CRANE, Ind. - Eight employees from Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division (NSWC Crane) received awards from the Program Manager Light Tactical Vehicles (PM-LTV), which is a part of the Program Executive Office Land Systems (PEO-LS) at a ceremony held on last month for their execution of Engineering Change Proposals (ECPs) on Internally Transportable Vehicles (ITVs).
Through part refurbishment, the NSWC Crane ITV team was able to show the (PM-LTV) a savings of $1.2 million over buying new replacement parts for the ITVs. The NSWC Crane strategy involved buying parts individually and assembling them prior to installation, which helped contribute to the significant cost savings.
The PM-LTV program manager and a product manager spoke at the awards ceremony to let NSWC Crane’s ITV team know how much their support meant to the Marine Corps.
“The Crane team has managed to complete a data package, award 28 contracts, and maintain an aggressive schedule to ensure the Marine Corps expeditionary fire support system prime mover remains viable until an ITV replacement can be developed,” said Eugene L. Morin Jr., Product Manager Legacy Light Tactical Vehicles. “Through their hard work and diligence, the NSWC Crane team saved the Marine Corps a considerable amount of money by refurbishment of parts vice replacement.”
The eight NSWC Crane award winners were: Barry Welch (engineer), Danny Jones (task lead), Joe Burkhart (contracting), Travis Sipes (contracting), Andrea Woodruff (task manager), Chris Goddard (ITV model design), Zac Crane (contracting) and Rebecca Lingenfelter (contracting).
This collaboration began when PM-LTV approached NSWC Crane to execute ECPs on its ITVs for both safety-related issues and changes to increase the reliability of the vehicles. Because of its excellent execution of tasks associated with the ITV ECPs, the PM-LTV has reached out to NSWC Crane for support on Utility Task Vehicles (UTVs) as well.
“The teamwork between our people here at NSWC Crane and the Marine Corps has been key in this success,” said Levi Shields, NSWC Crane’s Branch Manager for the Ground Mobility Systems Engineering Branch. “There’s a mutual trust between us and the program office at the Marine Corps that allows us to be successful.”
NSWC Crane is a naval laboratory and a field activity of Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) with focus areas in Expeditionary Warfare, Strategic Missions and Electronic Warfare. The warfare center is responsible for multi-domain, multi- spectral, full life cycle support of technologies and systems enhancing capability to today’s warfighter.