Navy Starting Construction on Columbia Class
(Source; US Navy; issued Nov 5, 2020)
General Dynamics’ Electric Boat unit is the prime contractor on design and production of a new class of ballistic Missile submarines, the top US strategic defense priority. (GD image)
“I applaud the efforts of the Navy and industry team who worked aggressively on this contract,” said James Geurts, assistant secretary of the Navy for research development and acquisition. “Columbia is the Navy’s number one acquisition priority program - awarding this contract on time is vital to keeping the program on track.”
This award covers the full construction scope for the first-of-class, SSBN 826, Columbia. For SSBN 827, Wisconsin, the modification covers advance procurement, advance construction, and associated engineering efforts, with full construction beginning in Fiscal Year 2024 upon Congressional authorization and appropriation.
This incremental funding provided by this award is required for the first two ships will fund construction start, as well as provides industrial base stability, production efficiencies, and cost savings when compared to individual procurements. The Columbia Class SSBN represents a significant investment in maintaining our strategic deterrent into the future.
The 12-ship Columbia Class, which will replace the existing Ohio Class nuclear ballistic submarine force, is scheduled for its first patrol in FY2030.
The Columbia Class will be constructed with a life-of-ship reactor resulting in a shorter mid-life maintenance period. As a result, strategic nuclear deterrence requirements can be met with a smaller overall force structure of twelve Columbia Class submarines, compared to fourteen Ohio Class submarines, saving over $40B in acquisition and operational costs
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Pentagon Contract Announcement
(Source: US Department of Defense; issued Nov. 5, 2020)
The contract modification exercises an option for construction and test of the lead and second ships of the Columbia class SSBN 826 and SSBN 827, as well as associated design and engineering support.
This modification to the integrated product and process development (IPPD) contract supports the fiscal 2021 construction start of the lead ship (SSBN 826) and advance procurement, advance construction, coordinated material buys and full construction of the follow hull (SSBN 827) in fiscal 2024.
Work will be performed in Groton, Connecticut (36%); Newport News, Virginia (25%); Quonset Point, Rhode Island (17%); with other efforts performed at various sites throughout the U.S. (each less than 1%) (22%), and is expected to be completed by April 2030.
Efforts within the ship include the Common Missile Compartment which is a joint U.S./United Kingdom effort.
Fiscal 2021 National Sea-Based Deterrence Fund (NSBDF) funding in the amount of $545,186,307 (96%); and fiscal 2020 NSBDF funding in the amount of $19,936,251 (4%) will be obligated at the time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This action leverages the acquisition authorities contained in 10 U.S. Code §2218a, NSBDF.
The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.
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General Dynamics Electric Boat Awarded $9.5 Billion by U.S. Navy for Columbia-class Submarines
(Source: General Dynamics; issued November 05, 2020
Electric Boat is the prime contractor on the Columbia program, which will replace the aging Ohio class of ballistic missile submarines.
Electric Boat will perform about 78% of the construction of the Columbia class and recently shifted the program to full-scale construction at the company’s manufacturing complex in Quonset Point, Rhode Island. Construction of four of the six ‘supermodules’ will take place at Electric Boat’s Quonset Point facility. The supermodules will then be transported by barge to the company’s Final Test and Assembly yard in Groton, Connecticut, where the components will be assembled into a complete submarine in a 200,000 square-foot facility now under construction specifically for the Columbia class.
General Dynamics recently reported that the design maturity for Columbia was almost 90% complete, nearly twice the level of design completion of the lead Virginia-class submarine when it started construction.
"Electric Boat has been making preparations for construction of the Columbia class for nearly a decade, including advancing the design of this critical Navy asset, hiring and training thousands of skilled tradespeople, modernizing our facilities and helping to bolster the supply base. As a result, Columbia's design is more advanced than that of any previous submarine program,” said Kevin Graney, president of General Dynamics Electric Boat. “We are grateful for the unwavering support of the Navy and Congress in securing funding to avoid disruption of this critical program.”
At 560 feet long with a displacement of nearly 21,000 tons, the submarines of the Columbia class will be the largest ever built by the United States. Ships of the Columbia class will have a life-of-ship fuel core that will power the submarine for its entire service life, eliminating the need for a mid-service refueling. Electric Boat will deliver the lead ship to the Navy in 2027.
General Dynamics is a global aerospace and defense company that offers a broad portfolio of products and services in business aviation; combat vehicles, weapons systems and munitions; IT services; C4ISR solutions; and shipbuilding and ship repair. General Dynamics employs more than 100,000 people worldwide and generated $39.4 billion in revenue in 2019.
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