Austal Promotes Young To VP Of Production Operations

Austal USA has announced the promotion of Chris Young to vice president (VP) of production operations. Young, formerly senior director of production, is a 26-year veteran of Austal, with 19 of those years spent at the company’s construction manufacturing facilities in Mobile. Young’s tenure with Austal began immediately following school in Perth, Australia, when he joined the company as a structural engineering apprentice. Young was soon asked to travel to Mobile, where he eventually assisted in production management roles, overseeing the construction of two Hawaii Super Ferry vessels. He also helped hire and train the production workforce as the company underwent major growth. He has been closely involved in the design and build strategies for each new Austal USA construction program since the conception of the U.S. Navy’s Independence-variant Littoral Combat Ship and Expeditionary Fast Transport and oversaw the design and construction of the company’s steel panel line expansion. Mike Bell, formerly senior VP of production operations, was named senior VP of infrastructure, Austal West Campus and Site Services, in Mobile. Bell will oversee the company’s continued infrastructure expansion.