HII to expand ROMULUS USV assembly facility

March 27, 2026, by Fatima Bahtić

Defense company HII has unveiled plans for a new ROMULUS unmanned surface vessel (USV) assembly facility at Breaux Brothers Enterprises in New Iberia, Louisiana.

The company also introduced High-Yield Production Robotics (HYPR), an initiative focused on applying industrial robotics and digital quality systems to unmanned platform manufacturing.

Together, the facility and HYPR reflect HII’s vision for transforming how unmanned surface vessels are built. The company aims to move from prototype construction to scalable, repeatable production using automation, digital design, and standardized manufacturing processes.

The approach is intended to lower unit costs, shorten production timelines, and support program-level delivery of the ROMULUS family of USVs, it was highlighted.

The upgraded Breaux Brothers facility is designed to support serial production of ROMULUS vessels ranging from approximately 20 feet to 190 feet in length. The expanded layout emphasizes automation, advanced tooling, and standardized workflows to enable efficient, high-rate production across multiple vessel variants using a common manufacturing approach.

The concept supports HII’s broader goal of creating a fully automated structural assembly environment tailored to the ROMULUS family. The initiative is intended to improve technical feasibility, schedule performance, and manufacturing efficiency, while positioning the company to scale production quickly as demand for autonomous maritime systems grows.

“ROMULUS is engineered from the outset for scale,” said Andy Green, president of HII’s Mission Technologies division.

“By pairing a purpose-built assembly line with automation and strong industry partnerships, we are driving predictable production outcomes and lowering the cost of unmanned surface vessels. This positions us to deliver capability faster and at volumes aligned with fleet needs.”

ROMULUS has been identified as a primary use case for HYPR, including the development of a fully automated structural assembly line for larger vessel variants. The approach is designed to enable concurrent hull construction, reduce labor hours and rework, and increase throughput while maintaining consistent quality across vessel classes.

“HYPR applies next-generation industrial robotics to shipbuilding processes that have traditionally been labor-intensive and difficult to automate,” said Eric Chewning, executive vice president of maritime systems and corporate strategy at HII.

ROMULUS USVs are designed to meet current and emerging requirements for the US Navy, US Marine Corps, and joint forces. The modular family supports a wide range of missions, including intelligence collection, mine countermeasures, strike operations, and unmanned system deployment.