An East Boston maritime company was honored last week at the State House during the Annual Manufacturing Award Ceremony sponsored by the Legislature’s Manufacturing Caucus.
Blue Atlantic Fabricators located at the Boston Shipyard and Marina on Marginal Street was one of 77 manufacturers that were recognized for truly “making it” in Massachusetts.
The ceremony honored the manufacturers and showcased their innovative and revolutionary manufacturing capabilities and products. The event included companies who make specialty and custom tools, decorative glass, baby products, marine robotics, gaskets, vacuum and cryogenic equipment, headwear apparel, custom scoliosis and spinal orthotic fabrication, medical devices, plant-based bioplastic products, and even chicken nuggets and fresh-milled flour.
Blue Atlantic Fabricators specializes in quality steel and aluminum fabrication projects, focusing on maritime industry.
“I’m excited to recognize Blue Atlantic Fabricators as a Manufacturer of the Year,” said Rep. Madaro. “Blue Atlantic continues the storied tradition of maritime industry on the East Boston waterfront, providing jobs in the skilled trades for projects across Massachusetts. I am proud to have them as a member of our community. I congratulate Blue Atlantic on their success and I wish them all the best for the future and growth of their business”.
As more and more waterfront parcels are zoned out of Designated Port Areas (DPA) to make way for luxury housing in Boston Blue Atlantic Fabricators has been hoping to starve off the trend and remain a viable employer in Eastie.
Madaro recently toured Blue Atlantic Fabricators 20,000 square-foot manufacturing facility at the Boston Shipyard and Marina. The company, a subsidiary of Boston Harbor Cruises (BHC), employees 15 skilled workers. Three or four of the employees are Eastie residents and most of the 15 employees are making $50,000 or more a year with benefits like health insurance and retirement.
The Blue Atlantic facility is located on the waterfront with deep water and heavy tonnage berthing access, making it ideally positioned to provide structural steel components to the emerging US offshore wind industry constructors and developers, as well as being an optimal source for potential boat builds as BHC looks to expand its fleet.
“We had been using Blue Atlantic for seven or eight months to build A-Frames for our offshore division and saw a great opportunity to begin working together to try to get some of that work from the emerging offshore wind industry,” said BHC Principal Rick Nolan. “Production at Blue Atlantic is a shining example of the continuation of Boston’s working port as it was originally intended. It’s keeping a skilled trade in Massachusetts and, it allows for the next step in BHC’s ability to provide quality, local services and support to the growing east coast wind and energy market.”
Blue Atlantic General Manager Michael Julian said with just 15 skilled employees his company is doing work on around 1,500 tons of steel material each year but with the emerging offshore wind industry Blue Atlantic is poised to expand.
“Being in a DPA is very important to this endeavor,” said Julian. “I can easily see us growing to around 60 to 70 employees if we are able to get some of this wind construction work. I can tell you our employees can handle a good amount of that work in this facility. “We are surrounded by luxury apartments here at the shipyard. There’s a lot of development and a lot of changing of the DPAs but is very important to us, the shipyard and the employees that work here to remain a working port.”
Formed in August 2014, the Manufacturing Caucus includes more than 60 legislators from around the Commonwealth. Lawmakers focus on training for manufacturing employees; encouraging innovation by helping start-ups access resources; and expanding apprenticeship opportunities in key manufacturing sectors.
“We recognized manufacturers who have had an impact on our economy, created jobs, and are contributing to the renaissance of manufacturing in our state,” said House Chair of the Legislature’s Manufacturing Caucus Rep. Jeffrey N. Roy (D – Franklin). “Massachusetts is positioned to be number one in manufacturing in the United States, and these companies are all a large part of our success story. And I am delighted that we had the opportunity to honor them and showcase their innovative and revolutionary manufacturing capabilities and products.”