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Hydro Blast Machinery Revolutionizes Navy's Way of Removing Non-Skid

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS050830-03
Release Date: 8/30/2005 11:33:00 AM

By Journalist 1st Class (SW) James Evans Coyle, USS Essex Public Affairs

SASEBO, Japan (NNS) -- USS Essex (LHD 2) took another step to replace the "non-skid" aboard the ship Aug. 26 using a hydro-blast method, a method that is saving valuable man-hours and money during the ship’s current selected restricted availability (SRA) period

Non-skid is a deck covering that prevents equipment, people and aircraft from slipping or sliding. More than 130,000 square feet of Essex's non-skid is expected to be replaced. That includes 844 feet of the flight deck, the massive hangar bay, vehicle stowage areas, other wind tunnels and passageways that require the Navy’s standard skid-resistant deck coating.

According to air department’s Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (Handling) 1st Class (AW/SW) David Wykes, quality assurance assistant, the hydro blast method is the most effective way of removing non-skid.

The hydro blast equipment uses high-pressure air and water directed against the non-skid through an enclosed circular opening on the deck. The equipment is simply moved over the non-skid surface, and in seconds there is bare metal left where once there was non-skid covering.

“The opening is about as big as a large-size pizza,” said Wykes. “It’s so much cleaner and easier. Once the water comes out of the opening, not only does it remove the non-skid but it also cleans the deck to the metal surface and it dries immediately. With the BB blast, you had BBs flying into the deck at high pressure and they caused additional rust that had to be removed later. The hydro blast is really very, very good.”

“This is my first time experiencing the hydro blast method of removing non-skid,” said Wykes. “The old way of BB blasting the non-skid off...really doesn’t make sense anymore after you see how this hydro blast way works.”

Essex is the Navy’s only forward deployed amphibious assault ship, operating out of Sasebo, Japan. Essex serves under Task Force 76, Amphibious Group 1, which serves as the U.S. 7th Fleet’s amphibious arm as part of forward-deployed operations.