Company Profile
Austal USA
Company Overview
Austal’s US shipyard occupies approximately 115 acres and is located in Mobile, Alabama. Positioned on the Mobile River, the shipyard waterfront is approximately 20 miles from the open Gulf.
Since the facility first opened in 2001, Austal has built and delivered 11 ships in this yard. The largest ship delivered to date is the 417ft all-aluminum trimaran, US Navy littoral combat ship, USS Independence (LCS 2). Austal USA also delivered the largest high-speed catamaran built by an Austal shipyard, a high-speed vehicle-passenger ferry with a beam of 78ft, a length of 371ft and a 13ft draft. Other vessels built by the Austal USA team include (2) 150ft fast crew/supply monohulls, an 86ft high-speed passenger catamaran, a 111ft dinner cruise catamaran, a 135ft dinner cruise monohull, a 143ft high-speed passenger/excursion catamaran, and a 192ft high-speed vehicle passenger ferry, the first of its kind to operate within the US. These are supplied with either conventional propellers or waterjets.
In 2004, the US Navy awarded a final design contract for the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) to Bath Iron Works (BIW). Austal is the LCS 127-meter trimaran seaframe designer and builder. The first order for a prototype was awarded to the BIW/Austal LCS Team in October 2005. USS Independence was launched at Austal's Mobile, Alabama shipyard in April 2008 and delivered to the Navy in December 2009. The Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) will be the most advanced high-speed military craft in the world and is intended to operate in coastal areas globally. As a key part of the US Navy fleet, they will be highly maneuverable and configurable to support mine detection/elimination, anti-submarine and surface ship warfare. The trimaran hull form provides the ship superior seakeeping and the capacity to carry a large cache of weapons packages. A contract for a second BIW/Austal LCS was awarded by the Navy in May 2009.
In November 2008, Austal was awarded a contract to design and construct the first 103- meter Joint High Speed Vessel (JHSV), with options for 9 additional. Construction on JHSV 1 began in December 2009 and in January 2010, Austal USA received a construction contract for JHSV 2 and 3.
In July 2008, Austal broke ground on the state-of-the-art Module Manufacturing Facility (MMF), which when complete, will include 740,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing space, 85,000 sq. ft. of drive-through warehouse space for efficient receipt and distribution of materials from our US and global suppliers, and 60,000 sq. ft. of office space. Phase I, completed in late August 2009, includes half of the manufacturing space of the entire project (an area over 1,000 feet long by 350 feet wide), the completed warehouse and paved fenced parking for 2,000 vehicles.
Notable Clients
Department of Defense
Notable Accomplishments / Recognition
“USNS Spearhead”, the first of 10 US Navy Joint High Speed Vessels (JHSV) designed for rapid intra-theater transport of troops and military equipment, was christened on Saturday September 17, 2011 during a ceremony at Austal’s USA shipyard in Mobile, Alabama.