VIRGINIA Class (VACL) Spares and Repair parts

Description — VIRGINIA Class (VACL) Spares and Repair Parts source

The VIRGINIA Class (VACL) Spares and Repair Parts program was a new program line started in FY 2024 specifically added to address ongoing issues with execution of VIRGINIA Class (VACL) Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) maintenance availabilities. Specifically, lack of material is significantly impacting the ability of shipyards to be able to start work on time, conduct required repairs, and complete work in a timely and efficient manner. This funding supports procuring materials for VACL CNO availabilities (Extended Dry-Dock Selected Restricted Availability (EDSRA) and Depot Maintenance Period (DMP)) for all VIRGINIA Class submarines. Shipyard material ordering process requires both a job developed by Ship Availability Planning and Engineering Center (SHAPEC) and funding (via Fleet) prior to submitting a requisition. Only once both are present does the material procurement process (NAVSUP WSS and DLA) for most material begin. Maintenance Standards identify both mandatory and contingent material required to support a job. Previous NAVSEA policy was to wait to order contingent materials until the material requirements are identified after Start of Avail (SA00) when open and inspects are conducted. As a result, this caused ~40-50% of material for VACL CNO availabilities to be ordered after the start of an availability (SA00), and with industrial base lead times much longer than in the past (a large portion of material requiring 6-30 month lead times), this results in material not being available to support required work. Historically, this has not been an issue on 688 Class due to a mature class with demand history, sufficient sustainment planning, and material on the shelf. In May 2022, PEO SSN directed a critique be held to determine the root causes for why material was not supporting VACL maintenance needs. Some of the root causes identified included material funding and procurement processes do not support execution requirements and industrial base has inadequate capacity to support short timelines and all requirements in a timely manner. A key recommendation was to align funding to optimize supply chain capability and material availability. PEO SSN also had the Center for Naval Analysis (CNA) use sophisticated modeling to determine that late material was impacting VACL availabilities by approximately 100 days on average, which is a direct impact on schedule delays and increased sustainment costs. Using all the data and information, PEO SSN developed the VACL Material Strategy to improve material availability. VACL OPN funding directly supports the VACL Material Strategy by providing adequate and timely funding to optimize supply chain capability and material availability, thereby improving maintenance availability execution to enable submarines to operate or deploy, increasing submarine force operational availability at a time when strategic requirements, force protection and intelligence gathering capabilities are in high demand by combatant commanders. To determine the high-fidelity material requirements, PEO SSN is leveraging the new iForecast software tool. The iForecast Material Tool uses actual usage and future requirements to forecast material needed to optimize material ordering. It provides a 3-5 year forecast with an updated, aligned annual process in place. Additionally, the PEO SSN team developed a Bill of Material (BOM) process to augment the iForecast-Material tool for VACL. The BOM documents exactly what material was used from past and current availabilities to annually inform/update iForecast to account for contingent material and actual usage. The BOM is made up of Corporate Component Repair Program, Advanced Equipment Repair Program, Other Depot Level Repairables, and other material used in an availability. The BOMs were developed for the different block/availability type combinations. The combination of the iForecast tool and BOM process provide the requirements to support improving phasing of funding to procure materials (vice waiting until after SA00), reducing the impact of procurement lead time. Overall, the material funding and procurement processes are directly tied to maintaining the readiness of the VACL submarines and meeting operational needs. Funding provides for material for VACL availabilities in support of the VACL Material Strategy. This will improve the depth of stock and allow proactive scheduling of long lead time material, thereby reducing negative operational availability (Ao) for the fleet.