Grand Bahama Shipyard Limited was opened only 7 years ago, and has already grown rapidly in its firstyears of operations. With increasing demand from several market segments, the need for additionalexpansion has become urgent and the shipyard is ready for another transformation. The new dock,combined with expansion of the supporting areas, will substantially increase the overall capacity of theyard. Judging by the interest from the market place the yard will be fully booked for the foreseeablefuture. "We are very excited about the next few years" says David Dalgleish, the Managing Director of theshipyard. "We have had to turn workdown in the past year due to undercapacity,and we already havebookings for the new dock. This ispart of a larger expansion plan whichincludes wet berths and additionalsupport facilities. Grand BahamaShipyard Limited is the first choicefor a large international customerbase from areas such as northernGermany, offshore operators in theGulf of Mexico, and many of thecruise lines. This expansion willsupport continued growth in thesectors such as LNG, Offshore andfull scale conversions and retro-fits.""Our aim is to sustain a stable and profitable business, and continue to be recognised as one of theworld’s premier shipyards, and we must react to the challenges and technical advances of the industryfaced by our clients" Dalgleish continued. Aggressive Expansion Overall the shipyard plans to spend approximately 50million US dollars on the expansion, and scheduled forimmediate action are facilities to support interioroutfitting, upgrade and expansion of the existing black andgray water handling plant, and electrical workshop andcapability will be upgraded and expanded. Next in line forcapacity expansion are facilities for water blasting of hullsand structures, and paint application, steel fabrication, andpipe work areas. All of the above services are showingtrends and opportunities for growth in the market place. Additional hiring of skilled labour andmanagement is also included in the plan to handle the increase in projects to be undertaken at the Freeportfacility. Another part of the plan is an additional 1,300 ft of wet berths. "We are the biggest commercial shipyard on this side of the Americas, and repair more cruise ships thanany other yard in the world. However, cruise ships represent only 40% of our overall projects. We aregrowing rapidly in the areas of LNG, the offshore sector, seismic ships, and general cargo ships, andtankers." states Peter Luijckx, Commercial Manager. The shareholders are fully committed to the expansion, and are no longer seeking outside financing, noradditional partnerships. Future Growth
Grand Bahama Shipyard Limitedhas no plans to enter in to the fieldof new construction, but willcontinue to grow and expand in allareas of shiprepair and retrofitting.Since the steel construction cornerof the market is consistentlyshowing excellent potential forgrowth, Grand Bahama ShipyardLimited will be adding facilities toaccommodate additional work inthis area, to include installation ofcomplete mid section blocks,sponsons and extensions. A beaming and proud David Dalgleish tells us that "It has been a wonderful ride so far, and it is onlygoing to get better. I am proud to be at the forefront of this success story together with a strongmanagement team that is making it all possible." He continues "Grand Bahama Shipyard Limited is asolution driven facility. We focus on getting ships out on time. In the past six years we have repaired 143cruise ships, and have never finished behind schedule - at least not due to non-performance on our part."The shipyard continues to be busy, with a waiting list of clients. This can be attributed to theknowledgeable and dedicated management team, the timely performance in delivery by the workforce,and a geographically perfect location. Keep an eye on Grand Bahama Shipyard Limited. There will shortly be further announcements outliningthe next phase of their remarkable expansion.
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