>> when you'd have to import the steel. We still wouldn't be competitive on cost.
Just because steel is made locally doesn't make it any cheaper. Transport costs are very small these days, thanks to modern shipping. So a local steel producing isn't going to sell below the worldwide market rate, which is defined by the largest steel producers and consumers on a global scale. I remember similar debates years ago about oil, that if the US produced enough domestically that imports could stop and local prices drop. That isn't how the modern world of free trade works.
> that if the US produced enough domestically that imports could stop
Relevant to US shipyards, domestic oil can only supply domestic refineries if there's transport, and there's not enough oil carriers that satisfy the Jones act, because they need to be US built, US flagged, US owned, and US crewed. If the best way to transport the crude is by ocean, it's not going to be extracted and refined in the US; it only makes sense to do both in the US if crude is delivered by pipeline or rail. There's also issues with the grades of oil and how refineries are setup, but that's more tractable if there's supply.
So don't JIT. Just because it's cool doesn't mean it's a good fit in every case. Get a buffer stockpile and refill as needed.
The stuff you'd need to stockpile is unlikely to deprecate in value and it certainly isn't perishables, so doing so really isn't a big deal.
Also once you get an order you already know roughly how much steel you'll need - a bit of lag as you wait for the first batches to arrive really isn't a big deal in such a project.
If you don't assume that the drydock is sitting empty while the construction plans for the next ship are being thought up, why would it sit empty while you wait for supplies?
Presumably you'd get everything lined up before you finish your previous project. Hardly any construction just simply starts the day someone approaches a manufacturer anyways.
Just because steel is made locally doesn't make it any cheaper. Transport costs are very small these days, thanks to modern shipping. So a local steel producing isn't going to sell below the worldwide market rate, which is defined by the largest steel producers and consumers on a global scale. I remember similar debates years ago about oil, that if the US produced enough domestically that imports could stop and local prices drop. That isn't how the modern world of free trade works.