Fraser Industries has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on cooperation for shipyard modernization to revitalize the U.S. shipbuilding industry with HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (HD KSOE), the intermediate holding company of HD Hyundai’s shipbuilding division.
Fraser Industries is proud to collaborate with HD Hyundai in making a full-scale entry into the modernization of shipyards in the United States. HD Hyundai will advance Fraser Shipyards as a hub for rebuilding the U.S. shipbuilding industry and will provide a comprehensive advanced shipyard modernization solution that includes shipyard design and construction expertise, production and operating systems as well as data management capabilities.
The signing ceremony, held last week in Washington, D.C., was attended by key executives from both companies — including Fraser Industries CEO Patrick V. Kelly and HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering CEO Kim Hyung-kwan as well as Shin Jong-Gye, Technology Advisor (Professor Emeritus at Seoul National University), who served as a bridge during the early stages of the collaboration.
Under the agreement, the two companies plan to cooperate across the entire cycle from shipyard construction to operation — including ▲shipyard diagnosis and solution derivation ▲yard and plant layout design ▲introduction of robotics and automation equipment ▲optimization of cost, process, quality, and productivity ▲application of AI- and data-based digital solutions ▲supply-chain expansion and technical-workforce development.
Fraser Industries and HD KSOE plan to sign a supply contract for a “shipyard modernization consulting program” later this year, and to make Fraser Shipyards— located in Superior, Wisconsin, on the shore of Lake Superior — a “demonstration model” for rebuilding the U.S. shipbuilding industry.
The Great Lakes region has traditionally served as a hub for shipbuilding and maintenance and repair activities in the U.S. and possesses a key supply chain.
(Photo: left to right: South Korean Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan, HD KSOE CEO Kim Hyung-kwan, Fraser Industries CEO Patrick Kelly and US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick)
(Fraser Industries shipyard photo by Gus Schauer)