Northrop Grumman Newport News and General Dynamics Electric Boat have begun building larger structural sections to drive costs from their submarine building partnership, a key shipyard executive said Thursday.
Both Newport News and an Electric Boat facility in Quonset Point, R.I., are each specializing in assembling one of two new “super modules,” said Becky Stewart, the shipyard’s vice president of submarines.
Those larger sections — with Newport News building the very front section of the sub and Electric Boat building one right behind it — would be stuffed with piping, wiring and other equipment before the whole large section becomes part of the boat.