Japanese Tsuneishi Shipbuilding is improving operations at its shipyard in Cebu, the Philippines, investing more in operating capacity and manpower.
The Tsuneishi Heavy Industries (Cebu) shipyard has sped up improvement efforts under its new president, Akihiko Mishima, who took over the reins in January.
The shipyard, established in 1994, will deliver 18 ships this year and will deliver its 200th ship in June.
The 18 ships comprise three 35,300 dwt bulk carriers; seven 58,000 dwt bulkers – three of the TESS58 AEROLINE design; seven 82,000 dwt Kamsarmax; and one 180,000 dwt Capesize.
In a press conference, Mishima said the Cebu shipyard’s capacity has been growing since it built its first ship in 1997, and has been gaining traction since the second slipway was opened in 2005.
The Cebu shipyard aims to build 25 to 30 ships per year to strengthen its cost-competitiveness.
Tsuneishi also plans to send its Filipino workers for training in Japan to improve their business skills. Engineers and administrative staff can expect to spend a year in Japan while technical workers could spend two to three years there.
Mishima said, “Over the past two decades, we have done technical trainings at our shipbuilding centre and sent over 1,536 Filipino employees to Japan where they acquired additional technical skills. Currently, there are 224 engineers, skilled workers, and administrative staff training in Tsuneishi Shipbuilding in Japan.”
This post was sourced from IHS Maritime 360: View the original article here.