Page 30: of Marine News Magazine (August 2024)

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Feature

Shipbuilding & Repair

Philly Shipyard

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HIPBUILDING

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By Barry Parker hipbuilding in the United States has been eroded (from Admiral Watson’s team, and others) which, depend- over the decades, especially in the construction of ing on the unpredictable political tides, might begin to re- deepsea vessels. The oft-cited statistics are worth verse the continued ebb in the U.S. international ? eet. repeating: at the present time, 180 oceangoing ves- For vessels set for domestic employment, the U.S. ship-

S sels currently operating in worldwide trades are ? ying the yard scene is more robust, but construction and main-

U.S. ? ag (including builds from non-U.S. yards), contrast- tenance/repair work for government sectors has been ed with an overall ? eet of roughly 50,000 vessels. As the au- eclipsing deepsea cargo vessel newbuilds in recent years. thors of the recently published book, Zero Point Four: How The yards have sensibly recognized a need to play in both

U.S. Leadership in Maritime Will Secure America’s Future, arenas, and to apply commercial management smarts to authored by a group led by U.S. Coast Guard Rear Admiral execution of government shipbuilding programs. In an (Retired) James Watson, this represents 0.4% (hence the early July announcement of a new commercial order for book’s title) of the international ? eet. The history of the tugs, Eastern Shipbuilding Group (ESG) top executive decline has been well documented, with reduced subsidies Joey D’Isernia, stated, “This contract award is more solid and the growth of offshore registries over the past decades. evidence that ESG is able to successfully design and build

At this juncture, there is a groundswell of opinion forming both government and commercial vessels while remaining 30 | MN August 2024