Source: United States Navy
Team members from multiple disciplines worked for more than two years on a project leading to increased contract efficiencies and parts getting to ships and aircraft correctly.
According to Bryan David, an engineer and NAVSUP Weapon Systems Support Configuration Management Lead, most contracts had language addressing what to do if one system had different versions or configurations, but they weren’t specific enough. The agency needed standard contract terms requiring that the government be notified anytime a product is modified so that the proper engineers, maintainers and more could make decisions about the parts.
Many of NAVSUP WSS supported systems are produced for decades, so differences in newer vs older parts can be dramatic. For instance, the USS Nimitz (CVN 68) was commissioned in 1975 making it nearly 50 years old. In contrast the USS Gerald Ford (CVN 78) was commissioned in 2017, making it approximately six years old.
The same concept applies to many of us in our everyday lives, according to David.
“An example of proper configuration language would be a phone upgrade,” he said. “Suppose you owned version 1.0 of a phone that needed certain parts. You had a contract to support that phone if it broke. But, in the time since you purchased phone 1.0, phone 2.0 came out. You still need the parts for phone 1.0, but when you reached out for your parts, the contractor sent you 2.0 phone parts because that’s what they were currently using. Those parts may or may not work right. The same applies for Navy systems. Newer model parts may not work on older model systems and vice versa.”
In addition to making the language standard, the team also was able to streamline the language from two pages to one page and included easy to follow, clearer language, David explained.
“I’m ecstatic the project is completed,” said David. “When I made it to the finish line and the language got in the business library it was a great accomplishment. The community-of-practice team for this project was outstanding.”
For his efforts David was recognized by the Department of the Navy. In the 2023 Department of the Navy Acquisition Excellence Awards David was recognized as the Acquisition Professional of the Year-Engineering & Technical Management. He will attend a ceremony at the Pentagon in January 2024 along with other acquisition professionals.
NAVSUP WSS is one of 11 commands under Commander, NAVSUP. Headquartered in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, NAVSUP employs a diverse, worldwide workforce of more than 22,500 military and civilian personnel. NAVSUP and the Navy Supply Corps conduct and enable supply chain, acquisition, operational logistics and Sailor and family care activities with our mission partners to generate readiness and sustain naval forces worldwide to prevent and decisively win wars. Learn more at www.navsup.navy.mil, www.facebook.com/navsupwss, and www.twitter.com/NAVSUP