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Pearl Harbor Shipyard Automated Welding Increases Safety, Efficiency

Navy News Service

Story Number: NNS111117-19
11/17/2011

From Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard Public Affairs

PEARL HARBOR (NNS) -- Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PHNSY & IMF) employees completed their largest automated submerged arc weld, Nov. 11, laying the groundwork for future submarine maintenance availability.

Submerged arc welding fuses together parts to be welded by heating them with one or more electric arcs. The process utilizes the heat of an arc between a continuously fed electrode and the work. Welders conduct the welding by operating automated machinery, producing a faster, safer, and more efficient process than welding by hand. In addition, it does not require welders to work in temperatures ranging between 400 to 500 degrees Fahrenheit according to Charlene Mashiba, PHNSY & IMF welding engineer.

"This machine gives us first-time quality and saves time and resources, unlike manual welding, which often requires two to three re-weld cycles," said Mashiba. "It takes four hours to weld a 1-foot length of shaft in what would take 12 man-days to do manually."

Workers repaired 18 feet, or one third of a propeller shaft's surface area using the mechanized, automated process. It minimizes re-work by producing a very smooth bead and resulting weld.

While the automated welding is faster to execute than welding by hand, it only represents the second time used at the shipyard. The process requires seven months of preparation and a coordinated effort between the: inside machine shop; welding shop; rigging shop; equipment maintenance tool shop; quality assurance office, and engineers at the shipyard before executing the welding.

"The machine shop has never completed 'start to finish' shaft work in a year," said Khonsa Phommavong, PHNSY & IMF shaft refit manager. "With ownership and shared vision in mind, all of the obstacles were identified and mitigated in advance. The team is determined to get a win for Pearl."

The time-saving and quality benefits prompted the shipyard to establish a goal of completing one shaft repair in 2012 and two per year after that according to Phommavong.

PHNSY & IMF is a full-service naval shipyard and regional maintenance center for the Navy's surface ships and submarines, and Naval Sea Systems Command field activity.