Cammell Laird

What Cammell Laird does

Cammell Laird is a historic UK shipbuilding and ship repair operator headquartered at a shipyard on the River Mersey in Birkenhead, England. Founded in 1828, the business has built an international reputation through complex naval, research, and commercial vessel construction, most notably the polar research ship RRS Sir David Attenborough. Its core offering consists of shipbuilding, refit, and repair services delivered through enterprise field-sales relationships with maritime operators, shipping companies, and research institutions that bring vessels into the Birkenhead facility for project-based work.

The company's physical platform comprises capital-intensive shipyard infrastructure — berthing, dry docks, and high-voltage electrical systems — supplemented by a £7 million shore power infrastructure project funded under the UK Department for Transport's Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition. This shore power capability enables vessels undergoing refit or repair to connect to clean shore-based electricity rather than running auxiliary engines, reducing emissions during shipyard stays. The site and its proprietary shore-side power connection points are described as a domain-specialist differentiator for the clean-maritime refit market.

Commercially, Cammell Laird generates revenue through project-based shipbuilding and repair contracts, with pricing negotiated case by case rather than published. Until June 2026 it operated as part of APCL Group alongside sister yards A&P Tyneside and A&P Falmouth, contributing to combined group turnover of £255 million; it has since been acquired by Cornish maritime group Balaena and rebranded as Balaena Birkenhead, bringing five shipyards and 12 dry docks under a single owner.

Name

Cammell Laird

Legal name

Cammell Laird Shipyards

Website

https://clbh.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1828

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Cammell Laird is a historic shipyard in Birkenhead, UK, founded in 1828, providing shipbuilding, refit, and repair services to maritime operators, shipping companies, and research institutions, including a new shore power infrastructure capability for vessels undergoing maintenance.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Shipbuilding and Repair Services

NAICS

Ship Building and Repairing (336611), Ship and Boat Building (3366), Boat Building (336612)

SIC

Ship & Boat Building & Repairing (3730)

akta.pro primary industry

Hull, Structure & Steelwork Repair (TLAKAKAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Barge & Coastal Freighter Shipbuilding (IMAJAAAK), Utilities & Power Infrastructure (Electrical Distribution, Compressed Air, Steam, Water) (IMAJALAJ), Heavy Lifting & Material Handling Infrastructure (Goliath Cranes, Jib Cranes, Hoists) (IMAJALAD)

Keywords

• Shipbuilding services
• Ship repair
• Vessel refit
• Naval shipbuilding
• Maritime engineering

Headquarters

HQ city

Birkenhead

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Shipbuilding and Repair Services: Shipbuilding and repair/refit services for vessels including commercial ships, research vessels, and potentially naval vessels. Revenue generated through project-based contracts for ship construction and maintenance.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Core offering

Cammell Laird is a historic UK shipyard providing shipbuilding, ship repair, and vessel refit services to maritime operators, shipping companies, research institutions, and naval clients. The company constructs complex vessels and maintains commercial and research ships at its Birkenhead shipyard on the River Mersey, including newly developed high-voltage shore power infrastructure that delivers clean electricity to vessels during maintenance periods.

Product overview

Cammell Laird is a historic shipyard company based in Birkenhead, UK, offering shipbuilding, ship repair, and refit services. The company operates a shipyard facility providing vessel maintenance capabilities including a shore power infrastructure project for vessels in refit or repair. The company traces its origins to the early nineteenth century and gained international recognition for constructing the polar research vessel RRS Sir David Attenborough.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Shipbuilding services Construction of commercial, research, and naval vessels at the Birkenhead shipyard, sold under project-based contracts to maritime operators, research institutions, and defence clients.
• Ship repair and refit services Ship repair, refit, and maintenance services for commercial and research vessels at the Birkenhead shipyard, including access to dry-dock facilities and the new shore power infrastructure.
• Naval redeployment services Naval vessel redeployment services supporting defence clients, positioning Cammell Laird as a major UK provider of naval redeployment alongside commercial ship repair.

Quantifiable outcome

• Clean power supply for vessels reducing emissions during refit or repair operations

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Navantia: Spanish state-owned shipbuilder with extensive naval and commercial vessel construction and repair. Comparable to Cammell Laird in competing for European naval programs and complex vessel refits, though operating multiple yards versus Cammell Laird's single Birkenhead site.
• Fincantieri S.p.A. One of the world's largest shipbuilders with multiple European yards. Comparable to Cammell Laird in commercial and naval shipbuilding and repair, though operating at materially larger scale and with a continental European footprint rather than a single UK-focused site.
• Meyer Werft: German shipbuilder specializing in complex cruise, ferry and specialized vessels. Comparable to Cammell Laird's complex new-build execution capability (RRS Sir David Attenborough class) and for refit of specialized commercial vessels.
• BAE Systems Maritime & Naval Ships: UK's largest naval shipbuilder operating the Govan and Scotstoun yards. Comparable to Cammell Laird for naval and complex vessel programs but much larger in scale; a broad incumbent that bids for many of the same UK defence and shipbuilding contracts.
• Damen Shipyards: Netherlands-based global shipbuilder with repair yards and new-build operations across Europe and globally. Comparable to Cammell Laird in commercial vessel repair, refit, and standardized new-build for maritime operators.
• Babcock International (Marine sector): UK-headquartered engineering services group with significant ship sustainment, refit, and naval support operations (including Devonport, Rosyth). Comparable to Cammell Laird in providing ship repair and refit to the Royal Navy and commercial customers as part of a wider portfolio.

Direct peers

• Harland & Wolff: Historic UK shipyard headquartered in Belfast with fabrication, shipbuilding and repair capabilities comparable to Cammell Laird. Both are Tier-1 UK yards competing for the same naval, commercial refit, and complex vessel programs across the British Isles.
• Ferguson Marine (Port Glasgow) Ltd: UK commercial shipbuilding and ship repair yard based on the Clyde, directly comparable to Cammell Laird in ferry, naval support and refit work. Both yards compete for UK government and commercial marine contracts of similar scope.
• A&P Group (Falmouth & Tyneside): Pre-merger sibling shipyards (A&P Falmouth and A&P Tyneside) now unified with Cammell Laird under Balaena. Operates comparable commercial ship repair and refit services in the UK, sharing many of the same customer segments and competitive bid situations as Cammell Laird historically.

Regional players

• Forth Ports / Burntisland Fabrication: Scottish-based marine services and fabrication operator supporting offshore, energy and ship repair work. Comparable regional UK player that competes with Cammell Laird for Scottish and North Sea commercial marine work from a different geographic base.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cammelllaird

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cammell Laird