Photo By Troy Miller | Kenneth Sasser recently became Norfolk Naval Shipyard’s Lifting and Handling...... read more read more
From operating Boat and Aircraft (B&A) cranes as a Boatswain Mate in the U.S. Navy and starting his Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY) career as a Wage Grade (WG)-8 rigger, Kenneth Sasser, Sr. has worked his way up through various Code 700 jobs to now achieve the highest position in Code 700, Lifting and Handling Director.
“When I started my ship repair journey, I went through the ranks, predominantly as an elbow and carrier rigger,” said Sasser. “After a couple of years as a WG-8, I went through the ranks of WG-10 to work leader, to supervisor, to zone manager.”
In 2013, Sasser became one of the first Surface Ship Rigging Program Managers (Code 740). From there he continued to climb the ladder to work through the Code 700 positions of Rigging Branch Manager, Crane and Rigging Superintendent to Deputy Lifting and Handling Director (Code 701).
Code 700 provides crane and rigging services to the projects on the waterfront. It also supports the building crane operations. Code 700 also provides tractors, locomotives and trucks to move heavy industrial equipment from point A to point B in a safe and timely manner.
“I had applied for the Lifting and Handling Director once before, but it wasn’t in the cards for me at that time,” said Sasser. “When the position became available three years later, I applied for the position once more and this time, I had the winning hand.”
Sasser was born in Clewiston, Florida, moving to Miami, Florida at age six where he eventually graduated from Miami Central High School in 1988. At this point, Sasser had to decide on what he wanted to do with his life.
“I had a choice to make between going to college or joining the military,” said Sasser. “At the time, I didn’t want to attend college. I wanted to help and support in defending our country. In addition, I wanted to see the world. I have never been out of the country before and the U.S. Navy offered me the chance to see the world. Two weeks after high school graduation, I was on my way to U.S. Navy’s Recruit Training Command, Great Lakes, Illinois and not long after, I went on a Mediterranean deployment onboard the Austin-class amphibious transport dock USS Ponce (LPD 15).”
Sasser joined the Navy on the three to five year plan. He had to serve three years of active duty and five years in the Reserves, where he ended up retiring from the Reserves in 2012 after 23 years of service.
“During active duty, as a Boatswain’s Mate, I became qualified as a B&A crane operator. I had applied to become a crane operator at NNSY, but after not receiving the position, I became a rigger instead which led to eventually becoming the Lifting and Handling Director,” said Sasser.
Sasser feels that being organically grown in Code 700 allows him to bring leadership from the deckplates in the way the mechanic and wrench turners see and understand it. “With my leadership skills and experience, what made me apply for this [position] to begin with, I can lead people and provide a clear and precise leadership from the deckplate level, from mechanic to managers and supervisors to senior leadership, in promoting the wins and accomplishments the men and women of the Lifting and Handling Department provide in doing their part of supporting NNSY’s mission of repairing, modernizing and inactivating the Navy’s warships and training platforms,” said Sasser.
Workforce development is one of Sasser’s primary focus points while he is the Lifting and Handling Director. “We [Code 700] need to identify deficiencies and address them within our Continuous Training Development (CTD) programs to get the workforce where they need to be,” said Sasser. “I think once we get a workforce development plan to go in a line on what the workforce should be doing, then we'll get better on scheduling, better on the experience level, identifying hard things and making sure we have a qualified, trained workforce ready to go before the work even comes to us.”
One thing Sasser enjoys doing during his off-duty hours is cooking and baking. As a person who likes to challenge himself, he likes taking recipes that either he found on his own or those that someone gave him and adding a little twist to them, making them his own. This is Sasser’s way of relaxing and clearing his head. When someone tells Sasser that a particular dish is good, to Sasser that is the “icing on the cake.”
Sasser is looking forward to his position as Lifting and Handling Director, where he feels that it’s not the people in Code 700 who work for him, but it is him who works for the people in Code 700.
“My job is to provide a safe place for them to work and give them the tools they need to do a great job,” said Sasser. “I want to remain focused on developing a strong and safety-oriented team, ensuring that the Lifting and Handling department continues to excel in quality and innovation to show why Norfolk Naval Shipyard is America’s Shipyard.”
| Date Taken: | 02.06.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 02.06.2025 13:42 |
| Story ID: | 490241 |
| Location: | PORTSMOUTH, VIRGINIA, US |
| Web Views: | 46 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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