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NEWS | Sept. 25, 2018

PSNS & IMF honored with Defense maintenance award

By PSNS & IMF Public Affairs

Puget Sound Naval Shipyard & Intermediate Maintenance Facility has been selected for the 2018 Robert T. Mason Award for Depot Maintenance Excellence, the Department of Defense announced recently.  

Annually, the Secretary of Defense Maintenance Awards Program recognizes DoD’s most outstanding military maintenance units. The award will be presented on Dec. 18, 2018, at the Secretary of Defense Maintenance Awards banquet and ceremony held in conjunction with the 2018 DoD Maintenance Symposium in Tampa, Florida.

The award that PSNS & IMF will receive, the depot-level maintenance award, is named in recognition of Robert T. Mason, a former assistant deputy undersecretary of defense for maintenance policy, programs, and resources. According to a Defense Department news release, Mason served as the champion of organic depot maintenance for three decades and was instrumental in transforming DoD organic depot-level operations.

The award recognizes shipyard accomplishments during 2017. Among its more notable achievements, PSNS & IMF completed three scheduled aircraft carrier maintenance availabilities either early or on time, allowing those key assets to be available to the fleet -- supporting deployed operations and exercises. In addition, work completed by PSNS & IMF in 2017 directly supported successful patrols by USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) and USS Nimitz (CVN 68).

Projects in support of the active submarine fleet also received special emphasis in PSNS & IMF’s nomination for the award. Specifically mentioned were support to USS Louisiana (SSBN 743), USS Maine (SSBN 741) and USS Ohio (SSGN 726). And, the inactive submarine recycling program was lauded for innovations that led to a reduction of almost 13,136 man-days in recycling the ex-Baltimore and ex-Phoenix -- a cost avoidance of almost $5 million. 

"Every part of the command's service to the fleet and every person who works here and those who support us played a role in this significant achievement," said Capt. Howard Markle, PSNS & IMF commanding officer. "Our entire team earned this through hard work, commitment, innovation and pride in every corner of our command. I am continually awestruck by their accomplishments and humbled by their day in and day out attainment of maintenance excellence in all they do."

PSNS & IMF employs more than 14,000 Sailors and civilian personnel who accomplish the command's mission to maintain, modernize and retire the U.S. Navy's fleet.