Oregon Business

BY JON BELL

AN AVERAGE SHIP repair job for Vigor Marine runs from four to six weeks. It's a fairly standard timeline, but one that also makes it pretty difficult for workers in such a wavy industry to ever enjoy a real sense of job security.

So it's no surprise that landing a year-long, $13.1 million contract from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is proving to be a big deal for the Portland company.

"In ship repair, long-term projects are unique," says Rene Doiron, vice president for ship repair at Vigor's parent company, Vigor Industrial. "This gives us some flexibility … and gives our workforce and management teams a better idea of what's coming up"

Awarded in September, the contract includes $7 million in stimulus funds and calls for structural repairs, system replacements and modifications to NOAA's 231-foot seafloor mapping vessel Rainier.

For Vigor, which is bidding on two other NOAA jobs this fall, the contract marks a continued focus on governmental work. Doiron says the global economic situation has weighed heavily on commercial customers, and some, like oil companies, have taken their business to China.

By simple proximity, Vigor may also see more business from NOAA when the agency moves its Pacific operations center to Newport in 2011.

Doiron estimates that Vigor's typical repair projects range in size from $100,000 to $20 million, with 75% of them — about 30 or so projects — topping the $1 million mark. Depending on when that work comes in, Vigor employs anywhere from 300 to 500 people.

The NOAA contract is not likely to result in any additional hiring for Vigor, but it will keep the numbers pretty steady over the next year.

"This is a project we need to have to keep our employees stably employed," Doiron says. " It's a blessing to be able to give our workforce a little peace of mind."