Trafalgar class submarine availability is to be optimised and
maintenance costs reduced, under a new 'contracting for
availability' (CfA) approach to T-class submarine in-service
support introduced by a joint MoD and Babcock team, incorporated
into the Warship Support Modernisation Initiative (WSMI) agreement
at Devonport.
The requirement to improve nuclear-powered attack submarine
(SSN) availability and certainty of delivery from maintenance
periods in order to meet the Royal Navy's operational demands was
jointly identified by Babcock and the MoD, along with a need to
reduce maintenance costs to improve affordability. This was
highlighted as part of the re-letting of the WSMI agreement for a
further four years at Devonport (from April 2009), and a joint
project team was established to develop and manage a programme to
achieve this.
Contracting for Availability is an output-focused commercial
arrangement that incentivises improvement in asset availability,
where availability is defined as an asset (in this case T-class
submarines) fulfilling its programmed requirement. Its introduction
for T-class submarine support is a first for the submarine
community (where the approach has further aligned the availability
measurement throughout the submarine community, providing a joint
common goal), following successful application in other areas of
defence.
A key starting point in establishing a contracting for
availability approach for T-class submarines has been to quantify
and analyse the availability of the submarines today, and to
identify and fully understand the factors that impact on delivery
of Fleet Time Support maintenance periods.
With availability requirements agreed, and recognised
measurement methods established, this then allows the identified
factors currently hindering delivery (from emergent defects or
scope changes to manpower availability, among others) to be
addressed via a joint improvement programme. Areas identified for
improvement to date include planning, monitoring and control, cost
performance, risk management and facility management interfaces.
Performance measurements, tools, models and reporting structures
have been developed to support the programme. This work complements
the continual improvement of safety.
A further key element has been to move to a positive
performance-based commercial arrangement that is centred on
incentivising and rewarding improved delivery and availability, and
encourages partnering behaviours and relationship development.
The new contracting for availability arrangement is now in place
and 'live', with performance being actively monitored by the joint
project team based on collated data, for further refinement and
on-going continuous improvement as jointly agreed.
Commenting on the new approach, Babcock Operations Director
Devonport Gavin Leckie said: "Improved availability at sea to meet
Fleet's requirements is all the more vital as the flotilla size
reduces, and as the Trafalgar class submarines get older innovative
approaches are needed to deliver that. Moreover, the required
outputs are needed at lower cost, demanding maximum efficiency
within affordability constraints. Ultimately the goal of CfA is to
deliver greater assurance of T-class submarine availability, at
reduced cost, on a sustainable basis, via a performance-driven and
incentivised relationship that makes best use of Babcock and MoD
resources. Successful implementation of a contracting for
availability arrangement is also a valuable test bed for future
contracting arrangements under a broader Flotilla Output Management
(FOM) approach."
Cdre Ian Jess, Naval Base Commander Devonport, commented: "This
is a significant step in moving from contracting for submarine
engineering load towards a commercial mechanism that is focused on
the MoD's submarine output requirements: the delivery of safe,
capable and available submarines to meet the Fleet programme."