Shipyard

Shipyards and dockyards are places where ships are repaired and built. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance and basing activities than shipyards, which are sometimes associated more with initial construction. The terms are routinely used interchangeably, in part because the evolution of dockyards and shipyards has often caused them to change or merge roles. Countries with large shipbuilding industries include South Korea, Australia, Japan, China, Germany, Turkey, Poland and Croatia. The shipbuilding industry tends to be more fragmented in Europe than in Asia. In European countries there are more smaller companies, compared to the fewer, larger companies in the shipbuilding countries of Asia. Most shipbuilders in the United States are privately owned, the largest being Huntington Ingalls Industries, a multi-billion dollar defense contractor. The publicly owned shipyards in the US are Naval facilities providing basing, support and repair.