Babcock continues its successful delivery of the Royal Navy Type 31 frigates, with the laying of the keel for HMS Active, the second of the five-ship Inspiration class programme.
This marks the move into the programme’s multi-ship phase which sees two warships being built simultaneously, with work continuing only metres away on the first of the Inspiration class, HMS Venturer.
The keel laying event, with a focus on the skilled employees behind the build, involved placing a specially commissioned coin under the keel which will be presented to the captain and crew when the ship is ready to sail. In keeping with tradition, Babcock asked their youngest apprentice, first-year Electrical Fitter, Robbie Dick, to ‘do the honours’ and place the specially designed coin under the keel.
The Polish frigate programme, which like the UK’s Type 31 and Indonesian Merah Putih frigate programme, is based on Babcock’s Arrowhead 140 design, recently reached a milestone of its own, cutting steel for the first of three vessels.
John Howie, Babcock’s Chief Corporate Affairs Officer and Interim CEO Marine said: “Type 31 frigates is an incredibly important programme for Babcock, our Royal Navy and Ministry of Defence customer and for the wider UK Shipbuilding industry. Today we see first-hand the dedication and commitment from our team here in Rosyth, and we are hugely proud to be able to share this traditional ceremony and programme milestone for HMS Active with our customer, families and friends.
“The success of this programme is founded on the strong relationship with our customer and the mission we jointly share, which is inspiring our teams each and every day to strive for excellence, delivering this future capability the Royal Navy needs”.
Babcock continues to recruit a range of roles to support the successful delivery of the Type 31 programme. The Production Support Operatives (PSO) role, introduced in April last year offers the chance for those without formal qualifications, to work and learn alongside experienced engineers, welders, fitters, and electricians. The company has also recently welcomed ten new trainee welders on an accelerated apprenticeship programme, offering the opportunity to take National Certificate and SVQ3 qualifications.
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Babcok frigate Frigate Type 31 Royal Navy
Post written by: Vicky Maggiani
Vicky has worked in media for over 20 years and has a wealth of experience in editing and creating copy for a variety of sectors.
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