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he bold vision of a young company was borne out at How was this achieved? In the first instance, Austal was the end of 2010 when the US division of Australian- able to draw on its extensive commercial pedigree in high Theadquartered aluminium shipbuilder Austal was con- speed aluminium multi-hull vessels, including the design and tracted by the US Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) construction of the world’s largest . Second, it could to take the world’s most advanced multi-mission combatant demonstrate a fast and efficient design and manufacture phi- into series production. losophy that has realised a step change in naval shipbuilding In meeting the US Navy’s requirements for a fast, agile and practice. And third, it had the vision to articulate the multiple versatile (LCS), Austal has engineered a benefits offered by the trimaran hullform in terms of volume, seaframe design that breaks the bounds of naval convention. payload, powering, seakeeping and stability. Uniquely, the Austal LCS has successfully synthesised the These groundbreaking approaches to naval ship engineer- significant hydrodynamic and seakeeping advantages of the ing and production reflect Austal’s culture of innovation. And trimaran hullform, with the weight and powering efficiencies it is this same ability to think ‘outside the box’ that has given of a robust aluminium structure to create a shallow draft war- the company such confidence in the potential of aluminium ship that truly deserves to be called transformational. trimaran designs to perform a range of defence and maritime What is just as remarkable is the way in which this technol- security missions. ogy has been successfully transferred from its high technol- That confidence is shared by the US Navy. With USS ogy commercial parent into the military domain in less than a Independence delivered, and the follow-on Flight 0 vessel decade. Indeed, it took just seven years between Austal Coronado (LCS-4) to launch in mid-2011, the service is now commencing its initial 90-day planning to acquire a further 10 Focused Mission High Speed Hull 270 has further refined the trimaran hullform Flight 0+ trimaran vessels by Ship concept study and the 16 means of a FY2010-2015 block January 2010 commissioning of buy approved by Congress at USS Independence (LCS-2), the the end of 2010. Austal had first of the two LCS Flight 0 ships submitted a bid in June 2010 as built by Austal USA at its Mobile, prime contractor, and the order Alabama, shipyard. for the first of these vessels was That accomplishment – in an confirmed by NAVSEA on 29 engineering realm generally December 2010 under a recognised for its innate conser- US$432.1 million fixed-price vatism - is very much testament incentive award; contract to the compelling capabilities, options for the nine additional now backed up by at-sea operat- vessels to be exercised in the ing experience, advanced by following five years (subject to Austal during the formative annual Congressional appropri- stages of the LCS acquisition ations) will bring the final con- process. In particular, it succeeded in convincing a commu- tract value up to US$3.5 billion. nity previously wary of using aluminium alloys in large ship John Rothwell, Austal’s co-founder and chairman, puts the structures. award in perspective. “This contract has firmly established trimaran: t

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Austal as an international defence shipbuilder, is a strong vote of confidence in Austal’s aluminium trimaran LCS design, and also reflects the strength and capability of our USA operations and highly-skilled workforce.” Further LCS production is anticipated in the years beyond 2015, and there is also potential for additional international orders through US government Foreign Military Sales (FMS). Austal, as the designer and builder, is best placed to con- tend with changes to the Flight 0+ design for future Flight upgrades, or for FMS opportunities. But for Austal, LCS is just the start. Buoyed by its success in the United States, the company sees worldwide applica- tions for suitably scaled aluminium trimaran designs serving In 2000 Austal embarked on a tests in order to understand warfighting, theatre support and constabulary missions. comprehensive research and and optimise the hull and Accordingly, Austal has continued to mature its ITAR-free, development project aimed at propulsion system with respect Australian-developed trimaran technology, as evidenced by developing a new hull design to seakeeping behaviour, fuel that would be capable of high consumption and speed in a the third generation hullform developed for the private ven- speeds in rough seas while at seaway. ture Hull 270 launched in 2010. The end result is a series of the same time offering The physical result of this versatile platform designs, ranging in size from 50 m to 127 unprecedented level of pas- intensive trimaran R&D effort m, able to meet a variety of littoral security needs. All derived senger comfort. Analyses iden- was Benchijigua Express, a 127 tified the trimaran hullform as m vehicle/passenger that from the same technology base, they lend themselves to an combining the best attributes began service with Fred Olsen infinite variety of roles including, but not limited to, anti-sub- of monohull and multi-hull S.A. in 2005. It was from this marine warfare, surface surveillance, Exclusive Economic designs to deliver superior baseline that Austal subse- seakeeping. quently developed its success- Zone patrol, search and rescue, special forces support, Hitherto, the conventional ful Littoral Combat Ship hydrographic survey, mine countermeasures, intra-theatre monohull had been the only design. logistics, amphibious support and humanitarian relief. option for unrestricted opera- From the military user’s per- What’s more, the aluminium trimaran seaframe is ideally tion in oceans and high sea spective, the inherent advan- states, but only at lower tages of the trimaran bring configured to enable the rapid interchange of modular mis- speeds. To increase the speed numerous benefits, including a sion payloads. The result is a supremely agile and cost effec- of a monohull the slenderness large payload bay, flexible lay- tive ‘open architecture’ platform that transcends traditional of the hull has to be increased, out, shallow draft, excellent however this introduces stabil- manoeuvrability, and high vessel typologies to deliver unmatched operational flexibility ity problems. speed in a seaway. and significant through-life cost benefits. are in principle Furthermore, outstanding sea- Already recognised as the world’s largest and most experi- stabilised monohulls, using keeping performance results in outriggers on either beam to enlarged aviation and water- enced designer and builder of aluminium ships, Austal is now enable both high speeds and craft operating envelopes, and pioneering a brand new platform concept that opens up a excellent seakeeping perform- ensures that crew and raft of possibilities to military and paramilitary customers. ance. Recognising the poten- embarked forces do not suffer Trimaran technology is on the bow wave of a naval revolu- tial of this approach, Austal from motion-induced fatigue undertook extensive model or seasickness. tion. the future is now

Austal’s trimaran LCS is breaking the bounds of naval convention

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s the world’s first operational trimaran warship, the designed and built to American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) Austal-built Flight 0 Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) USS Naval Vessel Rules, marking their first application to a sur- AIndependence (LCS-2) is today blazing a trail for a face combatant. new genre of versatile surface combatant that will form the The vessel’s aluminium structure – certified by ABS for a backbone of the US Navy in the decades ahead. It is also 30-year service life based on a detailed spectral fatigue opening their eyes of navies worldwide to the enormous analysis – provides a large roll-on/roll-off accessible mission potential offered by advanced aluminium seaframes – and bay area offering superior mission flexibility, rapid reconfig- enabling them to reassess the assumptions and preconcep- urability, improved damage protection and ample margins for tions that have historically narrowed the options concerning future growth. Above the mission bay is the largest flight the design, build and operation of front-line warships. deck on any US Navy surface combatant, capable of con- It was back in 2002 that the US Navy, having identified a ducting dual H-60 helicopter operations and accommodat- series of gaps in its ability to establish and maintain maritime ing the CH-53 (the service’s largest rotary-wing aircraft). dominance in choke points and shallow water regions This elevated aviation area benefits from reduced sea spray around the world, launched an accelerated acquisition pro- as well as the inherently superior seakeeping performance of gramme for a fast, manoeuvrable, focused-mission platform the trimaran so as to enlarge the helicopter operating enve- optimised for operations in the complex environment of the lope in higher sea states. Similarly, the stability afforded by littoral. Its objective was to deliver an affordable, modular the trimaran platform will enable manned and unmanned capability that could be forward employed to take on and watercraft to be launched and recovered in conditions up to defeat ‘asymmetric’ anti-access threats such as mines, quiet Sea State 4. diesel submarines and fast surface craft. A power-dense Combined Diesel and main So was born the concept of the LCS. Conceived to oper- propulsion system comprises two MTU 8000 series diesel ate and fight in the crowded, shallow water environments engines and two GE LM2500 gas turbines driving four found close to shore, it would combine an agile, high speed Wärtsilä waterjets. This machinery arrangement combines ‘seaframe’, capable of deploying independently to distant delivers an outstanding 45 knot sprint speed at full power, operating theatres, with a set of interchangeable equipment and extended range and fuel efficiency in an economical packages each tailored to a specific mission. diesel-only cruising regime. The bar was set high. LCS had to combine high sprint A variety of task-orientated payloads can be embarked to speed and outstanding manoeuvrability without compromise meet specific mission needs. In addition, the trimaran Austal to efficiency, range, seakeeping, shallow draft and high pay- incorporates a core mission suite including a 57 mm dual- load capacity. It also had to promote an open architecture – purpose gun, a SeaRAM inner-layer missile system, soft-kill in terms of both structure and computing infrastructure – that decoys, a 3-D surveillance radar, an electro- could readily accept alternative mission equipments and optical/infrared director and electronic surveillance information systems, and be operated by a core complement measures. significantly smaller than that of a typical frigate-size vessel. Advanced Information This was an ambitious capability requirement that clearly Systems has led the integration of the core mis- pushed the boundaries far beyond the steel displacement sion system, built on an open architecture monohulls that have for so long typified warship design. The computing environment. This flexible infor- Naval Sea Systems Command, as the US Navy’s acquisition mation technology backbone adheres to agent for the LCS, recognised the need to depart from con- the use of industry standards and max- ventional naval ship design practice and capture techniques, imises the use of commercially avail- technologies and expertise from outside the defence realm. able products and published So it looked instead at alternative ‘game-changing’ interfaces, allowing for the approaches that emphasised the cost-effective pull-through rapid insertion of new of proven high speed vessel technologies accessible ‘off the systems and applica- shelf’ from the international marketplace. And it enshrined tions. innovation as a means by which to deliver new and more First of class affordable ways of doing business that would achieve the Independence was win/win of better value for the taxpayer and improved capa- launched from Austal bility on the front-line. USA’s yard on 28 April Austal was quick to advance the candidacy of its alu- 2008 and, following minium trimaran technology. In 2002 it participated in con- cept-level Focused Mission High Speed Ship studies and, with Benchijigua Express offering a commercial design benchmark, the company’s advanced trimaran design was in 2004 downselected as one of two LCS seaframes. Austal’s LCS trimaran seaframe has pushed out the fron- tiers of naval vessel design. The slender centre hull and two smaller side hulls give the vessel the operational character- istics of a larger displacement craft, providing greater stabil- ity in rough seas and operational conditions. What should also be remembered is that the LCS is designed to go into harm’s way, which means it must be fit to fight, and capable of sustaining and surviving combat damage. To achieve this, the trimaran seaframe has been deliveri 4 ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT austal-5.ps 18/3/11 12:19 pm Page 5

Series production of the tri- programme of investment to yard to handle a throughput maran LCS, together with create a ‘best practice’ ship of up to three large alu- existing orders and commit- manufacture plant able to minium vessels – such as ments for the US deliver the volume and qual- LCS or JHSV – per year. Department of Defence’s ity requirements of the US With its recent expansion, Joint High Speed Vessel Navy with unrivalled effi- Austal USA is today the (JHSV) programme, will see ciency. Key to this new largest manufacturing com- Austal USA significantly shipbuilding process is pany in Mobile, and the increase the capacity and seamless production line largest aluminium ship- labour resource at its state- workflow that ensures the builder in the world. Now, in of-the-art facility in Mobile, right materials, equipment order to meet the concur- Alabama. and personnel are available rent needs of the LCS and Since its establishment in at the right time, at the right JHSV programmes, the com- 1999, the Mobile site has workstation. pany has commenced gradually taken on more In 2005 Austal USA preparatory work for a fur- complex ship construction embarked on a development ther US$140 million facility projects, initially for the plan to expand its produc- expansion, which will dou- commercial market. This tion capability and improve ble the size of the MMF to began with workboats and its productivity by building a 70,000m2 and add two addi- smaller catamarans, later new Module Manufacturing tional final assembly sheds stepping up to two 107 m Facility (MMF). Opened in that will eventually allow for ROPAX late 2009, the MMF houses up to six 100 metre-plus catamaran and LCS a fully covered manufactur- vessels to be built each Flight 0 first-of-class USS ing facility, with two fully year. In parallel, Austal USA Independence. commissioned production will more than double its Over that same period, the lines, that provides the yard workforce to around 4,000 facility has benefitted from with the additional manufac- employees. Coronado takes shape inside Austal USA’s facility a significant and sustained turing capacity to allow the

extensive alongside testing of propulsion, communications, with delivery to the US Navy set for late 2012. navigation and core mission systems, began first sea trials in Follow-on Flight 0+ production will further capitalise on the early July 2009. A second and final series of builder’s trials experience accrued during the manufacture of the initial was successfully concluded on 18 October, with NAVSEA Flight 0 units, with the build strategy being evolved to reflect formally accepting the vessel on 18 December 2009. the continued development of the Mobile facility. The aver- LCS-4, the future USS Coronado, is currently age cost per ship, including government-furnished equip- under construction to a firm fixed-price con- ment and margin for potential cost growth, is US$440 million tract. Lessons learned during the construc- per ship – well inside a Congressionally-mandated cost cap. tion of Independence are being leveraged to Austal’s ability to take on this taut fixed-price contract improve productivity and reflects the mature design, stable production volume, and schedule performance, continuous process improvement.

USS Independence is the first of a new breed

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atching finite budgets to an ever-widening range of LCS experience. Now, by capitalising on its unique insight into maritime security and warfare enabling tasks is a prob- the engineering and architecture of modular, reconfigurable Mlem that continues to challenge navies worldwide. platforms, the company is advancing a scalable Multi-Role Many forces are discovering that the one-to-one replacement Vessel (MRV) concept that combines the efficiencies and lay- of existing minor war vessel types – patrol vessels, mine coun- out advantages of the trimaran hullform with a system of mod- termeasures craft and survey ships – is both unaffordable (in ular mission payloads. The result is a supremely agile and cost terms of acquisition cost) and undesirable (given the training, effective ‘open architecture’ littoral combatant geared to the logistics, organisation and manning overheads that aggregate needs of the 21st century navy. through-life from a series of unique, niche and largely bespoke The baseline 80 m MRV has been designed to capitalise on platforms). this pedigree, providing users with a versatile yet cost effective The potential offered by aluminium trimaran seaframes is only littoral seaframe that exploits the inherent attributes of the tri- just beginning to be realised. With the experience of the LCS maran hullform to offer significant advantages over a similar- programme, and its strong track record in commercial high- size monohull. These include improved hydrodynamic per- speed vessels, Austal sees itself uniquely positioned to bring its formance and greater propulsion efficiency, increased internal pioneering expertise to the military marketplace. volume for a flexible mission/logistics deck, and a large and Moreover, the company’s continued maturation and refine- optimally sited flight deck and hangar for helicopter and/or ment of its world-leading trimaran technology comes at a time unmanned air vehicle operations and support. when many navies and coast guards are searching for new Austal’s concept combines these features with a scalable answers. Almost all are being forced to consider how to do combat system for situational awareness and self-defence, more with less, driving them to think afresh about the delivery and a ship service infrastructure that supports interfaces to a of capability though-life. wide range of mission payloads suited to specific naval, mar- Austal has certainly not stood still in its efforts to push out the itime security, theatre logistics, law enforcement, and humani- envelope of aluminium trimaran design. In 2010 it launched tarian roles. The result is a seaframe that offers end users a Hull 270, a 102 m third-generation trimaran hullform that incor- highly adaptable asset that can be rapidly reconfigured to porates a series of performance innovations reflecting lessons deliver role-specific capability across the full spectrum of oper- from the operation of Benchijigua Express and continuing R&D ations. investment. These include a modified hull shape (offering Work undertaken by Austal has demonstrated the suitability reduced hull resistance), an enhanced ride control system with of the 80m MRV to deliver the offshore security, mine counter- forward and aft T-foils (contributing to improved stability and measures and hydrographic capabilities required of the pro- seakeeping), an economical three engine propulsion system, jected Offshore Combatant Vessel. The ship arrangement has and a versatile vehicle deck arrangement. been developed with input from various naval customers, What this brings, Austal believes, is a sound base from which together with experience from the LCS programme, and the to further exploit the trimaran hullform in the naval context. hull form optimized using Shipflow numerical analysis: this has Furthermore, the company also recognises that, just like com- included centre hull optimisation; identification of a target mercial ferry operators, military users must look hard at the metacentric height for the platform; and an examination of dif- bottom line; operating costs are a key concern for all navies, and ships must now operate for more years, at lower cost and accommodate a greater range of mission capabilities. Many forces are discovering that the one-to-one replace- ment of existing vessels is both unaffordable (in terms of acqui- sition cost) and undesirable (given the training, logistics and manning overheads that aggregate through-life from a series of unique, niche and largely bespoke platforms). As a conse- quence, there is a significant shift in thinking towards the con- cept of a modular and reconfigurable seaframe that confers an ability to be re-configured to satisfy a range of different roles according to the specific mission payload embarked. Such reconfigurability is increasingly attractive to navies that want to be able to adjust the balance of roles and missions performed by individual platforms in a flotilla as tasking priori- ties evolve over time. This offers improved capability with increased flexibility through life. A number of emergent platform/capability requirements reflect this trend. For example, ’s Project SEA 1180, as a core component of the ’s Force 2030 vision, plans to replace legacy patrol boat, mine countermea- sures, hydrographic and oceanographic forces with a single modular multirole class of Offshore Combatant Vessels. It is a model that Austal is already familiar with through its setting a course to 6 ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT austal-7.ps 18/3/11 12:19 pm Page 7

ferent main hull beam and outrigger sizes to address hull inter- Having been embraced by vessel, referred energy from ference issues. commercial high speed vessel an impact may unseat operators, the operational engines or degrade shaft Over 15 MRV hullform options have been assessed. The hull advantages of marine alu- alignment. lines have been optimised for a medium speed (30 knots) pro- minium are now increasingly In terms of material proper- peller arrangement minimising transom immersion, while a recognised by operators and ties, steel offers increased detailed stability assessment has verified compliance with IMO engineers alike in the defence mechanical strength – but at and security sectors. Indeed, a significant weight penalty requirements. Austal believes that many of when compared with alu- However, it is not just a matter of the seaframe. Austal also the myths and misconcep- minium panels. Conversely, brings a deep understanding of the need to carefully manage tions surrounding the use of an aluminium vessel can eas- aluminium material in naval ily be made as strong as a mission systems integration, be it as a core fit or a ‘plug-in’ hull structures are now being steel vessel but need not be module, in order to strike the right balance between cost and overcome as a growing body as heavy. Reduced ship dis- capability. In this regard, the company’s extensive experience of evidence is accumulated placement ultimately requires from LCS contributes to the definition of a value-for-money on its performance and smaller engines and substan- behaviour. tially reduces the operating MRV design. Aluminium offers a range of and maintenance costs of the Furthermore, the company enshrines a commercial acumen benefits, including reduced platform throughout its serv- and project management discipline that is focused on cost- structural weight, better fuel ice life. economy and improved corro- Perhaps the single biggest effective and timely delivery. Its approach is based on a fixed- sion resistance. It is also an misunderstanding concerns price contracting model that ensures that the contract pro- extremely robust material; in aluminium’s behaviour in the ceeds in accordance with the schedule and budget. recent drop tests, the com- event of fire. Aluminium and pany conclusively demon- steel are alike in that both Furthermore, it upholds a rigour in minimising in-process strated the superior damage materials are non-com- change so as to avoid requirements creep and limit cost tolerance of marine alu- bustible and do not burn. The growth. minium against steel plate, a key behavioural difference is Offering hitherto unimaginable versatility, the MRV concept result explained by the ductil- that aluminium alloys lose ity of aluminium. strength at a lower tempera- marks a paradigm shift in its ability to deliver a fleet of modern, In these trials, the heavy ture than steel (degradation affordable lightweight hulls with low operating duty aluminium panel exhib- starting at temperatures costs and a holistic integrated logistics support ited a highly localised between 150oC and 180oC). response, which would result Austal recognises that alu- approach. The future, based on Austal’s alu- in less referred damage to minium’s increased suscepti- minium trimaran technology, is now within other surrounding structures. bility to fire damage demands grasp. Navies will never look the same again. Testing of an equivalent steel increased structural fire pro- panel, however, indicated tection, which is delivered steel’s ability to transmit load through a ceramic fibre wool to adjacent members is quite materiel and the installation considerable. of active fire suppression sys- Translated to repair costs, tems. However, the substan- this means the extent of the tial difference in structural damage on an aluminium ves- weight more than offsets the sel is concentrated around weight of additional fire pro- the impact area. On a steel tection measures.

Austal’s 80 m MRV offers cost effective versatility

o the future 7 ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT “USS Independence” Littoral Combat Ship

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