Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program Q&A:
An Interview with Capt. Luke Greene, PMO-555, on the Importance of Shipyard Modernization
Story by Michael D. Brayshaw, Norfolk Naval Shipyard
PORTSMOUTH, Va. (Dec. 1, 2023) - 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/.
The Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program (SIOP) mission is to execute the Navy’s once-in-a-century investment to reconfigure, modernize and optimize our four aging naval shipyards into new modern facilities that will serve our Nation into the future.
In September 2021, the Department of the Navy updated SIOP’s 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 the Program Management Office-555 (PMO-555) SIOP.
- The Navy’s four public shipyards – Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY), Portsmouth Naval Shipyard (PNSY), Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PSNS & IMF), and Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PHNS & IMF) – are essential elements of our national defense.
- The Navy's four public shipyards need substantial recapitalization and reconfiguration in order to improve the timely return of ships and submarines to the fleet following maintenance and modernization.
- Completing ship and submarine maintenance availabilities on time and getting them back to the fleet is vital to ensuring the United States maintains its maritime dominance.
- The Navy is investing heavily in shipyard infrastructure. SIOP will construct and recapitalize dry docks, recapitalize and reconfigure infrastructure, and modernize industrial plant equipment.
LUKE B. GREENE
Captain
U.S. Navy Civil Engineer Corps
Program Manager
Program Management Office 555, SIOP
Captain Luke B. Greene hails from Annapolis, Maryland. He is a 1998 graduate of the United States Naval Academy and holds a Master’s Degree in Engineering from the University of Maryland.
Captain Greene began his career as an enlisted Marine in 1992. After a tour with Marine Attack Squadron 211, he attended the Naval Academy Preparatory School. Following graduation from the Naval Academy, he served aboard USS ARLEIGH BURKE (DDG 51) and USS SHAMAL (PC 13).
He lateral transferred to the Civil Engineer Corps in 2002. His Seabee tours include as a Company Commander with Naval Mobile Construction Battalion ONE, Operations Officer with Amphibious Construction Battalion ONE, and Commanding Officer of Naval Mobile Construction Battalion ONE THREE THREE.
Captain Greene also served as a Planner with Public Works Branch, Marine Corps Base Quantico; Construction Manager with Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC) Washington; Flag Aide to the Deputy Chief of Naval Operations, Readiness and Logistics (N4); Service Program Manager, NAVFAC Europe, Africa and Southwest Asia, Rota, Spain; Deputy Force Engineer, U.S. Naval Forces Europe and Africa, Naples, Italy; Public Works Officer, Naval Station Mayport, Florida; Facilities Investment Branch Head in OPNAV N46; and Executive Officer of NAVFAC Washington.
Captain Greene reported to Program Management Office 555 (PMO 555) Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program (SIOP) in July of 2022. He is a qualified Seabee Combat Warfare Specialist and Surface Warfare Officer. He holds a Professional Engineer license (Virginia), Public Works Level III, Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) Contracting Level III, and is a member of the Defense Acquisition Corps. He is also a member of the Society of American Military Engineers.
BROOKS t. fARNSWORTH
Deputy Program Manager
Program Management Office 555, SIOP
Mr. Farnsworth is currently the Deputy Program Manager for the Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program (PMO 555) in PEO II (Industrial Infrastructure). He joined SIOP in March of 2021 as the Acquisition Director and was responsible, in coordination with PEO II and PMO 555, for standing up of SIOP as a Major Defense Acquisition Program (MDAP).
Prior to joining SIOP, he was the Principal Assistant Program Manager (PAPM) for the Expeditionary Sea Base (ESB) Program (ACAT IB) in PEO Ships' Strategic and Theater Sealift Program Office (PMS 385). In this capacity, he was directly responsible for executing the ESB acquisition program managing cost, schedule and performance of this $5.2B program. In his tenure, he successfully delivered ESBs 3, 4 and 5. He has also lead a Government team in the contract award of sole source DD&C contracts for ESBs 4-7 with a negotiated option for ESB 8.
Directly prior to joining PMS 385, Mr. Farnsworth completed a nine month rotation as a DASN Ships Action Officer that involved working with a majority of Navy Shipbuilding and Integrated Warfare Systems programs in support of the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and Acquisition (The Honorable Sean J. Stackley).
From August 2009 to January 2014, Mr. Farnsworth served as the LCAC and LCU PAPM in the PEO Ships Amphibious Warfare Program Office (PMS377). He led his division in the execution of both acquisition and in-service efforts for the LCAC and LCU programs. He ensured that obligation and expenditures were on track, logistics products in place, and test plans executed. He established and maintained efficient and measurable Landing Craft Division processes utilizing an Integrated Data Environment (IDE), that ensured the procedures set in place provided accountability, maintained program knowledge and reduced total life cycle cost. The IDE promoted collaboration, ensured consistency across programs and improved customer relations. He also worked with the Ship to Shore Connector (SSC) Program PAPM to provide LCAC lessons learned and facilitate component testing.
Mr. Farnsworth has worked in various program offices since joining NAVSEA in July of 1999. He completed the NAVSEA Acquisition Intern Program in July 2001 and was then assigned to the PMS 377 Program Office as the LCAC R&D/SEAOPS/FMS Manager. His duties included overseeing all LCAC Program R&D initiatives and providing systems integration guidance as required to ensure the successful transition of these initiatives. He also managed the LCAC Safety, Engineering, and Operations (SEAOPS) Program to ensure consistency in safe operating procedures. He also managed the LCAC International Programs for PMS 377. He followed that assignment for an additional three years working for the LPD 17 Program Office (PMS317) as a Project Engineer. He was responsible for developing the technical evaluation that was used as the Government’s position throughout negotiations for the Dual Prime LPD 17 Life Cycle Engineering and Support (LCE&S) Contract. Mr. Farnsworth managed the negotiation of the technical instructions for that contract performing as the contract COR. After that, Mr. Farnsworth worked two plus years in SEA21, Fleet Technical Branch, as the HM&E Section Supervisor. He led his team in coordinating resolution of emergent HM&E issues aboard all in-service ship classes.
Mr. Farnsworth is a graduate of West Virginia University receiving his Civil Engineering Degree in 1997. He is DAWIA Certified as Advanced in Program Management and has Acquisition Corps membership.
BUILDING THE SHIPYARDS THE NATION NEEDS
The Navy's four public shipyards -- Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY), Portsmouth Naval Shipyard (PNSY), Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PSNS & IMF), and Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PHNS & IMF) -- perform a vital role in national defense by executing maintenance on submarines and aircraft carriers in order to provide combat-ready ships to the fleet
Originally designed and built in the 19th and 20th centuries to build sail- and conventionally-powered ships, the Navy's public shipyards are not efficiently configured to maintain and modernize nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and submarines. With the Navy's needed focus on operations, the aging shipyards have been unable to adequately sustain and optimize their facilities, utilities, dry docks, equipment and information technology infrastructure. These inefficiencies and obsolete facilities result in higher maintenance costs, schedule risks and reliability issues.
To create the shipyards that our nation needs requires making significant investments to modernize dry docks, optimize industrial processes and modernize standard equipment to bring these critical industrial sites to modern standards.
The Navy established the Shipyard Infrastructure Opti
mization Program (SIOP) program office in May 2018. SIOP is a centrally-managed program led by Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC) with support from Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) and Commander, Naval Installations Command (CNIC). NAVSEA is the operating agent and the technical authority for all four shipyards, executing the capital equipment program while NAVFAC provides facilities engineering and construction programs, supports environmental and compliance requirements and retains head-of-contracting-activity authority for facilities and dry dock investments. CNIC is the Navy's shore integrator and directs the Navy's shore environmental program.
The Navy will ensure that the optimization process fully integrates environmental considerations including natural and cultural resources, water and air quality, and more. During the development of individual shipyard plans, the Navy will develop alternatives for assessment under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA). The Navy will work with stakeholders as part of the decision-making process and will conduct all appropriate NEPA, natural resource and NHPA analyses; agency and government-to-government consultations and public engagement and obtain all required permits to ensure a proactive approach to environmental protection.
Q1: In practical terms, why was it necessary to establish the Program Executive Office Industrial Infrastructure (PEO II) over the existing Program Management Office 555 (PMO 555) Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program (SIOP)?
A1: The standup of PEO II ensures that SIOP’s once-in-a-century recapitalization effort has the necessary discipline and synchronization in defining and executing the multiple major construction efforts within the program while maintaining uninterrupted support to the fleet. PEO II was established as a NAVFAC-affiliated PEO. PEO II and the PMO 555 SIOP are implementing agile acquisition methodologies to coordinate the programmatic execution of this complex effort. PEO II also remains integrated with the Naval Sustainment System – Shipyards (NSS-SY) efforts as the lead for the NSS-SY Infrastructure Pillar. NSS-SY is the Navy’s enterprise approach to identify and execute initiatives that improve shipyard operations to increase capacity with more efficient maintenance throughput for nuclear ships and submarines.
Q2: The initial 2018 Report to Congress projected SIOP as a $21-billion, 20-year program. What is today’s estimate?
A2: Numerous information points and learning tell us the early program estimates will be higher than initially projected in 2018. We are much farther along in our planning and designs, but additional items impact the program’s ability provide a full cost estimate at this time. These include:
• Dramatically changed economic conditions – first major COVID-19 impacts affected the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard (PNSY) Dry Dock 1 (DD1) project.
• Continued infrastructure degradation.
• The extent of facility and shop reconfiguration, which result from completion of the Area Development Plans (ADPs) that are currently underway.
• Fidelity in sequencing and interdependency of investments – as a result of master planning efforts associated with the first ADP at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard (PHNS).
Q3: SIOP is primarily focused on dry dock construction at the public shipyards, and optimization is not being given enough of a priority. What is the program doing to prioritize optimization efforts?
A3: Dry docks are critical to conducting maintenance availabilities. The Navy is prioritizing those dry dock efforts that are required to execute planned availabilities. Infrastructure and capital equipment efforts will follow, as they remain integral to SIOP’s overall success in developing 21st Century shipyards for the Navy.
Q4: Is Line of Effort (LOE) 1 prioritized over LOE 2 and 3?
A4: No. The three LOEs are mutually supporting, not mutually exclusive. While LOE 1 started first, it was because LOE 1 is focused on the construction or modernization of dry docks. These projects had a known requirement early on, while LOE 2 comprises the studies, modeling and simulation at the shipyards; first at the facilities level and then at the equipment level to determine the path toward optimization of the shipyard activities. The planning and project development for many of these projects is currently underway; and over time, we will see the majority of the work shift from LOE 1 to LOEs 2 and 3.
Q5: What is SIOP doing to de-conflict ongoing and future projects with maintenance availabilities at the shipyards?
A5: PEO II/PMO 555 SIOP coordinates with Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) and shipyard leaders on a regular basis to ensure projects are sequenced to de-conflict with maintenance availabilities. The program also supports ongoing NAVSEA transformation efforts such as NSS-SY. The program also remains closely aligned to the fleet maintenance scheduling process by attending the annual fleet scheduling conference and also has a program office at each shipyard that engages directly with shipyard leadership and production teams to ensure alignment of construction and maintenance schedules.
Q6: Given the magnitude of the SIOP construction projects, how does this impact the shipyard workers (how does this impact NAVSEA’s workload)?
A6: SIOP works at all echelons to coordinate and integrate the workload of the construction projects with the work taking place within the shipyards to support submarine and aircraft carrier maintenance availabilities.
Q7: How does SIOP improve resiliency and mitigate environmental risks at the shipyards?
A7: All SIOP construction projects will be planned, designed, and constructed in accordance with the Administration’s objectives for climate change, sea level rise, seismic vulnerability, and energy efficiency/resiliency. The majority of the Department of the Navy’s (DoN) existing infrastructure at the four naval shipyards was constructed to outdated codes and is, therefore, at a greater risk to climate change than new buildings that have demonstrated much higher survivability. The investment in America’s four public shipyards enhances the sustainability and resiliency of these major infrastructure facilities, mitigating the effect of adverse environmental conditions such as sea level rise, flooding and severe storm, or seismic events. These improvements will address the disproportionately high and adverse human health, environmental, climate-related and other cumulative impacts on disadvantaged communities. SIOP leverages the on-going DoN mission to improve installation resilience in the face of climate change. These facilities will meet the needs of future shipyard maintenance, while also improving the facilities to reduce the Navy’s impact on the environment and the local community.
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.