Make Shipbuilding Sexy Again Energizing discussion today on America’s shipbuilding workforce and workload. 🇺🇸⚓ The Industry Panel on “Workforce & Workload Challenges across the Public & Private Sector Shipyards” covered a lot of ground—from capacity and schedules to recruiting, retention, productivity, and the future of the maritime industrial base. Two lines among many stuck with me: “𝑊𝑒 𝑑𝑜𝑛’𝑡 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑎 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑏𝑙𝑒𝑚. 𝑊𝑒 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑎 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑏𝑙𝑒𝑚” And the quote of the day, delivered with some passion: “𝑀𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑆ℎ𝑖𝑝𝑏𝑢𝑖𝑙𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑆𝑒𝑥𝑦 𝐴𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛.” The humor got the room’s attention. The argument behind it was serious. Look at what newer defense companies are doing. Look at what leading shipyards overseas are doing with automation. Inject technology. Use additive manufacturing. Put robots into tanks and other hazardous inspection spaces. Use laser ablation. Automate hull inspection. Rethink work that once required dozens of people when technology can enable a handful to accomplish it. And then deliver results. We talk constantly about the shipbuilding workforce. But workforce growth alone will not close the gap. We also have to increase the productive power of every skilled worker we already have. Technology doesn’t replace the trades. It multiplies what skilled tradespeople can accomplish. 𝐌𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐟𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫. 𝐌𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐬𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐫. 𝐌𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐚 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝. Great discussion from leaders across the public and private shipyard communities. For additional context, the Virginia Ship Repair Association (VSRA) Ship Repair Radio has some excellent discussions on the workforce and industrial-base challenge: 🔗youtu.be/f9FF5HchW7Y?is=sihA… 🔗 youtu.be/AV1xSPgdUSA?is=ZQcG… #Shipbuilding #ShipRepair #MaritimeIndustrialBase #SkilledTrades #WorkforceDevelopment #SeaPower