Avondale feels Navy belt-tightening.

LPD program in cross hairs ::A multiyear military spending plan recently signed by Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz would reduce the number of Navy amphibious assault ships being built at Northrop Grumman Corp.'s shipyards in New Orleans and Mississippi to nine from 12, according to several media reports this week. Funding for the LPD shipbuilding program would end in 2007 when the Navy plans to order the ninth and final vessel in the series of ships that will carry Marines and their equipment to conflicts around the world, according to the reports. Construction could last several years beyond that.

The Navy cuts could put jobs at risk at the local Avondale shipyard, where LPDs account for 70 percent of the work. The budget still must receive the blessing of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and President Bush before the president submits the spending plan in February to Congress for consideration. The defense budget reports paint a grim picture, Northrop Grumman Ship Systems President Philip Dur said Tuesday. "Certainly there is no basis for optimism with the news we have received to date on the shipbuilding budget," Dur said.
Defence Cuts.
He warned that the looming LPD cuts would jeopardize plans by Northrop and the state to spend more than $100 million over the next few years modernizing Avondale's cranes, equipment and work spaces.By Keith Darc�

LPD 17 Ship Acquisition Team to receive Value Engineering Award;
Intergraph provides technology to help team achieve $186 million in projected savings for new U.S. Navy ship class by FY 2005
Savings.?.Solutions
ISG helped the Fort Bragg Natural Resource Division manage prescribed and spontaneous wildfires using an integrated, automated database that eliminates manual recordings and provides daily, accurate updates..

Fort Bragg's Tracking Profile.
Adminstration's Programm
...