Defense contractors

Defense employers across Maine need to hire 8,000 people over the next five years. But in such a tight labor market, where will those workers come from? That's what the Maine Defense Industry Alliance is trying to figure out.

The John Basilone is one of the Arleigh Burke class, considered the workhorse of the Navy's fleet. The class has been a staple of BIW’s shipbuilding for decades.

The Moosehead Marine Museum is restoring the historic Katahdin steamship, at a cost of $2 million, including $500,000 in congressionally directed spending. Visitors are invited to tour the progress on May 26.

With a cost of $22.8 million, the hybrid electric-diesel vessel was due to be delivered to Casco Bay Lines next month. But a contractor snafu has pushed the date out.

The addition of the machine shop will help Howell Laboratories expand its footprint in Navy shipbuilding, the company says. With the purchase, it now employs 70 people.

If options in the contract are fully executed and funded, the agreement could be worth $343.7 million and run through 2029, Bath Iron Works said.

The restoration effort for the Katahdin steamship, which is affectionately known as the Kate, received $500,000 in congressionally directed spending. The Moosehead Marine Museum is raising a total of $2 million for the work.

Bernstein Shur, Maine's largest law firm, has elected Pawel Binczyk as a shareholder in the labor and employment, litigation and dispute resolution, and food and beverage practice groups.

The Kittery shipyard has been removed from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s national priorities list of contaminated Superfund sites, after 30 years of hazardous waste cleanup.

Bath Iron Works has appointed Eric Masna as vice president of supply chain and quality.