PUBLISHED MAR 13, 2022 8:39 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE
[By: Fincantieri]
Leaders from Fincantieri Marinette Marine, the U.S. Navy, and Wisconsin-based Miron Construction dedicated a new facility at the Marinette shipyard with a small ceremony Mar. 8, 2022.
Employees and guests gathered to open the newest building at the Marinette shipyard, Building 35, where giant plates of raw steel begin the journey to become a U.S. warship. The 32,000 sq. ft. building is connected to a new panel line where steel is prepared, marked, cut, and welded on an automated assembly line complete with state-of-the-art robotic welders. This is where the Constellation-class Frigate’s large steel plates with be cut and welded.
Fincantieri received a contract in 2020 that could be worth $5.5 billion to design and build the Navy’s newest class of ships, the Constellation-class Frigate. FMM is scheduled to begin construction on the first frigate this year, so this new facility will be increasingly busy as employees continue training ahead of frigate construction. This building and the panel line are part of the $300 million Fincantieri has recently invested into its shipyards.
“It is important to remember that all of our construction and improvement projects are connected to a singular purpose: to be an efficient, modern shipyard that builds world-class frigates for the U.S. Navy.” said Dario Deste, President and CEO of Fincantieri Marine Group. “We continue to affirm our commitment to the Navy.”
The new facility and panel line offer vast improvements in overall steel preparation, manufacturing, and staging processes that will be needed in construction of Constellation-class Frigates. Fincantieri plans to build two ships per year after the ship design is stabilized. Fincantieri is scheduled to deliver the lead ship in 2026 and the second vessel in 2027.
In addition to these ships, the Navy’s contract with FMM has options for eight additional frigates which would be built in Wisconsin using Fincantieri’s system-of-shipyards, which includes Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding in Sturgeon Bay, as well as Fincantieri ACE Marine in Green Bay.
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