Work begins on major Australian contract

摘要

The positive effects on the patrol vessel building industry resulting from heightened security awareness worldwide continue to make themselves apparent. Although the USA has perhaps emerged as the most security conscious of the major nations, it is in the opposite hemisphere that one of the most notable, most valuable and longest in the processing, patrol vessel contracts has now resulted in work starting on the first vessels. The contract for the Royal Australian Navy's new Armidale Class patrol boats was successfully tendered by Defence Maritime Services Pty Limited (DMS) and Austal Ships. The yard has now commenced project start-up and pre-production activity for delivery of the twelve 56.8m craft to Australia's Defence Materiel Organisation, as replacements for the RAN's current fleet of 15 Fremantle class patrol boats, which are nearly 25 years old. The DMS - Austal partnership was selected ahead of eight other companies, after an exhaustive, multi-phase tender process which commenced in mid-2001, in fact before the world events which focused so much attention on increased surveillance and security measures.