The Navy Does Not Know if It Has Too Much Electronic/Electrical Depot Maintenance Capability, Too Little, or the Right Kind

The management of depot maintenance of electronic-electrical items at Navy shipyards, naval air rework facilities, and naval electronic systems engineering centers was reviewed at 18 locations. Equipment is maintained at depots or contractor plants when it needs maintenance which requires more extensive facilities and equipment and more skilled personnel than are available at lower maintenance levels. The objective of depot maintenance is to sustain weapon and end-item systems in a state of operational readiness, consistent with the mission requirements of the operating or tactical elements, and at the least cost.

The Navy's in-house depot maintenance of electronic-electrical equipment costs more than $275 million per year. While it has made broad wartime planning assumptions to identify projected gross operating levels for its industrial complex, the Navy has not determined its mobilization requirements in terms of specific resources needed. This failure to equate projected wartime usage with the need for specific facilities, equipment, and skills has resulted in the development of electronic/electrical capacity far in excess of peacetime requirements. Insufficient information concerning requirements and resources, inadequate long-range planning, and an inclination towards self-sufficiency and autonomy at the installation level have hindered proper depot sizing.

Recommendations

Our recommendations from this work are listed below with a Contact for more information. Status will change from "In process" to "Open," "Closed - implemented," or "Closed - not implemented" based on our follow up work.

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