Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding (FBS) is one of Fincantieri Marine Group’s three shipyards on the Great Lakes. Based in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, FBS specializes in construction, repair, and conversion of commercial vessels and sustainment of United States Coast Guard cutters and handles total vessel lifecycle: design, construction, delivery, training, warranty, repair, and sustainment. Every winter FBS welcomes approximately fifteen bulk carrier vessels, or “lakers,” for seasonal repairs. Over the past fifty years FBS has delivered more than 700 vessels, including more than 60 dredges, and repaired more than 750, making it the largest employer in Sturgeon Bay.
On the heels of servicing the nation’s icebreaker Mackinaw and completing routine repairs on the winter fleet, FBS is moving through 2020 with a busy construction schedule. This includes a state-of-the-art passenger/vehicle ferry for Washington Island Ferry Line to service Wisconsin’s Death’s Door Passage (delivery next month), a 740 ft. self-unloading barge for VanEnkevort Tug & Barge to transport goods throughout the Great Lakes (delivery mid-summer), a new 639 ft. laker for Interlake Steamship Company to transport raw materials across the region (delivery mid-2022), and a 5,400 m3 LNG barge that will provide bunkering solutions along the East Coast (delivery 2022).
FBS has received four times the prestigious Shipbuilders Council of America Excellence in Safety Award for going the extra mile in safety and accident prevention and provides one of the safest working environments in the U.S. by maintaining the highest standards, promoting a culture of shared responsibility, and continuously investing in its talent through training and education.
“CDMCS is pleased to welcome Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding to the organization and looks forward to closely engaging them in the safety conversation with the nation’s dredging and marine construction industry. There will be many areas of synergy for us that will benefit all involved,” said CDMCS’s Managing Director Michael Gerhardt.