A ground-breaking ceremony was held in December 2016 to announce the commencement of development for the construction, with the then Premier, Hon Colin Barnett MLA, turning the first sod.
Following this announcement Civmec has been working on the detailed design elements of the facility with the local branch of the global engineering firm, GHD Engineering, to ensure the facilities have the best technology and to achieve the best, most efficient, project outcomes. Today’s event is to mark the start of construction for what will be Australia’s largest undercover shipbuilding facility.
Civmec’s Executive Chairman, Mr James Fitzgerald, said, “This is an exciting day as we look forward to further growth in our business with the announcement by the Commonwealth Government that Henderson has been identified as one of two suitable locations for the continuous build of Naval ships and for vessel maintenance. This is cause for great optimism and reflects highly on Western Australia’s industrial capability and capacity, to which this facility will be a significant addition. The facility will allow us to increase our Henderson workforce by an extra 1000 people, including at least 100 apprentices.”
Civmec’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr Pat Tallon, said, “This diversification is a natural extension of our core capabilities. The new shipbuilding and maintenance facility at Henderson will be a significant piece of industrial infrastructure, adding a new resource to the Australian maritime landscape whilst allowing Civmec to continue to service its clients in the other sectors in which it operates.”
Managing Director of Forgacs, Mr. Mike Deeks CSC, added, “We are excited to commence construction of our state-of-the-art shipbuilding and maintenance facility which will be large enough to house complete Air Warfare Destroyers or Frigates as well as Offshore Patrol Vessels for construction or maintenance. The building has a Gross Floor Area of 53,470 sqm. This facility will be a huge addition to the Australian Marine Complex and is designed to be the most efficient in the world.”
At today’s event, we are honoured to have the Hon. Christopher Pyne, Minister for Defence Industry to mark the first day of construction, as we oversee the first load of soil removed from the site.
The construction plan requires 90 to 120 truck loads of earth removed each day for almost six months from the 7-hectare site.
