03/19/2009 04:00 PM Senate WORLD TRADE, TECH, INNOVATIONS

                    ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE                                                                                  
    SENATE SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON WORLD TRADE, TECHNOLOGY AND                                                                   
                           INNOVATION                                                                                         
                         March 19, 2009                                                                                         
                           4:11 p.m.                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
MEMBERS PRESENT                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
Senator Lesil McGuire, Chair                                                                                                    
Senator Bill Wielechowski                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
MEMBERS ABSENT                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
Senator Hollis French                                                                                                           
Senator Lyman Hoffman                                                                                                           
Senator Gary Stevens                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
OTHER LEGISLATORS PRESENT                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
Senator Bert Stedman                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
COMMITTEE CALENDAR                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
Overview: Ketchikan Shipyard                                                                                                    
     HEARD                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
No previous action to record.                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
WITNESS REGISTER                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
DOUG WARD, Director                                                                                                             
Alaska Ship & Drydock, Inc.                                                                                                     
Ketchikan AK                                                                                                                    
POSITION STATEMENT:  Delivered Ketchikan Shipyard overview.                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
ACTION NARRATIVE                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
4:11:27 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR LESIL MCGUIRE called the  Senate Special Committee on World                                                             
Trade, Technology  and Innovation meeting  to order at  4:11 p.m.                                                               
Present  at the  call  to order  were  Senators Wielechowski  and                                                               
McGuire.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
                 ^OVERVIEW: KETCHIKAN SHIPYARD                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR MCGUIRE announced  the business before the  committee is to                                                               
hear an overview of the Ketchikan Shipyard.                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
4:12:10 PM                                                                                                                    
DOUG  WARD,   Director,  Shipyard  Development,  Alaska   Ship  &                                                               
Drydock,  Inc. (ASD),  delivered a  PowerPoint to  highlight what                                                               
the men  and women  at the  Ketchikan Shipyard  have accomplished                                                               
since it  was established in 1987,  which is to give  the state a                                                               
shipyard  and  workforce  development  project  that  has  local,                                                               
state, and national significance.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
MR. WARD  explained that  this is  a public  private partnership.                                                               
ASD is  an Alaska  corporation that since  2005 has  operated the                                                               
shipyard  under a  30-year agreement  with the  Alaska Industrial                                                               
Development and  Export Authority (AIDEA). The  Ketchikan Gateway                                                               
Borough  and  the  City  of   Ketchikan  also  have  an  indirect                                                               
partnership.  Other stakeholders  include: Alaska  Marine Highway                                                               
System  (AMHS), Department  of Labor  and Workforce  Development,                                                               
Department  of  Commerce,  Community  and  Economic  Development,                                                               
Alaska Workforce  Investment Board, Department  of Transportation                                                               
and Public  Facilities, University  of Alaska, and  the Ketchikan                                                               
School District. Because it's the kids  in school now who will be                                                               
building the  ships of  the future,  ASD is  working to  give the                                                               
youth of  Alaska some sense  of the marine oriented  careers that                                                               
haven't always been  obvious. Water transportation is  one of the                                                               
larger non-resident  employment sectors in  the state and  ASD is                                                               
working to turn that around and employ more Alaskans.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
Federal  stakeholders  include: Federal  Transit  Administration,                                                               
Office of Naval Research,  National Shipbuilding Research Program                                                               
(NSRP), U.S.  Economic Development Administration,  U.S. Maritime                                                               
Administration,  U.S. Department  of Labor,  and Federal  Highway                                                               
Administration.                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
MR.  WARD provided  the  history of  the  shipyard and  displayed                                                               
slides of  projects including  the extensive  repair of  the AMHS                                                               
M/V Lituya after it broke from  its mooring and went on the rocks                                                               
near Ketchikan,  a Chevron marine  fueling station for  export to                                                               
Vancouver, and construction of the  M/V Susitna. The latter is an                                                               
Office  of Naval  Research demonstrator  vessel  owned by  Mat/Su                                                               
Borough that  is to be  operated as an ice-breaking  ferry across                                                               
Knick  Arm. Ships  like the  M/V  Susitna are  built for  Alaskan                                                               
waters and will  be needed in the northern sea  routes as sea ice                                                               
recedes.  They have  the ability  to land  on unimproved  shores,                                                               
which ASD  thinks will help  open Alaska's  transportation routes                                                               
at lower cost.                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
MR.  WARD described  what will  be the  first multi-skilled  ship                                                               
production apprenticeship  program and  said ASD is  working with                                                               
Commissioner Bishop  to get it  defined. The program is  based on                                                               
globally  competitive  best practices  through  the  NSRP. A  new                                                               
worker will enter the apprentice program  and spend a year or two                                                               
to gain a  broad knowledge of how a shipyard  works after which a                                                               
career path will be described.                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
4:57:41 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR MCGUIRE asked  what code changes are  needed to accommodate                                                               
the kind of procurement he does.                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
MR.  WARD replied  we  need to  start  implementing the  existing                                                               
federal highway  rules for  alternative procurements.  He offered                                                               
to provide her office with those documents.                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR  MCGUIRE said  she has  long had  an interest  in that  and                                                               
would be  happy to help  to the extent  that it begins  to impede                                                               
innovation and efficiencies.  She thanked Mr. Ward  and asked him                                                               
to let her office know how  the committee can continue to support                                                               
his  efforts  including  Arctic   transit  and  building  smaller                                                               
tankers to ship LNG to domestic ports.                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
5:01:39 PM                                                                                                                    
There being nothing  further to come before  the committee, Chair                                                               
McGuire adjourned  the Senate Special  Committee on  World Trade,                                                               
Technology and Innovation.