Navy Facilities
The naval shipyards under the headquarters command of the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEASYSCOM) provide the organic industrial base to the Navy for the repair, overhaul, alteration, and modernization of surface ships and submarines of the Fleet. This capability is used primarily to overhaul vessels on a scheduled availability basis to ensure that the highest state of capability and readiness is maintained in the Fleet. The naval shipyards also provide the foundation upon which to mobilize, and are therefore an essential part of the Fleet's readiness for war. Additionally, the naval shipyards perform depot repairable work and serve as engineering planning yards for applicable ship classes.
The extraordinary complex and critical nature of Navy ship maintenance demands that the naval shipyards be centers of technical and production excellence with a comprehensive and diverse industrial capability. Generally, production work is divided into four major functions: structural, mechanical, electrical/electronics, and services, and includes approximately 17 highly skilled trades. Changing Fleet maintenance strategies and increasing sophistication of ship systems require ongoing technological enhancements and productivity improvements in the shipyards.
FBM Shorebase Weapon Facilities
There are four Naval facilities which are central to the FBM programs: POLARIS Missile Facility, Atlantic (POMFLANT), located in Charleston, South Carolina; Strategic Weapons Facility, Pacific (SWFPAC), located in Bangor, Washington; Strategic Weapons Facility, Atlantic (SWFLANT), located in King's Bay, Georgia; and the Naval Ordnance Test Unit (NOTU), located at the Eastern Space and Missile Center in Florida. These facilities supply missiles to the fleet and support the deployed submarines.
LMSC/MSD is the prime contractor providing services for the Missile Branch (SP-27) of SSPO at POMFLANT, SWFPAC, and SWFLANT. Other weapon system subcontractors also have personnel at these facilities, or are available on an "as needed" basis. In addition to complete missile processing, MSD provides self-administration, miscellaneous special services, field documentation, and major support in engineering, quality engineering, product assurance reliability, and operations support, and facilities engineering for TRIDENT and POSEIDON operations.
At the Eastern Space and Missile Center, through contractual coverage provided by SP-25, LMSC/MSD manages, operates, and maintains the Navy's test facility at the Eastern Space and Missile Center to support flight test programs. (The Eastern Space and Missile Center is an Air Force facility.) MSD also provides engineering, logistic, and personnel support to the fleet at Port Canaveral, as requested by the Commanding Officer of NOTU. The colloquial name of this test facility is the Eastern Test Range. There is also a Western Space and Missile Center (known as the Pacific Missile Range), also managed by the Air Force which provides support to FBM Operational Tests in the Pacific.
At POMFLANT, SWFPAC, and SWFLANT, the operations are basically the same. The missile structure (ES, IS., etc.), along with most of the electronics packages, are manufactured at LMSC/MSD, Sunnyvale, California, and shipped to the facilities. Many of the other missile components (e.g., PBCS (valves manifold) and TVC systems) are delivered from vendors to LMSC/MSD and assembled there as subsystems, checked out, and shipped to the facilities along with the missile structure. The missile NF (Lockheed Corporation, Burbank, California) and the rocket motors are shipped direct from the subcontractors (e.g., Hercules, Thiokol, UTC, Aerojet) to the facilities. Other components of the missile (e.g.,ordnance, batteries, guidance) are also shipped direct to the facilities. In the case of tactical reentry vehicles (war-heads), LMSC/MSD manufactures the reentry vehicle shell and release system. The DoE supplies the physics package and the DoD furnishes the fuzing system from its subcontractors, Sandia/Bendix. These reentry vehicle components are assembled at a facility (PANTEX) near Albuquerque, New Mexico, and shipped to the facilities. At POMFLANT, SWFPAC, and SWFLANT, the missile components and reentry vehicles are received, assembled, checked out, and loaded on SSBNs or stored for future outloads. Fleet return missiles are received at these facilities disassembled, refurbished, or repaired as necessary, reassembled, checked out, and outloaded again or stored.
Initially in the program, most of the facility operations were performed by naval personnel or civil service personnel, supported by LMSC/MSD personnel. Since the late 1970's, the operation has become more of a GOCO (Government Owned Contractor Operated) operation with LMSC/MSD performing many of the functions.
With the advent of TRIDENT II (D5), the "factory has been extended to the facility." In the past, the missile's major components were bought off (DD250'd) by the Navy at LMSC/MSD or the major vendor's plant. They were thus government-owned, shipped to the facilities, and assembled. With D5, ownership does not transfer to the Navy at LMSC/MSD Sunnyvale. The components are shipped as "work-in-process" to the facility (SWFLANT) where MSD personnel assemble and check out the missile. It is at this point that the Navy "buys off" the complete missile (DD250'd), and it becomes government-owned material.
Naval Ordnance and Warfare Center activities
The Naval Ordnance Center activities includes five naval weapons stations which are Charleston, Concord, Earle, Seal Beach, and Yorktown. Three activities, formerly a part of the Navy Ordnance Activity Group are now part of the Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC). They are NSWC Crane Division; Naval Ordnance Station Crane Division, NSWC Louisville; and NSWC Indian Head Division. Only Crane and Louisville are included in this issue. In addition, another activity, formerly a part of the Navy Ordnance Activity Group, is now the Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC), Keyport Division.
These activities provide the organic capability for repair and overhaul of Navy weapons from small arms to major shipboard weapons and combat systems. They provide selected manufacturing capabilities for components to sustain and modernize existing weapons systems as well as maintain unique repair capabilities for electronic components of these modern weapon systems. Air and surface launched missile systems, torpedoes, mine systems, and various control systems are included.
Sources and Resources
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
