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OOp/EdOPINIONWe Need to Save Our ShipsBy Matt Paxton“We must show the world, both ourenemies and our allies, that our Navyand its ships will continue to have apositive influence abroad and providea stabilizing presence on the seaswherever it is needed.”Matt Paxton, President of theShipbuilders Council of AmericaAmerica’s Navy is arguably the most powerful in theworld, and the most immediate threat it faces may notbe from China, Russia or Iran, but Congress. The useof sequestration as a budget reduction tool has resulted in aclumsy cost-cutting approach that will continue to have disastrouseffects into the next year and beyond, as the nation’snaval fleet will not be able to be maintained or repaired. Theultimate hypocrisy of this Congressional budget technique isthat deferred maintenance on ships costs a lot more when itdoes not get done and will actually shorten vessel lifespan andcost the taxpayer much more in the coming, as these shipsmust leave service and need to be replaced prematurely.Our nation’s leaders must immediately address the disastrouseffects of indiscriminately cutting core shipbuilding andrepair functions that keep this country safe and secure. Thiscritical maintenance is not only vital to national security, butit supports thousands of jobs and local economies. This iswhy the Shipbuilders Council of America (SCA) is issuing an“SOS” to Congressional budget conferees, led by RepresentativePaul Ryan and Senator Patty Murray, to “Save Our Ships.”The United States Navy plays a critical role around the worldby providing a stabilizing presence to keep the seas free andopen, which in turn allows global commerce to thrive. But thefleet relies on regular maintenance and repairs by the nation’sshipyards to extend the life of these strategic and costly assets.Sequestration’s funding cuts will force the Navy to reduceits vessel maintenance periods by fifty percent in fiscal year2014 and threaten the health of America’s shipyard facilitiesthat perform this critical maintenance. This drastic reductionin scheduled service calls will force the industry into a criticaljuncture and push it toward potentially massive layoffs. Theloss of these jobs will ripple across the country because America’sshipbuilding and repair industry is made up of a networkof parts and equipment suppliers from across all 50 states.These layoffs will leave America with a lost generation ofskilled workers while stifling innovation from reduced researchand development spending. Workforce reductions willalso mean higher prices for new assets like naval vessels becauseof forced consolidation in the defense industry and reducedcompetition. A shipyard or supplier that closes becauseof program cancellations will not be there when the Navy isready to build new ships again.Sequestration will not only damage our nation’s shipbuildingand repair industry, it will cripple America’s naval fleet. Deferralof one maintenance period at the 10-year point in a vessel’slifespan will shorten its overall service by about five years. Asthese vessels are retired early without ready replacements, thefleet will shrink by 30 to 40 ships over the next 30 years, leaving30 | Maritime Professional | 4Q 2013