(SitNews) Ketchikan, Alaska – U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced today that Ketchikan-based Alaska Ship and Drydock, Inc. will receive $1,018,314.75 for a One Side Welder, a Material Handling System and a CNC Cutting System.

Today, $9.98 million in grants were announced to 13 small U.S. shipyards, including the Alaska Ship and Drydock, through the U.S. Maritime Administrations Small Shipyards Grants Program.

USCG Sycamore DryDocking Friday at the Alaska Ship & Drydock
Photo by Jim Pinckney

“These grants will help improve our ability to build and repair ships in the United States, strengthening our economy and helping position these small businesses and shipyard workers to be better prepared to win the future,” said Secretary LaHood.

Over 50,000 Americans are employed by small shipyards in the United States, varying in size from family-owned businesses employing a few dozen workers to state-of-the-art facilities with hundreds of employees.

“This money will help train workers and buy new tools and equipment,” said U.S. Maritime Administrator David Matsuda. “Having these essential needs taken care of will help these small shipyards be more productive, efficient, and able to sustain good jobs for American workers well into the future.”

The Ketchikan-based Alaska Ship and Drydock, Inc. was formed in 1994 as a private cooperation performing Shipbuilding & Repair in support of fleets operating in the southeast Alaska Inside Passage, North Pacific and Bering Sea. The Ketchikan Shipyard is operated through a 30 year agreement with the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA), a State of Alaska Public Corporation, which owns the Ketchikan Shipyard.

Source of News: 

U.S. Transportation
www.dot.gov

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