ASC keeping subs in the water for longer

Construction work will commence on a new multi-level maintenance support tower (MST) that will transform maintenance undertaken on Collins Class submarines, significantly reducing the time the boats are out of the water.

At a ground breaking ceremony at ASC North (in Osborne, South Australia), hundreds of submarine maintenance workers watched on as the start of construction work was marked.

ASC chief executive officer, Steve Ludlam, said the tower was a significant investment in ASC’s submarine maintenance facility.

“This infrastructure will increase productivity and efficiency, and will be a key enabler in achieving a shorter duration for major submarine maintenance, or full cycle dockings (FCDs),” Ludlam said.

“By reducing the amount of time submarines spend in maintenance, we increase the amount of time they are available to the Royal Australian Navy.”

The 13-metre high tower will span the perimeter of the submarine, and provide permanent access to both the inside and outside of the submarine, enabling vital services to be co-located adjacent to the boat. This will include offices, workshops and stores, to support production and cross-functional teams immediately adjacent to the submarine.

ASC has proactively implemented a transition to a new usage upkeep cycle for the submarines that will see them spend 10 years in service before commencing a 2 year FCD. This is a significant shift from the current practice of 8 years in the water followed by a three year major maintenance period.

HMAS Farncomb will be the first submarine to undergo the new two year FCD, commencing in June 2014.

“The commitment to fund and build the MST is a physical demonstration of ASC delivering improved submarine maintenance and availability to our customer,” Ludlam said.

“As an advanced manufacturing organisation, investment in infrastructure that will create greater efficiency is critical to ensure that we are world class.”

Reducing time that submarines spend in FCDs was identified as one of the key ways to increase boat availability to the Navy in the Study into the Business of Sustaining Australia’s Strategic Collins Class Submarine (often referred to as the Coles Report), released last year by the Federal Government.

ASC is working with its Submarine Enterprise partners – the Defence Materiel Organisation, the Royal Australian Navy and the Department of Finance - to restore Collins Class availability to international benchmark levels by 2017.