Luerssen and local shipbuilders to back Australian maritime skills and education
Young Australians will learn critical new skills and expertise with the support of one the world’s
leading shipbuilders as part of a scholarship and vocational education program aimed at meeting the
demands of a continuous naval shipbuilding industry. Luerssen Australia has joined forces with its local
partners – ASC Shipbuilding and Civmec/Forgacs – to announce a Shipbuilding Education and
Apprenticeship (SEA) program.
Applications from across Australia will be called for from 2018 for scholarships from undergraduates in
relevant engineering, marine architecture and design courses as well as for sponsored vocational study for
apprentices and tradespeople to achieve higher TAFE qualifications. Luerssen, together with ASC
Shipbuilding and Forgacs, are bidding for the Australian Government’s SEA1180 Offshore Patrol Vessel
(OPV) program.
The SEA scholarship program would also include workplace placements in Australia and Europe for selected
scholarship recipients with Luerssen, ASC Shipbuilding and Forgacs, to develop professional experience.
The program is designed to support the OPV’s workforce skilling requirements, should Luerssen, ASC
Shipbuilding and Forgacs prove successful in the OPV tender. Luerssen and its Australian partners
anticipate the program would complement the Government’s Naval Shipbuilding College initiative.
Luerssen Defence Managing Director Dirk Malgowski said the German shipbuilder was delighted to assist in
developing a highly skilled local workforce that will enable Australia to become a world-class shipbuilding
hub.
“With our partners in the Offshore Patrol Vessel program, Luerssen is dedicated to ensuring young
Australians can learn a range of skills to set them up for a satisfying and rewarding life-long career,”
Mr Malgowski said. “I have no doubt Australia can build a world class workforce that can assist Luerssen, our
partners – indeed every shipbuilder looking to hire – in taking advantage of the Government’s national
shipbuilding endeavor”, Mr Malgowski said.
Chief Executive Officer – ASC Shipbuilding, Mark Lamarre, said the exciting new program builds on the
South Australian company’s existing commitments to building a skills base that will ensure Australia can
become an export hub for shipbuilding.
“ASC Shipbuilding is engaged in ensuring Australia can sustain a future naval shipbuilding industry that will
offer fresh opportunities for school-leavers and others wishing to embark on an exciting career in
shipbuilding,” Mr Lamarre said. “This initiative will build on, and complement, our existing collaborations with
South Australian universities, graduate and school-based programs.”
Managing Director of Forgacs Marine and Defence, Mike Deeks said with ten of the 12 OPVs to be built at
Henderson in Western Australia – and with Luerssen already collaborating to establish an export hub for
minor warship vessels in Australia – WA stands to reap generational rewards from this program.
“We want to see hundreds – if not thousands – of Australians employed over coming years in what I believe
will become a significant job creator, not just in Western Australia and South Australia but right across the
nation,” Mr Deeks said.
