Glasgow shipyards benefit from biggest investment in decades

BAE Systems’ Govan shipyard is currently undergoing a monumental transformation, underscored by the largest investment the facility has seen in over four decades.

This investment, aimed at drastically enhancing the shipyard’s capabilities, includes the construction of a new shipbuilding hall and robotic welding systems.

During a recent media day, Sir Simon Lister, managing director of BAE Systems’s naval ships, highlighted the significance of this new phase in the shipyard’s history.

“This is the biggest investment the yards have received in four decades. The last serious investment was the construction of the township behind the assembly hall,” Lister explained.

“It is a substantial investment… we’re very grateful for the vote of confidence that that represents.”

The new shipbuilding hall, an ambitious £200 million project, is set to become a landmark structure on the Clydeside skyline. Paul Sweeney, MSP and former BAE employee, shared his enthusiasm for the project: “This new hall will probably become the largest building by enclosed volume in Glasgow, if not Scotland, and will make a dramatic impact on the Clydeside skyline.”

“This new hall will be able to accommodate two Type 26 frigates side by side,” noted a BAE Systems representative.

Elsewhere in the yard, at a newly unveiled robotic welding panel line in the steel fabrication facility, Euan Fullerton, head of manufacturing engineering at BAE Systems, emphasised the cutting-edge nature of the new facilities. “This is state of the art, world-class technology,” he said, highlighting the inclusion of an advanced robotic system that is automated by programmers on site, designed to increase efficiency and reduce the costs of ship construction.

In addition to the ship hall and new panel line, BAE Systems is investing £12 million in a new skills academy. The skills academy is set to play a pivotal role in retraining and upskilling the existing workforce, ensuring that employees are adept at leveraging new technologies and methodologies in shipbuilding.

“We are upskilling instead of bringing in from outside.”

The cumulative effect of these substantial investments is expected to revolutionize shipbuilding at the Govan shipyard. By integrating advanced robotics and a highly skilled workforce, BAE Systems anticipates that ships will be constructed much quicker and at a lower cost, providing significant advantages in a competitive global market.