General Dynamics Electric Boat, the Groton, Connecticut-based submarine manufacturer, broke ground on its new campus and training facility on the site of the former Crystal Mall in Waterford last week.
The company is converting the former 535,000-square-foot mall into an engineering, training, and software development center that would accommodate 4,000 to 5,000 EB employees and about 400 trainees.
“What we are looking forward to most in this property is our opportunity to reset labs, to reset our ability to do advanced engineering, to do automation,” said General Dynamics Electric Boat President Mark Rayha.
“So that we do things smarter and we do things fast and we can deliver that many more submarines to the nation,” Rayha said.
It coincides with Electric Boat’s recent $77 billion contract with the U.S. Navy, described as the largest in modern history.
The contract calls for the construction of nine Virginia-class submarines and five Columbia-class submarines.
The company currently builds one submarine a year.
