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NNSY NEWS

Tag: Blacksmith

Talking Shop: Celebrating NNSY’s Metal Forger Shop (Shop 11F)
March 14, 2025 — Metal forging is a craft that began between 4,000 – 7,000 B.C. and has been an integral part of human history since. The skill of shaping metal through hammering, heating, and cooling has been used over the centuries to create tools, weapons and intricate works of art. Blacksmiths have played a vital role in shaping civilization, just like the Metal Forging Shop, Shop 11F, consisting of eight metal forgers, has a role to play in supporting Norfolk Naval Shipyard’s (NNSY) mission of repairing, modernizing and inactivating the Navy’s warships and training platforms... MORE

Norfolk Naval Shipyard Metal Forging Shop (Shop 11F) Metal Forger Ian McHorney started his shipyard career in the Shipfitter Shop (Shop 11) approximately 10 years ago. It wasn’t until eight years later that he became a metal forger. “I have always been fascinated with forging. When I had the opportunity to work in Shop 11F, I jumped all over it,” said McHorney. “The job requests are always changing from making a tool one day to inspecting an anchor chain the next. This is what makes the job fun.”