineering will be held Oct. 26-29, 2009 at the Mississippi Gulf Coast Coliseum and Convention Center. The event is sponsored by the Marine Technology Society and the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers/Oceanic Engineering Society. Organizers are now looking for local exhibitors, who can contact Sue Kingston at s.kingston@ieee.org for more information. (Source: The Stennis News, August 08 issue)

Supercomputer to help in ocean modeling

WASHINGTON - IBM says the federal government has purchased a supercomputer to provide improved data for the nation’s military and commercial ocean-going vessels. The Department of Defense will use the Power 575 Hydro-Cluster supercomputer to provide detailed models of ocean waves, currents and temperature to predict ocean behavior. While the primary user will be the Navy, models will be publicly accessible through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The models will also be used by the Coast Guard to improve search and rescue. IBM said the supercomputer at Mississippi’s Stennis Space Center will also be used as a platform for R&D in ocean science. (Source: UPI, 07/10/08)

Lab gets NOAA aquaculture grant

OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. - Gulf Coast Research Laboratory’s Cedar Point Marine Aquaculture Center has received $6.7 million that will go toward increasing seafood production in South Mississippi. U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran announced the funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to enable the center to further develop its University of Southern Mississippi campus into a state-of-the-art marine aquaculture research and demonstration facility. Cochran said it will lead to improved aquaculture technologies that help alleviate harmful impacts on natural fish stocks while providing consumers with high-demand fish products. Programs like the one at Ocean Springs are searching for ways to mass-produce marine seafood onshore in confined offshore farms. (Source: The Sun Herald, 06/14/08)

A different kind of CSI

OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. - The J.L. Scott Marine Education Center is offering a new summer career camp for teens ages 15-18. The CSI, which stands for Coastal Sciences Investigation Camp, will be at the J.L. Scott Marine Education Center, located at The University of Southern Mississippi Gulf Coast Research Laboratory in Ocean Springs. It’s an opportunity for high school students to get hands-on career orientation in the field of marine science. The camp will be offered June 2-6 and July 28-Aug. 1. For more information call 228.818.8890, or e-mail marine.education@usm.edu. (Source: University of Southern Mississippi, 04/07/08)