Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program (SIOP) Industry Day

MARK K. EDELSON, PE

Mr. Mark Edelson entered the Senior Executive Service in July 2022. He serves as the Program Executive Officer for Industrial Infrastructure (PEO II). PEO II is responsible for cost, schedule, and performance of the Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program (SIOP). SIOP is a holistic investment plan to optimize the four naval public shipyards located in Portsmouth, Virginia; Kittery, Maine; Puget Sound, Washington, and Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

Prior to his current assignment, Mr. Edelson was the Deputy Assistant Administrator for Design and Construction at the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration. He oversaw a portfolio of 31 projects worth $36 billion recapitalizing the nation’s nuclear security enterprise at sites. Mr. Edelson was responsible for project management policy, acquisition, and execution performance of capital construction and major item of equipment projects.

Previously, he served as the Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC) Assistant Commander for Public Works. From 2017 to 2019 he commanded NAVFAC Southwest and served as the Navy Regional Engineer. Mr. Edelson served on active duty for 30 years in the U. S. Navy Civil Engineer Corps. His tours included a variety of command, operational, and staff positions in combat, contingency response, contracting, construction and facilities management. He has received numerous awards throughout his military career including the Legion of Merit (four awards).

Mr. Edelson has a Bachelor of Science Degree in civil engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He earned a Master of Science degree in civil engineering from Stanford University and is a graduate of the Marine Corps Command and Staff College and the Duke University Advanced Management Program. He is a registered Professional Engineer (civil) in Virginia.

A program executive officer, or PEO, is one of a few key individuals in the Department of Defense acquisition process.  A program executive officer may be responsible for a specific program (e.g., the Joint Strike Fighter), or for an entire portfolio of similar programs (e.g., the Navy PEO for aircraft carriers).

In September 2021, the Department of the Navy updated the Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program's (SIOP) reporting relationships to ensure disciplined and synchronized execution of the multiple major construction efforts managed within SIOP and designated Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command as the single, responsible executive lead for execution of SIOP and established the Program Executive Office Industrial Infrastructure (PEO II) to oversee Program Management Office 555 (PMO-555) SIOP.  

The Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) and FY 2020 Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act added new reporting requirements. These requirements included a report on the Navy’s implementation plan to revitalize the industrial base, a prioritized list of SIOP projects and a cost estimate for the dry dock support facility concept.

The Navy submitted its first five-year plan to Congress in September 2021, with updates annually consistent with the President's Budget submission. The most recent report was submitted in March 2023 and that plan includes measurable near-term goals; project known costs; specifying how projects will be passed and sequenced with required maintenance, environmental planning timelines; and incorporating lessons learned to control future costs.

Fully executed, SIOP will deliver required dry dock repairs and upgrades to support current and planned future classes of nuclear-powered warships, optimize workflow within the shipyards through significant changes to their physical layout and recapitalize obsolete capital equipment with modern technology that will dramatically increase productivity and safety.  It will also deliver a digital twin of each shipyard, to enable digital modeling for use by each shipyard commander. The Navy remains committed to working with Congress, the Department of Defense leadership, the naval shipyard workforce, potentially impacted communities, regulators, and other stakeholders to determine the best path forward for each shipyard.

Questions & Answers with Mr. Mark K. Edelson, Program Executive Officer, PEO Industrial Infrastructure

What is PEO II’s role in the Navy’s Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program (SIOP)
and how would you define its mission?
 

PEO Industrial Infrastructure (PEO II) is the program executive overseeing SIOP, responsible for the cost, schedule, and performance of the program. In the early stages, my focus is determining the baseline program that fulfills the Navy’s requirements, while building the specific projects (dry docks) that have near term mission need dates. I intend to bring the rigor, discipline, and standardization to SIOP that makes executing a geographically diverse, multibillion-dollar program over decades possible, while creating stakeholder confidence and predictable results for customers (Fleet Commanders and shipyard workers). The PEO will ensure faithful and effective execution of the program mission: recapitalizing the Nation’s four public shipyards to shorten availability duration and improve availability efficiency so that submarine and aircraft carrier maintenance throughput allows the Navy to meet its deployment commitments and warfighting responsiveness.

 
What has been the biggest challenge so far as the newly appointed executive for PEO II?
 

A. Adapting the DoD’s MDAP process for weapons systems to an inherently facilities-based program,
and using the best of both systems rather than the bureaucracy of both.
 
B. Bringing innovation and programmatic thinking to the planning, design, and construction world that has traditionally focused on discrete projects unconnected with each other and reliant on
acquisition strategies that work well for smaller, individual projects but likely not for interconnected
mega-projects.
 
C. Establishing cost and schedule estimates with high confidence when only early planning is complete for work that is highly site dependent and will occur over decades with little opportunity for economies of scale or learning curves.
 
D. Building from scratch the organization, people, processes, and relationships to execute the program.

 
What are your top three priorities for your area of responsibility?
 

A. Creating realistic cost and schedule estimates that the Navy can make informed decisions using.
 
B. Making informed decisions early enough to allow execution of work that will meet mission need dates, while keeping stakeholders informed of the trade-off consequences.
 
C. Executing work in a transparent, repeatable (across space and time) manner to meet mission need dates.

CONTACT US

For more information regarding the Program Executive Office Industrial Infrastructure (PEO II) or Program Management Office 555 (PMO 555) Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program (SIOP), please contact the Congressional and Public Affairs Liaison Office at peoii_pmo555_siop_publicaffairs@us.navy.mil.