Increasing Value and Savings in Shipbuilding With Innovative Technologies

To effectively and efficiently build and fund the projected larger fleet, the U.S. Navy must reduce costs while meeting mission needs by leveraging the full benefits of new technologies. Three-Dimensional Laser Scanning (3DLS), additive manufacturing (AM), and product life-cycle management (PLM) may be able to provide such benefits. The current work tests this hypothesis by estimating potential cost savings and return on investment (ROI) to assess the impacts of these commercially available technologies on naval shipbuilding. Results indicate that very large savings and increased value are possible by adopting and using these technologies. The conclusions enumerate insights about how technology can increase value and reduce costs in shipbuilding.