By VOICES Staff.
Across the United States, the shipbuilding industry is booming.
According to WorkBoat’s 2024 Construction Survey, more than 925 vessels were either delivered, under construction, or on order in the past year alone. That includes everything from tugboats and training ships to advanced subsea installation vessels and LNG-ready containerships.
Recent milestones in Pennsylvania and beyond show how the foundational cabotage law known as the Jones Act continues to drive domestic investment, good-paying union jobs and national security readiness — all while ensuring that only American-built, American-owned and American-crewed vessels transport goods between points in the United States.
Here are three defining examples from Pennsylvania’s historic Philly Shipyard, recently acquired by Hanwha Ocean:
Government Efficiency, Delivered
Long before the Department of Government Efficiency was even tweeted about, the Trump Administration and Congress saw the potential to leverage private sector Jones Act shipbuilding best practices for public sector projects.
At Hanwha Philly Shipyard, a fleet of National Security Multi-Mission Vessels (NSMVs) is proving that smart public-private models can reshape government shipbuilding.
Commissioned by the Trump Administration in 2019, these ships are designed for training America’s next generation of mariners while also supporting emergency response and disaster relief. But what’s truly groundbreaking is how they’re being built.
Jeff Vogel of TOTE Services, which manages construction for MARAD, explained to Maritime Executive:
“One of the big goals was to figure out how to remove some of the burdens that we see the government placing on our commercial shipyards or even our government shipyards, and put the shipbuilder in a position to get back to what they’re good at, which is building ships.”
Vogel added that the Vessel Construction Manager (VCM) model avoids cost and schedule overruns by freezing designs early, minimizing change orders and relying on commercial best practices.
On August 26, the shipyard hosted Acting Maritime Administrator Sang Yi, a former top Congressional staffer and U.S. Merchant Marine Academy Graduate, and South Korean officials to christen the third NSMV, the State of Maine. The ship is bound for Maine Maritime Academy, one of seven mariner colleges across the country.
In Administrator Yi’s opening remarks, he thanked the dedicated men and women of American maritime and discussed how the Trump Administration is prioritizing U.S. shipyards.
“President Trump has made it clear that American exceptionalism is the standard. And thanks to Secretary Duffy’s leadership, the Department of Transportation is focused, energized and delivering results right here in American shipyards.”
According to the Administrator, the NSMV project alone has supported over 400,000 jobs across the country. If ships like these were built abroad, Americans would lose out on all the cascading economic benefits.
Together, we’re not just building ships—we’re building the future of American maritime, right here at home 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/Y0TlGvAOWF
— DOT Maritime Administration (@DOTMARAD) August 27, 2025
Thanks to the Jones Act, there are over 150 private shipyards across the nation that could be scaled up for even more work and over 300 repair yards ready to retrofit aging vessels.
In a statement to American Maritime VOICES, American Maritime Partnership President Jennifer Carpenter said:
“The State of Maine represents another milestone in America’s shipbuilding legacy. The Trump Administration, with bipartisan support in Congress, launched this initiative during the President’s first term, recognizing the importance of American maritime dominance. We thank President Donald Trump for his commitment to American shipbuilding and mariner training.”
With new training vessels now serving SUNY Maritime and Massachusetts Maritime Academy — and soon Maine Maritime Academy — the NSMV program is fulfilling its mission on every front.
Built for the Pacific
Further cementing the Jones Act’s power to create long-term industrial momentum, Matson has kicked off construction of three next-generation Aloha-class containerships at Philly Shipyard.
These ships will serve routes to Hawaii, Guam and the U.S. West Coast, replacing older vessels and enhancing Matson’s already top service in the Pacific.
Each ship will:
- Stretch 854 feet long
- Cruise at 23+ knots
- Carry 3,600 TEUs
- Operate on dual-fuel LNG-compatible engines
They’re the latest in a series of Jones Act vessels Matson has built with Philly Shipyard over the past two decades — a relationship that has supported over 1,500 direct U.S. shipyard jobs and countless maritime careers.
During a formal event for this milestone investment, the first engine room section of the vessel — weighing 420 metric tons — was lowered into the dry dock, marking the official start of hull assembly. In keeping with maritime tradition, senior executives from both companies placed ceremonial coins beneath the section to invoke good fortune and safe passage for the ship.
In a press release, Matson CEO Matt Cox said:
“Our existing Aloha Class ships are among the fastest, most efficient vessels in the Matson fleet. These new vessels will expand Matson’s Jones Act fleet and enhance our service capabilities … while providing additional capacity and speed benefiting customers of our Hawaii and Guam services.”
Hawaii is advantaged by carriers like Matson, Pasha Hawaii and Young Brothers, among other smaller players, who help keep prices low, deliveries consistent and jobs for residents.
Rock-Solid Progress
Meanwhile, another major vessel was launched from that same shipyard this summer — this time for the private offshore energy market.
The Acadia, built for Great Lakes Dredge & Dock, is the first U.S.-flagged, Jones Act-qualified subsea rock installation vessel. It’s engineered to deliver up to 20,000 metric tons of rock with precision placement on the seafloor, protecting subsea cables and other vital offshore infrastructure.
This isn’t just good for offshore development — it’s good for American workers nationwide. The project further shows how American-built truly means built across America.
Labor and material across the country include:
- Steel from Ohio
- Hard work from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Texas and Louisiana
- Over 1 million manhours of work in total
Instead of outsourcing to European and Chinese foreign-flagged ships for critical infrastructure projects, the U.S. has its own growing Jones Act-powered subsea fleet — crewed by American mariners and built by American hands.
Once delivered, the Acadia will head straight to work off the New York coast, with projects lined up through 2026 and beyond.
The Bottom Line: The Jones Act Delivers
From government-owned training vessels to long-haul containerships and commercial dredging, the Jones Act continues to anchor the American maritime sector.
It ensures that:
- Goods are moved safely between U.S. ports by trusted, regulated operators
- Jobs are created in places as far apart as Philadelphia and Honolulu
- Shipyards stay busy, with nearly 1,000 vessels delivered, in progress, or on order
- National security is enhanced, with platforms that support training, disaster relief and energy resilience
Critics may nitpick, but the facts are clear: where there’s a Jones Act contract, there’s American labor, American accountability and American strength.
This Labor Day, let’s recognize the importance of the Jones Act to supporting over 650,000 American Men and Women, from sea to shining sea!