(STURGEON BAY, Wis.) – Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding (FBS) broke ground on a new 19,000-square-foot machine shop at its Sturgeon Bay location Friday.
Inside the future 300-foot-long building, shipbuilders will have access to two overhead cranes capable of lifting 5 and 30 tons, respectively. At the other end of the building there will be offices, restrooms, a lunchroom and a tool room. The facility will primarily support Bay Shipbuilding’s repair business.
Planning started nine months ago for the new building, which longtime construction partner A.C.E. Building Services is expected to complete later next year. A.C.E. is no stranger to the shipyard, having built or renovated numerous buildings at the 63-acre site over the previous 50 years. The Manitowoc, Wis.-based company has garnered multiple awards for its work throughout northeastern Wisconsin, and FBS is proud to once again collaborate on another important project.
“We are modernizing our infrastructure and replacing some very old buildings,” said Craig Perciavalle, vice president and general manager of FBS. “We are fortunate to have a great partner in A.C.E. to help us grow, but also to do so in a way that complements our surrounding community. Not only will our Bay Shipbuilding team have an improved place to work year-round, but we believe that the use of this facility will reduce dust and noise impacts for those who live nearby the shipyard, as work that was previously completed outside will be moved inside the new building.”
Perciavalle added that this project is the final piece to $70 million of investment since 2020, which will “allow FBS to better support the critical repair service we provide the Great Lakes fleet, keep expanding our commercial new construction business, and to a lesser extent, grow the government side of our business.”
Historically FBS has supported sister shipyard Fincantieri Marinette Marine as they build warships for the Navy, but commercial repair and new construction remains Bay Shipbuilding’s top priority.
FBS was recognized for its exemplary safety record for a second year in row by the Shipbuilders Council of America. FBS also recently delivered several notable vessels: the largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering barge ever built in the U.S. and the Great Lakes freighter Mark W. Barker, which is the first ship of its kind to be built by a Great Lakes shipyard in more than 35 years.
Currently the team at Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding is building two additional LNG barges, both scaling larger than the LNG barge recently delivered.
– Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding
