The Business Council of Alabama recognized Austal USA as the State’s Large
Manufacturer of the Year at a June 20 luncheon ceremony. The award recognizes the
full-service shipyard’s growth and continued excellence in manufacturing.
In 2005, Austal won the award for best mid-sized
manufacturer of the year. Austal is the only repeat recipient of the
Manufacturer of the Year award in the program’s 13-year history. Austal USA is
only the second Mobile-based company to have ever received this honor.
With more than 1,300 manufacturing members and as Alabama's
affiliate for the National Association of Manufacturers, BCA is a strong
advocate for manufacturing. One of the council's first initiatives is working
with the NAM's Manufacturing Institute to build in Alabama a coalition of
business, education, work force and economic development leaders to develop a
nationally credentialed high-quality manufacturing work force.
The BCA recognizes the state’s top manufacturers for their
accomplishments annually with the Manufacturer of the Year award. Austal was
chosen over other entries based on the following criteria, the shipyard says:
financial growth, manufacturing leadership, market leadership, leadership
development and workforce enhancement.
“Austal is both proud and honored to have received this
award not once, but twice in Austal USA’s short, 12-year history,” states Joe
Rella, Austal USA president and chief operating officer, in a company press
release. “We are thankful for the hard work of Austal USA’s team of
shipbuilders, engineers and support staff who are the ones for which we accept
this honor.”
Austal USA is a full-service shipyard offering design,
construction and high-speed vessel service and repair. The company says that as
Austal USA continues to expand its service and repair capabilities, it is
well-positioned for new business with engineering, test and trials
capabilities, and a new waterfront facility all co-located on the Mobile Bay
waterfront.
Austal is currently under contract with the U.S. Navy to
build nine 103-meter JHSVs under a 10-ship, $1.6 billion contract and five
127-meter Independence-variant LCS class ships, four of which are a part of a
10-ship, $3.5 billion contract.
For the LCS and JHSV programs, Austal, as prime contractor,
is teamed with General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems, a business unit
of General Dynamics. As the ship systems integrator, General Dynamics is
responsible for the design, integration and testing of the ship’s electronic
systems including the combat system, networks, and seaframe control. General
Dynamics’ proven open architecture approach allows for affordable and efficient
capability growth as technologies develop.
These two contracts will require Austal to increase its
Mobile, Alabama workforce to approximately 4,000 employees in order to fulfil
the contract requirements.