HII outlines plan to accelerate U.S. Navy shipbuilding

SANTA CLARITA, Calif. — HII executive vice president of maritime systems and corporate strategy Eric Chewning pressed for strengthening the nation’s defense industrial base and revitalizing U.S. shipbuilding during a House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense field hearing at College of the Canyons on Sept. 4. Appearing before subcommittee Chairman Rep. Ken Calvert and other members, he emphasized the need for a modernized workforce, upgraded shipyard infrastructure, and an expanded maritime industrial base.

“America’s ability to maintain peace and defend our interests depends on a strong, secure, and ready industrial base,” Chewning said.

Drawing on his experience as former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Policy, Chewning pointed to past reforms aimed at countering strategic threats and improving resilience, and detailed steps HII is taking to increase shipbuilding throughput to meet national security demands. “In 2025, throughput in our shipyards increased by 14% year-over-year,” said Chewning. “And with approximately 40 ships at Ingalls and Newport News in active construction or modernization, our focus in 2026 is clear: we must build on this momentum and continue delivering ships at a greater pace to the U.S. Navy. We are targeting a 15% year-over-year throughput increase in 2026.”

He outlined a three-part approach to raising throughput: recruiting, training, and retaining skilled workers; modernizing shipyard infrastructure through capital investments, including the use of physical AI in shipbuilding; and broadening the maritime industrial base by expanding HII’s supply chain and advancing a distributed shipbuilding strategy.

Chewning credited support from Congress and the U.S. Navy with helping HII reach new collective bargaining agreements that he said keep wages competitive and sustain a highly skilled workforce. He also cited ongoing industrial base expansion efforts, including a plan to outsource more than two million hours of work in 2026—an increase of 178% from 2024—intended to boost throughput, create jobs in communities nationwide, and give small and mid-sized suppliers greater confidence to invest in capacity and talent.

Chewning highlighted progress at HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding Charleston Operations, describing it as a model of maritime industrial base revitalization. Working with the U.S. Navy, the State of South Carolina, and the Department of Defense’s Industrial Base Policy Office, HII has converted an underutilized site into an advanced manufacturing campus that supports the submarine industrial base and expands skilled trade opportunities. “This is a powerful example of what can be achieved when industry, the federal government, and state partners work together to strengthen America’s maritime dominance,” said Chewning.

The full written testimony is posted at: https://appropriations.house.gov/schedule/hearings/field-hearing-industrial-base-and-workforce-development-skilled-trades