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Pearl Harbor Shipyard 'Recycles' Ship Engines

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS080425-30
Release Date: 4/25/2008 2:56:00 PM

From Naval Shipyard Pearl Harbor & Intermediate Maintenance Facility Public Affairs

PEARL HARBOR (NNS) -- Twelve people at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard & Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PHNSY & IMF) reached a milestone and saved $6.3 million for the Navy, April 25.

The 12-person Gas Turbine Engine Shop 38MH removed a dozen still-usable gas turbine engines from USS Chosin (CG 65) and decommissioned ships from January through April for refurbishment and reutilization by the Navy.

"This is not a common occurrence," said Marine Machinery Mechanic Leader Richard Ulmer, explaining that the shop removes an engine about once every five years. "A Sailor can do his or her entire tour in the shop and never do a change-out."

The engines were sent to Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) Carderock Division-Philadelphia, where they will be refurbished and reissued to the fleet.

"It's gas turbine recycling," Chief Electrician's Mate (SW) Rhoneil Peralta said with a smile.

"Everybody's a winner," said Ulmer. "The Navy gets a dozen engines and it's good training [for our people.]"

Peralta and Ulmer used the job as an opportunity to qualify three shop Sailors in gas turbine engine removal.

According to Mechanical Engineering Technician Garrett Suzuki, the chain of events began when two decommissioned destroyers, ex-Cushing (DD 985) and ex-Fletcher (DD 992), at the inactive ships maintenance facility at Pearl Harbor were selected for sinking.

NSWC Carderock-Philadelphia wanted to salvage the gas turbine engines because of their remaining service life. These LM2500 main engines are marine versions of aircraft engines and propel the ship, and the 501 K17 generators are smaller engines that provide shipboard electrical power.

A brand-new main engine costs $1.2 million; a generator costs $600,000. Engineering Technician Charles "Rick" Wilson of NWC Carderock said it costs the Navy about $900,000 to overhaul an LM2500 engine. On the other hand, removing and restoring a low-time LM2500 from an inactive ship costs $100 thousand, a cost-avoidance of $800,000. The same can be done on a 501 K17 generator for a cost-avoidance of $250,000.

Ulmer and Suzuki led two five-man teams of Shop 38MH Sailors and began the removal Jan. 14. Three weeks later, they had pulled out six main engines and six generators.

They also took out approximately 200 reusable turbine blades from another main engine.

Wilson described the removal as "a complex task that involves special tooling and crane operations to disconnect the engines from the ship, then lift them up through the ship's intake stack."

Referring to the multiple engine removals that provided extensive hands-on experience for the shop's Sailors, Ulmer said, "This was totally unusual. We took a giant step getting guys qualified."

PHNSY & IMF is the largest industrial employer in the state of Hawaii with a combined civilian and military workforce of about 4,700. PHNSY & IMF will celebrate its 100th anniversary May 10-17.

For more news from Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard, visit www.navy.mil/local/phnsy/.