Shipbuilding & Repairing Industry Profile

The US shipbuilding and repair industry includes about 600 companies with combined annual revenue of about $21 billion. Major companies include the shipbuilding division of General Dynamics, Huntington Ingalls (formerly a unit of Northrop Grumman), BAE Systems Ship Repair, Bollinger Shipyards, the inland barge division of Trinity Industries, and VT Halter Marine (a subsidiary of Singapore Technologies Engineering). The industry is highly concentrated: the largest 50 companies account for about 90 percent of revenue.

Asian countries dominate the global shipbuilding industry, with South Korea, China, and Japan producing the vast majority of vessels. Leading companies include South Korea's Hyundai Heavy Industries, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, and Samsung Heavy Industries; China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC) and China State Shipbuilding Corporation; and Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Demand for military shipbuilding is largely determined by the US military budget, and to a much lesser extent, the military spending of foreign governments allied with the US. Commercial shipbuilding demand is determined by international and domestic trade, the health of the global economy, and rate of fleet replacement due to age or obsolescence. Small companies usually specialize in building and repair of small commercial vessels. Large companies tend to offer a wide range of building and repair services for both commercial and military vessels, and enjoy economies of scale in purchasing, design, and manufacturing.

Imports are less than 5 percent of the US market. The US ...