Kevin Graney leads perhaps the most prolific hirer in Connecticut — General Dynamics Electric Boat.
Graney has been president of the submarine builder since October 2019. His company is serving as a major catalyst for growth in eastern Connecticut, where Electric Boat has assembly, design and maintenance facilities in Groton and New London.
Electric Boat — owned by publicly traded defense contractor General Dynamics — is taking advantage of a shift in federal defense strategy that calls for construction of three nuclear submarines — two Virginia class and one of the new Columbia class ballistic missile boats — each year for the foreseeable future.
The larger plan is for 70% of the country’s nuclear arsenal to be carried by submarines.
That has set Electric Boat on what’s being called a once-in-a-generation expansion.
Building a nuclear submarine is a long and complex task that can stretch to four or more years per unit. So, gearing up to produce three a year means adding lots of infrastructure and manpower.
Companywide, Electric Boat’s employment has gone from 14,658 in 2016, to 21,335 in August 2023. Included in the figures are maintenance operations in other locations, such as Rhode Island, Honolulu, San Diego and Bremerton, Washington.
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Last year, Electric Boat had a goal of 5,750 hires, a number that needs to be replicated for the next several years.
In a presentation to the Connecticut Business & Industry Association in 2022, Graney estimated the peak hiring point to be in 2033, with about 21,000 employees just in Connecticut.
Graney began his shipbuilding career with General Dynamics Electric Boat in 1995 as a senior engineer, working on the high-speed turbine generator set for the Virginia-class submarine.
The New York native and former commissioned naval officer earned a bachelor’s degree in marine engineering and nuclear science from State University of New York Maritime College.
Graney is married, has a daughter and currently lives in Stonington.