All the remaining shop floor workers at the Arnish yard in Stornoway lost their jobs yesterday as the last structure made at the plant was shipped away.
Only eight people are still employed at the BiFab facility but most will leave in four weeks.
Their redundancy notices say they will be paid off on 16 March.
Some 160 people worked at the busy yard just three months ago.
All manufacturing activity has ceased at Arnish – some four months ahead of the closure of BiFab’s yards in Methil and Burntisland in Fife.
BiFab is pitching for work from a number of marine renewable energy schemes being developed off the Scottish coast.
Stiff competition from rivals means there is no guarantee of success and the lack of continuity of work results in the yards facing closure.
In November, the Scottish Government rescued the firm from the brink of administration by mediating in a payment dispute with the main Beatrice contractor.
Providing a £15 million loan pledge also helped BiFab through its severe cash flow problems.
The last wind farm turbine deck unit produced in Lewis sailed away atop of a barge yesterday (Fri) afternoon.
Fears that the site would be abandoned have diminished to a degree after workers said BiFab bosses are relenting to pressure by the GMB union and Western Isles Council to consider retaining a two-person skeleton crew to keep the yard on stand-by.
It is understood the agreement is to provide care and maintenance on a week by week basis at present.
Affected personnel pointed out Arnish delivered excellent quality work on time and to specification and queried why many renewable construction contracts in Scotland are going abroad to overseas manufacturers.
As he left his workplace for the last time, Donald Macleod, said: “Its about time our elected representatives in Scotland stand up and make sure this work stays in British yards.
He said the workforce was “very much despondent.”
“Everybody is leaving the site and it is now down to a skeleton crew of care and maintenance.
“Hopefully something will turn up soon.”
Departing worker Kenny Mackay was “very disappointment“ the yard is virtually closed.
He said: “This is the end of the line for me. I’ve been working for the past 52 years so my working days are over now.
“I feel for the boys with young families and mortgages. This is going to hit them hard.”
He stressed the whole of Lewis including the town of Stornoway “is going to feel” a negative economic impact from the closure.
Another Arnish worker, Iain Macleod, said: “We are all very disappointed that this is actually happening.
“We knew there would be downturn in work but thought there would at least be an opportunity for more guys to be kept on at the yard.
With BiFab in talks with a potential new investor, Western Isles MSP Alasdair Allan believes the best outcome is for a buyout of the firm.
Mr Allan said: “It seems likely that the best hope for the future of the yard may well lie in a potential takeover deal from outside investors and the government has been engaged in efforts to explore this option.
“Arnish has a considerable role in the island economy and, given the positive state of the renewables sector at the moment, there is no reason it should not have a bright future.”
He said the Scottish Government is also “most actively been involved” in seeking orders for the yard.
Labour MSP Rhoda Grant stated: “This is the harsh reality for the dedicated workforce of Arnish, despite the extremely high quality of workmanship completed to exacting precision and timescales they have been extremely let down and find themselves out of work at a difficult time.”
She called for “immediate action” to rescue what “remains of this viable operation before it declines into a position that prevents it continuing.”
The MSP continued: “This is devastating given that there is such a highly skilled workforce here who have proved themselves time and again, along with an excellent location and that the potential of renewables, oil industry and general works available from a global market we need a deal that secures the future that this facility deserves.
“We need a company here that realises the potential and builds on that not one that exploits it and closes it.”