Photo By Daniel DeAngelis | Capt. Luke Greene, Program Manager for Program Management Office-555 (PMO) supporting...... read more read more
Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY) Public Affairs recently had an opportunity to meet with Capt. Luke Greene, Program Manager for Program Management Office-555 (PMO) supporting the Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program (SIOP). Via SIOP, the Navy is making substantial investments across the four public shipyards through the construction and modernization of dry docks, other infrastructure and modernized industrial plant equipment. The results of this effort are being seen at NNSY with upgraded facilities such as Dry Dock 4, which had a $191 million renovation completed earlier this year. While NNSY has had an important past over its 256-year history, PMO-555 leaders like Capt. Greene are at the forefront of ensuring a vital future at America’s Shipyard supporting the 21st century Navy.
Q: What is your role in SIOP?
Capt. Greene: As the Program Manager, I lead a team that’s going to bring recapitalization effort to all four shipyards. Recapitalization includes facilities and equipment, and its focus is to bring new capability or restore capability for the shipyards in order to increase maintenance throughput.
Q: Specifically, what is the overall intent of visiting Norfolk Naval Shipyard?
Capt. Greene: Two things, primarily. One is, as a civil engineer, I do always love to come down and see the projects—that’s my bread and butter. An opportunity to see the projects at the ground level as well as the conditions around the shipyard that the program will restore. With the projects specifically going on, there’s Dry Dock 8 [undergoing renovation], and we also visited Dry Dock 4, where we we’ll do the Reactor Servicing Complex. The other half, and a major component of our program, is equipment recapitalization and meeting with the team that really delivers on equipment.
Q: What do you see as being the specific mission of SIOP and its ultimate goal?
Capt. Greene: The ultimate goal is all about Fleet readiness. We are enabling the team here at the shipyard, giving them the best tools and opportunities to be able to turn ships around on time. Our mission is to deliver condition, capacity and configuration in the facilities—in some cases we’ll deliver new facilities, in some cases we’ll recapitalize older facilities. All of that is with a focus on increasing that maintenance throughput.
Q: How do you think SIOP is going to benefit not only NNSY meeting its mission, but also quality of work life for employees?
Capt. Greene: Quality of service is a major component of this program. As we lay out and assess the best optimized shipyard, we account for things that impact people’s day-to-day experience. We account for break rooms, travel distance and parking. The overall condition of the facilities you work in is a major component of your daily experience. If you work in a modern, upgraded facility, it’s a very different experience that shows we value you.
Q: Are there any specific SIOP projects at NNSY you’d like to discuss?
Capt. Greene: Certainly the dry docks. The dry docks are a foundational building block for the shipyards; we focus heavily on those and build everything from that foundation. The work going on at Dry Dock 8 to support Ford-class carriers is a complex, interlinked series of projects that requires close coordination between [NNSY SIOP Department Director Gary Dion-Bernier] and his team. The [adjacent] Berth 40/41 project is a perfect example of why we have to have the best people on the ground managing these projects. There’s still a lot of work and coordination to do with that project, but we’ve got the right people on that team.
Q: Mark Edelson, Program Executive Officer for Industrial Infrastructure, said that for the shipyards, “the task at hand is to bring vital infrastructure that is centuries-old into the modern era.” How do you feel PMO-555 is most effectively meeting that task?
Capt. Greene: This is a problem that has existed at the shipyards and across all Navy infrastructure for quite a while. We are taking a different approach with a more holistic look at the shipyards so that we can really focus on delivering capability versus taking a project-by-project approach. The perfect example right there is building out the area development plan for each shipyard which lays out the long-range plan to deliver those capabilities.
Q: There are obviously some challenges with updating vital infrastructure at the shipyards. How is PMO-555 working to effectively mitigate those?
Capt. Greene: It’s a team effort. PMO-555 is certainly at the crux of the program, but we rely heavily on each of the shipyards as the end operator. We rely on their inputs for long-term solutions. And then of course, we rely heavily on NAVFAC in providing some of the facilities and infrastructure solutions. Beyond a holistic plan, it’s really corralling a team in a way of aligning everybody on the same goals. With the program’s complexity and number of stakeholders who all have a very valid, vested interest in its success, it really is a team effort.
Q: Can you give some perspective on the PMO-555 involvement in the Navy’s Chief Digital Transformation Office efforts at the shipyard?
Capt. Greene: A part of this program on the digital side is twofold. One is looking at the equipment we provide and opportunities to connect it and maximize the capabilities that equipment brings. We have a lot of modern technologies available, and frankly we’re leaving some of those capabilities on the table because we cannot connect it. Another that’s very near and dear to the mechanics’ day-to-day experience is the ability to locate components and materials when they need them. We’re introducing a Naval Autonomous Data Collection System which helps with that asset visibility and helps shipyard employees locate those components and materials. On the digital side, the final thing I would highlight is building out a digital process model. The model lays out the most optimized shop floor in future buildings as we recapitalize or deliver new facilities. It’s an enormous benefit to the shipyard workforce because it allows them in real time to evaluate and streamline their processes. It’ll be a continuous adjustment as you identify choke points to continually improve. Delivering that model will be a big benefit for the shipyard.
Editor’s Note: SIOP is a holistic plan that integrates all infrastructure and industrial plant equipment investments at the Navy’s four public shipyards to meet nuclear fleet maintenance requirements, as well as improve Navy maintenance capabilities by expanding shipyard capacity and optimizing shipyard configuration. For more information about SIOP, visit https://www.navfac.navy.mil/PEO-Industrial-Infrastructure/PMO-555-SIOP/.
| Date Taken: | 12.01.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 12.06.2023 07:15 |
| Story ID: | 459210 |
| Location: | PORTSMOUTH, VIRGINIA, US |
| Web Views: | 957 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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