Damen OPV Roadshow Tours Australia
Posted by Eric Haun
Damen Shipyard Group's Australian team has delivered two more
industry briefings to potential suppliers from Australian
industry ahead of its bid submission for the design and build of
12 offshore patrol vessels (OPV). Following February's
events held in Adelaide and Perth, Damen hosted a third in
Brisbane on March 15 and a fourth two days later in Melbourne.
The Damen group is one of three international shipbuilders
shortlisted for the building of the 12 steel-hulled OPVs to
replace Australia's current fleet of Armidale Class patrol boats.
One of the requirements of the tender process is that the bidders
partner with local shipyards and maximize local industry
participation. Two of the new OPVs will be built in South
Australia, and the remaining 10 in Western Australia.
The two most recent briefings, led by Mark Todd, Damen's
Australian Representative, were conducted with the main objective
to meet face-to-face with local suppliers and provide a direct
path to Damen's supply chain for the project. For Damen, the
briefings provided the opportunity to gain firsthand knowledge of
the suppliers and their products in the different localities. At
the same time, the suppliers were briefed on the criteria that
Damen uses to select local partners and gained a better
understanding of Damen's approach to maximizing Australian
industry.
The four briefings conducted over the last two months have
attracted approximately 800 attendees, which demonstrates the
strong interest that the SEA 1180 program is generating.
The ICN Gateway portal which Damen established for the tender bid
attracted a significant amount of interest from SMEs wishing to
be part of the build. The portal is now closed noting tender
submission is due on 30 March; however, the project's Design
Review Process will continue to provide Australian SMEs the
opportunity to become involved as Damen aims to lead the
foundation project of Australia's continuous Naval Shipbuilding
Program.
The tender for the SEA 1180 closes on March 30, and the members
of the Damen team are currently putting the finishing touches to
their comprehensive plan to build these vessels in partnership
with Australian shipbuilders ASC and Forgacs Marine and Defense.
Mar 20, 2017