Photo By Frank Kaminski | Left to right: NUWC Division, Keyport employees Michael Bonus, Justin Spreadborough,...... read more read more
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Scientists and engineers at Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division, Keyport gathered for the Digital Engineering Management Workshop held at the command’s Keyport Innovation Center, Aug. 26-28. The Defense Acquisition University-sponsored event provided hands-on engineering management training and culminated in a robotic vehicle competition.
According to Lucas Romas, a branch head at NUWC Division, Keyport who championed and organized the workshop, it was designed to simulate real-world processes and challenges Department of War employees face in system acquisitions.
“The main objectives were to hone key engineering skills, such as the ability to translate user requirements into an engineering solution that is later tested in an operationally realistic environment, while leveraging and learning digital tools in a defense acquisition framework,” said Romas.
Ty Theriot and Brian Kozola, professors of engineering, technology and logistics at DAU, served as the workshop’s primary instructors.
Participants broke into integrated product teams, each tasked with using a range of engineering tools to design, build and test a robotic vehicle to meet specific performance requirements for a Ground Unmanned Autonomous Vehicle deployed for mine detection missions. Performance requirements included mine detection accuracy, vehicle assembly time, minefield course lap time and maximum grade traversed. Teams then conducted extensive tests to ensure their vehicles performed as expected and revised their designs to optimize performance
The workshop concluded with a government-led “source selection” where vehicle designs were evaluated on performance, cost, producibility, and supportability, with one team declared the winner based on a best-value determination.
“The most exciting part was the competition,” said Romas. “We had three teams with three unique designs, each optimizing different performance characteristics. The competition, which included navigating the minefield track, vehicle assembly times and a grade challenge, was incredibly close. Watching each team refine their designs from preliminary design review to critical design review and then proving what they could do was a blast."
By providing hands-on training in digital engineering, system acquisition and collaborative problem-solving, the workshop directly contributed to several Naval Sea Systems Command Enterprise Strategy Lines of Effort, including Accelerating Force Generation; Generating Readiness; Generating, Capturing, and Using Data; Strengthening the Navy Team; and Strengthening the Foundation.
According to Romas, the workshop grew out of an effort to find a training opportunity that would complement his division’s in-house Model-Based Systems Engineering exercise and other professional development curricula.
“One of our systems engineers found this DAU-sponsored workshop that aligned with some of our learning objectives, and we reached out to DAU about teaching the workshop locally at Keyport,” said Romas. “Thus began our relationship.”
KIC Director Jacob Snow said the center’s equipment and collaborative workspace helped engineers of all levels connect and learn more effectively.
“Being in the KIC, with the extra breakout space and resources like flexible tables and big monitors, really helped,” said Snow. “The class included relatively new engineers all the way up to senior leadership, and everyone came together with the common goal of learning together.”
Romas said he hopes to build on this success through future partnerships with DAU professors.
“There are notional plans for partnering between NUWC Division, Keyport and the DAU professors of engineering, technology, and logistics for new curriculum,” said Romas.
Check out this YouTube video for a behind-the-scenes look at the workshop.
-KPT-
Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division, Keyport is headquartered in the state of Washington on the Puget Sound, about 10 miles west of Seattle. To provide ready support to Fleet operational forces at all major Navy homeports in the Pacific, NUWC Division, Keyport maintains detachments in San Diego, California and Honolulu, Hawaii, and remote operating sites in Guam; Japan; Hawthorne, Nevada; and Portsmouth, Virginia. At NUWC Division, Keyport, our diverse and highly skilled team of engineers, scientists, technicians, administrative professionals and industrial craftsmen work tirelessly to develop, maintain and sustain undersea warfare superiority for the United States.
| Date Taken: | 09.24.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 09.24.2025 19:22 |
| Story ID: | 549223 |
| Location: | KEYPORT, WASHINGTON, US |
| Web Views: | 99 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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