The NEEC Blog

Why Minehunting Reminds Me of Naval Engineering

Feb 6

Written by:
2/6/2012 5:40 PM  RssIcon

LCS Mission ModulesThe Navy recently announced a major milestone as it completed the first phase of reliability testing for its Remote Minehunting System (RMS).  The RMS is an integral part of Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) mine countermeasures mission package which will go into another phase of reliability testing sometime in 2012. 

There is no question that mines can wreak havoc on naval vessels and the Navy has been working hard to develop autonomous technology for detecting and identifying these threats. Autonomous technology reduces the human element in these mundane and taxing tasks. Also, throw in Iran and current threats surrounding the Straits of Hormuz and this task is especially important in littoral and shallow-water zones.

What’s key is that the RMS is one of many LCS “mission modules.” Mission modules are integrated packages of mission-specific equipment that can be swapped in and out of the LCS for different missions such as, Mine Warfare (MIW), Anti-submarine Warfare (ASW) and Surface Warfare (SUW). 

Mission modules are important in several ways, including: 
  1. They create consistency – reducing cost by adding standardization.
  2. They are flexible – allowing the ship to adapt to a variety of threats.
  3. They add life to and extend the ships ability to operate.
Moving forward, incorporating this flexibility in ships is essential. However, as we rely on mission specific modules we need to take a step back and look at these ships from a systems perspective. How do these systems integrate and work in harmony to maximize operational effectiveness? Each module and system has its ramifications on other systems. Modern warships are increasing in complexity and as a result, a total engineering system, including the mission, the hull, and the multitude of engineering within the ship is also changing and needs to be addressed. 

I realize initial testing of LCS and its mission modules was not completely successful but the push for ships that are flexible will only increase. As a result, we need more naval engineers to help build these ships and understand the impacts each mission and system on the vessel. 

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