Northrop Cuts Time Ships Will Be Delayed

A year after Hurricane Katrina wreaked more than $1 billion of damage on its Gulf Coast shipyards, Northrop Grumman Corp. is building 12 Navy ships and says the longest delay on any of them will be just 10 months.

Philip Teel, president of Northrop’s ship systems business, said he planned to meet with the company’s 16,500 workers at six sites in the region Tuesday to highlight Northrop’s success in recovering from the devastating hurricane.

“We’re considerably better than we thought we might be,” Teel told reporters in a telephone interview, adding that his overall outlook for shipbuilding was “very bullish.”

In December, he said, the Century City-based company had anticipated delays on several ships of close to a year.

Teel said Northrop was still hammering out a firm schedule with the Navy, but it looked as if the longest delay would be 10 months on the Aegis guided missile destroyer Kidd. He also predicted a nine-month delay on LPD-20, one of four amphibious transport dock ships under construction at the company’s shipyards in New Orleans; Pascagoula, Miss.; and Gulfport, Miss.

At the same time, Teel said, the company still faces serious challenges. They include finding 800 to 1,000 skilled workers to fit pipes and handle other work in its shops, and getting workers already on its payroll -- many of whom lost everything in the storm -- to put in a full 40-hour workweek.

Northrop shares rose 9 cents to $65.99. The stock has risen 9.8% this year.