NORFOLK, VA (NSN) -- The Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Nitze (DDG 94) got underway from Naval Station Norfolk for sea trials April 26, marking the end of a seven-month Selective Restricted Availability (SRA).
Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center (MARMC) led the $13 million availability, which began in September 2017 at Marine Hydraulics International (MHI). Major work included tank repair and preservation, louver, intake and uptake preservation, and non-skid install.
The project team overcame several challenges to redeliver the ship to the fleet in a timely manner. Among them, a tropical storm condition that set production back by several weeks.
“We were in Tropical Storm Condition IV early in the beginning of the avail,” said MARMC/Nitze Project Support Engineer Steve Bedell. “The contractor is obligated to be able to pull all services and get the ship hurricane-ready on short notice. As a result, there was a 22-day period where active work was not possible due to hurricane conditions, so we essentially lost three weeks – and getting started back up wasn’t just a button push.”
The team resolved 1,570 Condition Found Reports (CFRs) and 336 Requests for Contract Change (RCCs) during the SRA.
“In this environment, you’re accustomed to doing whatever is required to adapt and change plans midcourse to accomplish the mission,” said Bedell.
Despite the number of RCCs, the availability finished with only six percent growth (increase in the value of the contract due to additional work), and returned Nitze to the fleet.
“The key factor in our success with this avail was communications,” said MARMC/Nitze Lead Shipbuilding Specialist (SBS) Bob Halbert. “We kept it open and transparent throughout the avail. And whenever we needed to, we helped each other. At the beginning, it was a learning process for some of the newer Shipbuilding Specialists (SBSs), but you learn very quickly how to lean on each other.”
These efforts extended beyond the Nitze project team to include the USS Mason (DDG 87) project team.
“Throughout the availability, we communicated well with the Mason’s project team,” said Halbert. “We worked in the same building, and some of the issues that they had encountered in their avail, had also occurred with ours. It was a great opportunity for us to benefit from their lessons learned and best practices.”
“Early in the availability, Fred Basnight (a member of the Nitze project team), coordinated with his counterpart aboard Mason to inspect the intakes and uptakes, while we were in the tropical storm condition,” added Bedell. “We knew what needed to be repaired, and what we could reasonably delay. By having that discovery early in the process, there weren’t any issues. That was a huge lesson learned and helped offset any down time.”
The Nitze SRA is one of more than 20 Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) availabilities MARMC will conduct this year. The command provides services to more than 70 ships and their crews in the Mid-Atlantic region to ensure they are able to fulfill their mission with minimal repair and downtown.