Harland and Wolff is reinventing itself as an SME (Small to Medium Enterprise) and is pitching an engineering sales drive in the Republic. The Belfast shipyard, which built the Titanic and had more than 30,000 on the payroll during its heyday in the inter-war years, is also to apply for membership of the North's Federation of Small Business.
This follows the delivery last week of the Anvil Point, the last ship to be built at the yard from the bottom up.
The vessel, a roll-on roll-off ferry, was handed over to AWSR, a British shipping consortium. It is understood the ship will be used by the British Ministry of Defence.
The delivery marks the end of an era at the famous Belfast yard but the new management, which was announced last week, says it also signals a new beginning for the business. Harland and Wolff now has a workforce of just 131 following the last wave of lay-offs earlier this year.
Mr Robert J. Cooper, the new chief executive and former finance director, says Harland and Wolff has successfully consolidated its strengths in design engineering, technical services and consultancy.
"The priority of the new five-man management team is to secure Harland and Wolff Heavy Industries' future through a steady influx of new business," he said.
"We are like any other SME in that we have to build our reputation as an advanced engineering centre with an unmatched capability in Ireland."
Harland and Wolff has already built strong links with Dublin Corporation and other commissioning bodies including the Office of Public Works, the Department of Defence and local authorities.