CRANE, Ind. – Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division (NSWC Crane) is celebrating sixty years of support to the U.S. Navy’s Strategic Systems Programs (SSP). NSWC Crane’s Flight Systems Division provides component engineering, failure and material analysis, and radiation sciences to SSP.
SSP is responsible for the development, production, and life cycle support of the U.S. Navy's Fleet Ballistic Missile (FBM) Strategic Weapons System (SWS) – the nation’s primary strategic deterrent.
Brian Stuffle, a Division Manager at NSWC Crane, says that Crane’s support of SSP is critical to national defense.
“NSWC Crane has a longstanding history of ensuring the microelectronic components are trusted and assured for SSP,” says Stuffle. “SSP requires its microelectronics to function in rigorous environments, and our expert workforce has ensured its electronic components work when and where they need to.”
Stuffle says over the years, NSWC Crane has furthered its expertise and capability in microelectronics.
“The Flight Systems Division has three core competency areas: component engineering, failure and material analysis, and radiation sciences,” says Stuffle. “Because of our knowledge in these areas supporting SSP, we have expanded our expertise to include anti-tamper technology protection, obsolescence risk management, and supply chain illumination and trusted microelectronics. We not only provide this support to SSP, but we increased our capacity to provide for customers across the Department of Defense (DoD).”
Microelectronics are crucial to the function of automobiles and pacemakers, and as well as systems integrated throughout the DoD. Stuffle says that part of NSWC Crane’s expertise includes understanding potential threats to the microelectronic supply chain.
“Counterfeit electronics can impact objects we use every day, but also pose a threat to the DoD,” says Stuffle. “Through our extensive understanding of these parts, we are able to assist in identifying threats and assessing failures. Once we figure out the root cause of a threat, we provide solutions. We have been able to assist the DoD and law enforcement in identifying distributors in counterfeit microelectronics that infiltrate the supply chain.”
Each year, NSWC Crane hosts the Microelectronics Integrity Meeting (MIM), which is a conference where industry, academia, and the DoD collide to discuss trusted microelectronics.
“We host the MIM in part because NSWC Crane is recognized across the country as a leader in trusted microelectronics,” says Stuffle. “Our sixty-year history of supporting SSP has enabled us to provide broader support in microelectronics at the national level.”
NSWC Crane is a naval laboratory and a field activity of Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) with mission 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