Congresswoman Chellie Pingree announced today that a House committee has approved appropriations requests Pingree made to continue with consolidation of the structural shops at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery.
 
“The Portsmouth Naval Shipyard has a well earned reputation for high quality and efficiency,” Pingree said. “But to stay competitive it’s critically important to modernize the structural shops.”
 
This funding will modernize Structural Shop operations, improve equipment layout, and streamline process flow within the shipyard.
 
“The yard has been able to hire people even during tough economic times because they continue to do quality work while becoming more and more efficient,” Pingree said. “It’s important for them to be able to maintain that competitive advantage.”
 
The House Appropriations Committee has included $11.9 million in funding for the project in Kittery as part of the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations bill, which the House is expected to pass later this summer. The bill will then go on to the Senate.