In 2005, the Office of Naval Research (ONR) commissioned a study of mid tier U.S. shipyards to assess their capability to build medium-sized combatants. The study was executed through the Center for Naval Shipbuilding Technology, a Navy ManTech Center of Excellence. At approximately the same time, the Office of the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Industrial Policy) initiated Part 2 of their Global Shipbuilding Industrial Base Benchmarking Study (GSIBBS). The capabilities assessment and benchmarking study have common elements and a similar methodology. Therefore, in order to make the most efficient use of resources and minimize industry disruption, the two studies have been combined and carried out simultaneously. These efforts are now complete and the final reports are available for review.
