Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PHNSY) opened a new satellite machine shop Oct. 5 that provides on-site light machinery services at the shipyard’s Fleet Maintenance Activity-Submarine Division.
The division, which performs short-term, scheduled repair and maintenance of submarines in 35 days or less, typically performs its work onboard submarines across the harbor from the actual shipyard.
“We needed to get the right industrial capability to support intermediate-level work,” said Kevin Correa, Fleet Maintenance Activity-Submarine Division project superintendent . “We didn’t need a full machine shop but something where we can do minor machining to quickly support our workers [in that division].”
In the past, Fleet Maintenance Activity-Submarine Division workers brought their machinery jobs across the harbor to the shipyard.
“Taking a piece of material or component all the way to [the other side of the harbor] and having to wait two to three days, we lose time,” said Correa. “Our availabilities are 35 days or shorter, so every day we lose could impact the availability.”
When PHNSY and the Intermediate Maintenance Facility were two separate entities, both commands had their own machine shops. However, when they merged in 1998, the shipyard’s main machine shop was designated as the only shop to support the entire command. The newly opened satellite shop now allows Fleet Maintenance Activity-Submarine Division to get light machining work done more quickly and gives the main machine shop the ability to concentrate on major availabilities.
The machine shop is the first step in an initiative to renovate and modernize facilities.
“It’s just a small part of the overall revitalization plan that will affect the equipment and the overall Intermediate Maintenance Facility building,” said Dean Reghi, Fleet Maintenance Activity-Submarine Division assistant project superintendent.
The Shipyard is a field activity of the Naval Sea Systems Command and a one-stop regional maintenance center for the Navy’s surface ships and submarines. It is the largest industrial employer in the state of Hawaii with a combined civilian and military workforce of about 5,000.
[mappress] Naval Today Staff, October 19, 2012