Austal USA has been awarded a $128 million contract to design and build an auxiliary dry dock for the U.S. Navy.
The project will be the second steel project performed on the Mobile company’s new steel panel line.
“The design incorporates features to improve operability and maintainability based on the company’s experience and lessons learned from owning, operating and maintaining a similar dry dock at its repair facility at Austal West Campus,” the company said in announcing the contract award.
“I am proud of our Austal USA team for developing a winning proposal,” Austal USA President Rusty Murdaugh said. “Combined with our contract for the T-ATS program, the AFDM award is evidence of our expanding capability and focus on delivering a diverse portfolio of solutions to our customers, from combatants to dry docks. We are looking forward to providing the U.S. Navy with an exceptional floating dry dock using our lean manufacturing approach.”
The 694×157-foot dry dock will have 18,000 LT of lift capacity and 90,800 square feet of work space.
Austal, which has built aluminum hulled ships for about 20 years, opened its $100 million steel line in April.
