Dry Dock Modernization to Accommodate New US Carrier
W.F. Magann Corp. in Portsmouth, VA won a $23.8 million firm-fixed-price contract for dry dock modernization at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard. The work to be performed provides for an extension to Dry Dock #8 to “service the new CVN Class hull with the bulbous bow.”
That would be CVN 77 George H.W. Bush, a “transitional” carrier between the Nimitz Class that technically includes it, and the new CVN-21 Gerald R. Ford Class. Subsequent carriers will also feature the bulbous underwater bow, which improves hull efficiency and adds more buoyancy to the ship’s forward end. The George H.W. Bush was christened on October 7/06, and launched on October 9/06; it is scheduled to enter service in 2009.
Demolition of existing structures and utilities will be required to support the project, as well as providing utility trenches, mechanical and electrical work and other incidental related work. Work will be performed in Portsmouth, VA and is expected to be complete by July 2010. This contract was competitively procured via the Naval Facilities Engineering Command e-solicitation website with 2 proposals received by the Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Mid-Atlantic in Norfolk, VA (N40085-07-C-7038).