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1
Introduction
The United States Navy is the world leader in warship capabilities that
allow the nation to respond to security threats at sea. A key factor in main-
taining naval superiority is a solid science and technology (S&T) founda-
tion supporting innovation in the design, construction, and maintenance
of the Navy’s ships. The Office of Naval Research (ONR) supports the
S&T that will be essential to the fleets of the future.
Naval engineering includes all engineering and sciences as applied in
the design, construction, operation, maintenance, and logistical support
of surface and subsurface ships, craft, and vehicles used by the Navy. The
problems of naval engineering include the architecture and engineering
of the mission, platform, and human systems that make up the ship. Naval
engineering includes the design of weapons and related combat systems;
however, this study’s consideration of these systems was limited to their
integration into and support by the ship itself.
ONR supports basic and applied research in the scientific and techni-
cal fields that sustain innovation in naval engineering. It also supports
educational programs to ensure the availability of new researchers enter-
ing naval engineering–related fields. ONR defined the scope, focus, and
objectives of certain of its naval engineering S&T activities in a 2001 mem-
orandum that designates naval engineering as a national naval responsi-
bility (ONR 2001). ONR at present defines the scope of its National Naval
Responsibility for Naval Engineering (NNR-NE) initiative to include five
technical fields: structural systems; ship design tools; hydromechanics
and hull design; propulsors; and automation, control, and system
integration (J. Pazik, presentation to the committee, April 6, 2010). In
addition, until 2010, the ONR division responsible for NNR-NE man-
aged a program of basic and applied research projects in platform power
15
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16 Naval Engineering in the 21st Century
and energy, which ONR included in tabulations of NNR-NE projects
provided to the committee.
In 2009, ONR asked the National Research Council (NRC) to examine
the state of basic and applied research in the scientific and technical fields
that support naval engineering and to advise ONR on whether activities
under its NNR-NE initiative have been effective in sustaining these fields.
ONR also asked NRC to identify opportunities to enhance innovation,
research, and graduate education in these fields and to identify areas of sci-
entific research that provide opportunities for fundamental advances in
naval ship capabilities. Box 1-1 presents the committee’s task statement.
BOX 1-1
Committee on Naval Engineering in the
21st Century: Statement of Task
This study will evaluate the current state of science and
technology—specifically, basic and early applied research—
activities in naval engineering and closely related disciplines
in the United States in the context of research, education (the
“pipeline” of future naval researchers, graduate and postdoctoral),
and the associated infrastructure. It will assess the robustness of
activity, and, if appropriate, identify potential gaps and shortfalls
in research and educational (graduate and postdoctoral) pro-
grams. As appropriate, the study will provide recommendations
for new opportunities to enhance innovation, research, and grad-
uate educational capabilities in basic and applied research.
Ultimately, the goal of this study is to inform the Office of Naval
Research (ONR) on the status of its efforts, under the National
Naval Responsibility in Naval Engineering (NNR-NE), to ensure
a healthy research and educational enterprise that meets the
future technology needs necessary to advance the Navy’s ability
to provide highly capable and affordable sea platforms.
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Introduction 17
This project will collect, synthesize, and evaluate data regarding
seven (7) key university, government, and industry research
activities in naval engineering: ship structural materials, design
tools, hydromechanics, advanced hull designs, ship propulsion,
ship automation, and systems integration. The data collected will
be evaluated to assess the wholeness of the program and, as appro-
priate, identify any key opportunities for the Navy to make funda-
mental leaps in sea platform capability and affordability. The
study will assess whether these seven disciplines adequately
define the scope of NNR-NE. It will report on the health of the
basic and early applied research, graduate and postgraduate
research “pipeline” and the associated infrastructure necessary
for a long-term, sustainable portfolio that will provide technol-
ogy options for future Navy advanced technology development
programs and affordable sea platforms.
The study will advise on the ability of the NNR-NE’s portfolio of
programs to provide steady, long-term support to the Navy unique
core disciplines of naval engineering. Recommendations will be
provided on the research areas within these disciplines necessary
for the Navy to maintain/advance capabilities and affordability of
future Navy platforms. It will assess the ability of the NNR-NE to
maintain healthy and robust research activities, educational capa-
bilities (graduate and postdoctoral), and the infrastructure that
supports both. The study will comment on advances in naval engi-
neering research and research “pipeline” activity since the initiation
of the NNR-NE. Specifically, it will assess the NNR-NE’s progress
in the ability to: (l) provide and sustain robust research expertise in
the United States working on long-term problems of importance
to the Department of the Navy; (2) ensure that an adequate pipeline
of new researchers, engineers, and faculty continues; and (3) ensure
that ONR can continue to provide superior S&T in naval architec-
ture and marine engineering.
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18 Naval Engineering in the 21st Century
NRC formed the Committee on Naval Engineering in the 21st Cen-
tury to respond to ONR’s request. This report presents the results of the
committee’s investigations and analyses.
This chapter introduces naval engineering as a vital technical disci-
pline and research and development enterprise in support of the Navy’s
overall mission. It provides an overview of ONR’s NNR-NE initiative
and discusses related activities as well as its connection to the larger ship
design, development, and construction industries. The NNR-NE initia-
tive has important connections to two larger endeavors: ONR’s overall
research program and the nation’s overall naval engineering enterprise.
This report will point out these connections and describe how ONR can
use them to enhance its mission and meet its goals.
NATIONAL NAVAL RESPONSIBILITY
FOR NAVAL ENGINEERING
ONR’s mission, as defined in federal law, is to “plan, foster, and encour-
age scientific research in recognition of its paramount importance as
related to the maintenance of future naval power, and the preservation of
national security” and to “manage the Navy’s basic, applied, and advanced
research to foster transition from science and technology to higher levels
of research, development, test, and evaluation” (ONR 2009, 1).
ONR’s Discovery and Invention (D&I) portfolio makes broad invest-
ments in basic and applied research, and within this portfolio, ONR has
identified four areas as NNRs: ocean acoustics, underwater weaponry,
underwater medicine, and naval engineering. These areas were desig-
nated because they are essential to innovation in naval capabilities and
because no organization other than the Navy will continually support
research fulfilling unique Navy needs. ONR is committed to sustaining
research investment in these areas (ONR 2009, 26).
Naval engineering was designated an NNR in a 2001 ONR memoran-
dum that specified the purpose of the designation and the activities that
were to constitute the NNR-NE (Box 1-2). The memorandum was from
F. E. Saalfeld, Executive Director of ONR (the senior civilian manager at
ONR), and addressed to the director of ONR’s Engineering, Materials,
and Physical Sciences Science and Technology Department. ONR was
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BOX 1-2
National Naval Responsibility for
Naval Engineering
The purpose and actions for execution of the constituent activities
of the NNR-NE according to the memorandum “National Naval
Program for Naval Engineering” (ONR 2001) are summarized
below.
Purpose of defining the NNR-NE: The initiative is to position
ONR to take responsibility for
• Sustaining robust research in the United States on long-term
problems of importance to the Navy;
• Continuing an adequate pipeline of new researchers, engi-
neers, and faculty; and
• Continuing to provide superior S&T in naval architecture and
marine engineering.
Execution: The purpose of the NNR-NE is to be achieved by the
following actions:
• ONR is to dedicate the resources necessary for developing
innovative shipbuilding concepts. In particular, resources are
to be provided for
– Investing in seven key S&T areas: ship design tools, ship struc-
tural materials, hydromechanics, advanced hull designs, ship
propulsion, ship automation, and ship integration;
– Conducting major field experiments that integrate tech-
nologies into innovative ship concepts; and
– Investing in infrastructure such as students, facilities, and
equipment.
• ONR is to examine the health of the national S&T community
and, to ensure long-term strength in naval engineering, was to
issue special broad agency announcements for three purposes:
– Developing half of the pipeline of future naval researchers
required to sustain expertise in naval engineering (estimated
as five graduate and five postdoctoral fellowships per year),
(continued on next page)
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20 Naval Engineering in the 21st Century
BOX 1-2 (continued)
National Naval Responsibility for Naval Engineering
– Developing university–industry–laboratory consortia for
S&T in naval engineering, and
– Encouraging industry–university partnerships for career
development of future naval engineers.
[This requirement (Item 4.d in the 2001 memorandum) appears
to be a further specification of the infrastructure investments
that the preceding bullet point (Item 4.a in the memorandum)
calls for.]
• The ONR division responsible for the NNR-NE is to seek the
required resources through ONR’s Investment Balance Review
and other appropriate channels.
• The progress and impact of the efforts supporting NNR-NE
are to be reviewed every 5 years by a panel of experts including
academic, military, and industry representation.
The ONR instruction stating the policy for designating an S&T
initiative as an NNR, issued in 2007 and revised in 2010, also spec-
ifies required activities in NNR initiatives (ONR 2010, 3–4). The
department responsible for an NNR is to
• Formulate thrust areas within the field to provide S&T prod-
ucts that ensure naval superiority,
• Coordinate the NNR with other efforts including ONR Future
Naval Capabilities technology transition initiatives and activ-
ities at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency,
• Augment basic research with experiments focused on promot-
ing applications and balance theoretical with experimental
research,
• Promote knowledge base development and retention through
a military officer fellowship program or an entry-level faculty
support program,
• Report annually on progress of the NNR, and
• Submit the NNR to review by an independent board at least
every 5 years.
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Introduction 21
already engaged in all or nearly all of the specified activities before the
memorandum was issued. Rather than initiating new programs, the
memorandum served as a declaration of policy: assigning the NNR des-
ignation indicated that (a) the listed activities deserve special priority in
planning and budgeting at ONR because the identified S&T fields are
critical to the Navy and no one else will support them and (b) manage-
ment of these activities must be coordinated with the declared policy
objective in mind.
ONR provided the committee with tabulations of the basic and
applied research projects supported by ONR grants or contracts and
of ONR-supported educational projects that made up the NNR-NE
portfolio of activities for the years 2006 to 2009. In these tabulations,
ONR categorized research projects into six scientific and technical areas:
• Automation, control, and system integration;
• Ship design tools;
• Hydromechanics and hull design;
• Platform power and energy;
• Propulsors; and
• Structural systems.
In addition to the research projects categorized into these areas, the ONR
tabulation of the NNR-NE portfolio includes a number of projects cat-
egorized as educational. The educational projects are activities to attract
students and train beginning researchers in the fields related to naval
engineering.
The committee accepted this tabulation as the definition of the ONR
research and educational activities that ONR now includes within the
NNR-NE initiative. The committee understands that the six scientific
and technical areas are the areas that ONR views as constituting the
National Naval Responsibility.
This list of the scientific and technical areas within NNR-NE differs
somewhat from the list of seven scientific and technical areas specified
in the 2001 memorandum creating the NNR-NE (see Box 1-2). It is
the committee’s understanding that the change since 2001 has been
primarily in the titles given to the areas rather than in the scope of the
ONR activities considered to make up the NNR-NE initiative. The most
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22 Naval Engineering in the 21st Century
50
45
40
35
$ Millions
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
2006 2007 2008 2009
FIGURE 1-1 ONR spending for naval engineering basic and applied research
and education, 2006–2009. (SOURCE: Tabulations of NNR-NE project data
provided by ONR to the committee.)
significant change from the 2001 list of areas is the addition of the plat-
form power and energy category. This addition reflects a substantial but
temporary increase in funding in this area, which ONR received after
2001. Presumably, in 2001, projects in power and energy would have
been included in the ship propulsion category. Table 4-1 in Chapter 4
compares the 2001 and present lists of scientific and technical areas.
In 2009, the ONR tabulation lists 232 NNR-NE projects under way;
they received $47.4 million in ONR funding in that year (Figure 1-1).
Most projects are conducted at U.S. universities, with Navy laboratories,
private-sector firms, and foreign research institutions also participating
(Figure 1-2). Power and energy research projects received the largest
share of 2009 funding, followed by projects in hydrodynamics and in
structures (Figure 1-3).
NNR-NE IN THE CONTEXT OF ONR’s
TOTAL RESEARCH PROGRAM
NNR-NE is one element of ONR’s overall research and development
activities supporting naval engineering. Assessment of the initiative must
take into account its relation to the other activities and whether the scope
of the initiative is adequately defined. In addition, evaluating whether
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Introduction 23
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
University Navy Lab Industry Foreign
FIGURE 1-2 Number of active NNR-NE projects by performing sector,
FY 2009. (SOURCE: Tabulations of NNR-NE project data provided by ONR
to the committee.)
Automation, Control, and System Integration
Structural Systems
Ship Design Tools
Education
Propulsors
Hydromechanics
and Hull Design
Power and Energy
FIGURE 1-3 Funds committed for NNR-NE projects by field, FY 2009 (total
outlays = $47.4 million). (SOURCE: Tabulations of NNR-NE project data
provided by ONR to the committee.)
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24 Naval Engineering in the 21st Century
NNR-NE is capable of satisfying the Navy’s needs requires examina-
tion of how the initiative is connected to other elements of the innova-
tion process.
ONR’s research and development portfolio is organized into three
directorates: Research, Innovation, and Transition. This organization
seeks to invest in S&T to meet Navy strategic goals through a series of
stages, from basic research through development of products that pro-
vide new naval capabilities. ONR’s Naval S&T Strategic Plan describes
the D&I research portfolio (the primary activity of the Research Direc-
torate) as follows:
Discovery and Invention (D&I) consists of Basic Research (Budget Activity
(BA) 6.1) and early Applied Research (BA 6.2), and is the seed corn for future
naval technologies and systems. The D&I portfolio, by design has a broad
focus, and programs are selected based on potential naval relevance and tech-
nology opportunity. D&I investments leverage other service, governmental,
department, industry, international and general research community invest-
ments. The D&I portfolio supports sustained funding of the four National
Naval Responsibilities (NNR): Ocean Acoustics, Underwater Weaponry, Naval
Engineering and Undersea Medicine. (ONR 2009, 3)
The Innovation Directorate manages ONR’s Innovative Naval Pro-
totypes portfolio, projects to develop potentially high-value technolo-
gies to a level near the stage of transition to application. The Transition
Directorate manages the Future Naval Capabilities portfolio, projects
to “mature technology into requirements-driven, transition oriented
products” (ONR 2009, 3). These two directorates do not sponsor basic
(Budget Activity 1) research.
ONR research and development projects also are organized into six
departments according to intended areas of application (see Figure 1-4).
NNR-NE is administered by the director of the Ship Systems and Engineer-
ing Research Division within the Sea Warfare and Weapons Department.
Research projects in the NNR-NE are exclusively in the D&I port-
folio, that is, basic research and early applied research. The definitions
that ONR uses for basic and applied research and advanced technology
development are shown in Box 1-3. These definitions are used by the
Department of Defense in budget formulation and in the department’s
budget proposals and justifications addressed to Congress for Research,
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Chief of Naval Research
Director Director
Director
(Discovery and (Innovative (Future Naval
of of
of
Invention) Naval Capabilities)
Innovation Transition
Research
Prototypes)
30 31 32 33 34 35
Expeditionary Command, Control, Ocean Sea Warfare Warfighter Air Warfare
Warfare and Communications, Battlespace and Performance and
Combating Terrorism Computers, Intelligence, Sensing Weapons Weapons
Surveillance, and
Reconnaissance (C4ISR)
FIGURE 1-4 ONR S&T directorate organization. (NNR-NE is managed in the Ship Systems and Engineering Research
Division, one of three divisions of the Sea Warfare and Weapons Department.) (SOURCE: J. Pazik, presentation to the
committee, April 6, 2010.)
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26 Naval Engineering in the 21st Century
BOX 1-3
Department of Defense Research and
Development Budget Activity Definitions
Budget Activity 1, Basic Research: Basic research is systematic
study directed toward greater knowledge or understanding of
the fundamental aspects of phenomena and of observable
facts without specific applications towards processes or prod-
ucts in mind. It includes all scientific study and experimenta-
tion directed toward increasing fundamental knowledge and
understanding in those fields of the physical, engineering,
environmental, and life sciences related to long-term national
security needs. It is farsighted high payoff research that
provides the basis for technological progress. . . .
Budget Activity 2, Applied Research: Applied research is sys-
tematic study to understand the means to meet a recognized
and specific need. It is a systematic expansion and application
of knowledge to develop useful materials, devices, and sys-
tems or methods. It may be oriented, ultimately, toward the
design, development, and improvement of prototypes and
new processes to meet general mission area requirements.
Applied research may translate promising basic research into
solutions for broadly defined military needs, short of system
development. The dominant characteristic is that applied
research is directed toward general military needs with a
view toward developing and evaluating the feasibility and
practicality of proposed solutions and determining their
parameters, exploration efforts and paper studies of alterna-
tive concepts for meeting a mission need. . . .
Budget Activity 3, Advanced Technology Development (ATD):
This budget activity includes development of subsystems
and components and efforts to integrate subsystems and
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Introduction 27
components into system prototypes for field experiments
and/or tests in a simulated environment. ATD includes con-
cept and technology demonstrations of components and sub-
systems or system models. The models may be form, fit and
function prototypes or scaled models that serve the same
demonstration purpose. The results of this type of effort are
proof of technological feasibility and assessment of subsystem
and component operability and producibility rather than the
development of hardware for service use. Projects in this cat-
egory have a direct relevance to identified military needs. . . .
Budget Activities 4, 5, 6, and 7 are Advanced Component Develop-
ment and Prototypes; System Development and Demonstration;
Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation Management Sup-
port; and Operational System Development, respectively.
SOURCE: DOD 2010.
Development, Test, and Evaluation appropriations. In ONR documents,
projects funded as Budget Activity 1 are referred to as basic research,
and projects funded as Budget Activity 2 often are referred to as early
applied research (to distinguish them from Budget Activity 3 and above
projects that might also be characterized as applied research).
Research and development related to naval engineering is conducted
under all three directorates. Basic and applied research relevant to naval
engineering may also be conducted in divisions other than Ship Systems
and Engineering Research (for example, in the Ocean Engineering and
Marine Systems Division and in the Naval Materials Division). The
2010 ONR instruction stating the policy for designating new NNRs
requires that management of each NNR be coordinated with related
Innovative Naval Prototypes and Future Naval Capabilities as well as
with relevant research outside ONR (ONR 2010, 3–4). Coordination
of relevant D&I research with the NNR in all ONR divisions is not
mentioned but is implied.
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28 Naval Engineering in the 21st Century
ONR management seeks to coordinate work in Budget Activities 1, 2,
and 3 by vertically integrating management of related programs at all three
levels to enhance connectivity and thus allow projects at the three levels to
become mutually supporting. The NNR concept is an attempt to establish
direction and long-term goals for a group of related basic and applied
research programs (Gaffney et al. 1999, 13–15). These arrangements are
consistent with the recommendation of the 2005 report of the NRC Com-
mittee on Department of Defense Basic Research that the department
“should view basic research, applied research, and the other phases of
research and development as continuing activities that occur in parallel,
with numerous supporting connections among them” (NRC 2005, 5). The
intent of such arrangements is that through continuing close contact and
interaction among researchers and research managers working on basic
research, applied research, and development projects, basic research will
be guided in directions with long-term relevance and value. Such coor-
dination is useful not only within ONR and the Navy at large but also
with related activities in the entire naval engineering enterprise.
THE NAVAL ENGINEERING ENTERPRISE
IN THE UNITED STATES
By definition, naval engineering is multidisciplinary in scope, of broad
application, and practiced by a diverse community. It includes engineers
engaged in all phases of design, construction, operation, maintenance,
and logistical support of naval ships, craft, and vehicles. The practition-
ers come from various engineering disciplines and have received diverse
formal engineering education backgrounds, but they have a common
understanding of the unique requirements, characteristics, capabilities,
and limitations associated with ships.
The naval engineering enterprise includes all entities that conduct the
business of naval ship systems research, development, design, acquisition,
construction, operation, maintenance, repair, and disposal. The groups that
make up this enterprise in the United States are the Navy commands,
private-sector engineering firms, naval shipbuilding and equipment
manufacturing industries, universities that conduct research and train
engineers and researchers, and private-sector research organizations.
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Introduction 29
Commercial ship operators and shipbuilders, the recreational yacht and
boat industry, and the offshore petroleum industry share technologies
with naval engineering. The larger naval engineering enterprise depends
on ONR to identify and support research and development leading to
improved performance and efficiency. Effective communication between
ONR and all elements of the naval engineering enterprise is essential for
ensuring that ONR meets the needs of the Navy for innovation.
Of the total technical workforce engaged in the larger enterprise, only
a small portion makes up the community conducting the research that
is the focus of this study. Scientists and engineers from many disciplines
contribute to the knowledge base and bring innovative ideas to naval
engineering. The relevant disciplines include aeronautical and aerospace
engineering; biosciences; chemical engineering; chemistry; civil engi-
neering; cognitive, neural, and behavioral science; electrical and com-
puter engineering; information sciences; marine engineering; materials
science and engineering; mathematics; mechanical engineering; naval
architecture; nuclear engineering; ocean engineering; oceanography;
operations research; physics; and industrial and systems engineering.
ONR’s basic and early applied research programs in support of naval
engineering must coordinate the contributions that these disciplines
offer by integrating innovations to enable advances in naval capabilities
and provide solutions to Navy problems. Figure 1-5 shows the variety of
disciplines in which the NNR-NE principal investigators received their
graduate training. This diversity indicates that the challenge facing ONR
in the NNR-NE initiative is to attract researchers from a broad range of
backgrounds to work on a particular set of problems that are critical to
the practice of naval engineering.
In addition to ONR, numerous government and private institutions
participate in the training of naval engineers and naval engineering
researchers and conduct and sponsor basic and applied research and
development in support of naval engineering. The following categories
of engineering and science schools and research institutions contribute
to the naval engineering enterprise:
• Private-sector research and engineering businesses that perform inde-
pendent or government-sponsored research and development;
• Dedicated U.S. government research and engineering entities;
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30
25
20
15
Percent
10
5
0
Mechanical Aeronautical/ Civil Electrical Naval Materials Ocean Physics/ Oceanography Other
Engineering/ Aerospace/ Engineering Engineering Architecture Science Engineering Engineering
Engineering Aerospace and Physics
Mechanics Mechanical
Engineering
FIGURE 1-5 Departments in which principal investigators in ONR 2009 NNR-NE projects earned their graduate degrees.
(SOURCE: Project lists provided to the committee by ONR.)
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Introduction 31
• U.S. universities that have a major program focused on naval engi-
neering and that participate in naval engineering research;
• U.S. universities that typically do not specifically educate for or place
students in the naval engineering enterprise but participate in naval
engineering research programs;
• U.S. universities focused on education for the maritime sector, includ-
ing the United States Naval Academy, the Merchant Marine Academy,
the Coast Guard Academy, and the Naval Postgraduate School; and
• Foreign research institutions.
ONR supports projects conducted by all of these institutions. In FY 2009
ONR funded research, through its NNR-NE initiative, at 51 U.S. univer-
sities, seven Navy and other federal government institutions, 10 private-
sector firms, and 13 foreign research institutions. There is little non-ONR
funded research at universities on the topics that are funded through the
NNR-NE, with the exception of research funded by branches of the Navy.
There is also some limited funding of university research by shipyards,
major ship operators, and classification societies, but this tends to be
more applied research than basic research.
A variety of associated government agencies also participate in the naval
engineering enterprise. The Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA)
Warfare Centers and Naval Research Laboratory are parts of the naval
engineering enterprise that conduct naval engineering–related research.
The NAVSEA Warfare Centers include the Naval Surface Warfare Cen-
ters (NSWC), which has eight locations, and the Naval Undersea Warfare
Center, which has two locations. The Warfare Centers are the Navy’s
principal research, development, test, and evaluation assessment facili-
ties for surface ship and submarine systems and subsystems. Located at
NSWC Carderock is the Center for Innovation in Ship Design (CISD).
Its mission is to “ensure the future capability (People, Tools and Knowl-
edge) of the nation to develop innovative ship designs to effectively
meet defense needs” (NSWC n.d.). CISD is funded by NAVSEA and by
ONR. ONR classifies its CISD contribution as a part of the NNR-NE.
A significant part of the total funding through the NNR-NE supports
projects within these Navy facilities (especially NSWC Carderock), but
this source makes up only a small portion of the total funding of these
institutions.
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32 Naval Engineering in the 21st Century
Department of Defense research institutions other than the Navy con-
duct activities relevant to the objectives of NNR-NE. For example, the
Department of Defense funds the Computational Research and Engineer-
ing Acquisition Tools and Environments (CREATE) initiative, a 12-year,
$360 million program. CREATE is an applied research and development
initiative; its purpose is to develop and deploy computational engineer-
ing tools for the design of aircraft, ships, and radio-frequency antennas.
The National Science Foundation funds basic and applied research in
related fields, including fluid dynamics; structural materials; systems engi-
neering, design, and control; and energy and power systems.
Finally, private maritime industries in the United States devote some
limited resources to research and development, but for the most part
research related to NNR-NE in the maritime industries applicable to
Navy ships is funded by the Navy. One example is the National Shipbuild-
ing Research Program (NSRP), which is a collaboration of 11 U.S. ship-
yards working with government, industry, and academia. NSRP’s mission
is to manage national shipbuilding and ship repair research and develop-
ment funding and focus it on technologies that will reduce the cost of war-
ships to the U.S. Navy and other national security customers by leveraging
commercial practices and improving the efficiency of the U.S. industry.
NSRP also provides a collaborative forum to improve business and acqui-
sition processes. NSRP is sponsored by NAVSEA.
There are examples of industry-led innovations that have served as a
route to discovery and invention and subsequently application. In one case,
Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding’s Gulf Coast Operations led an initia-
tive to bring composites to naval shipbuilding. The company supported
initial research and development activities that eventually resulted in part-
nering with the U.S. Navy on large composite structures. These innovative
designs were subsequently installed as a technology demonstration on the
USS Arthur W. Radford (DD 968) and as a classwide implementation on
the LPD 17 and DDG 1000 fleets (Hackett 2010).
In another example, General Dynamics National Steel and Shipbuilding
Company (NASSCO) developed a shipbuilding strategy based on licensing
proven designs to reduce cost and risk, improve productivity through tech-
nology transfer, and leverage purchasing power with large shipyards. This
strategy led to a partnership between NASSCO and Daewoo Shipbuilding
and Marine Engineering. The partnership is proposing to use the T-AKE
dry cargo and ammunition ship as a parent hull for a variety of U.S. Navy
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Introduction 33
needs, including fleet oiler, joint command and control ship, and hospital
ship. In this case study, the innovation is not the product but rather the
method (B. J. Carter, presentation to the committee, Jan. 13, 2010).
While there is some naval engineering research by the classification
societies, it is primarily to support the development of classification rules
and construction standards for commercial ships and other marine struc-
tures. Other research supported by the maritime industries in the United
States has little tangible connection to the naval engineering S&T programs
of ONR.
In summary, the ONR NNR-NE initiative must be evaluated within
the larger context of the nation’s naval engineering enterprise and the
ONR’s total research effort so that proper emphasis is given to the role of
research and development in shaping the naval fleets of the future. The
committee’s investigations and study results have recognized this and are
intended to assist ONR in maintaining a healthy and productive research
endeavor to meet mission goals.
REPORT STRUCTURE
Chapter 2 addresses research needs and opportunities in naval engineer-
ing. Chapter 3 describes how ONR functions to define goals, determine
research agendas, select researchers, measure outcomes of its activities,
foster technology transitions, and maintain connections with the wider
community in naval engineering. The chapter also identifies alternative
models for operating practices. Chapter 4 presents the committee’s assess-
ments, based on the analyses in preceding chapters, of the current state
of health of the S&T fields that support naval engineering and the contri-
bution of the NNR-NE in sustaining these fields. Chapter 5 summarizes
the committee’s conclusions and presents recommendations on how
ONR can ensure the continued flow of innovations that allow advances
in the capabilities of Navy ships.
REFERENCES
Abbreviations
DOD Department of Defense
NRC National Research Council
NSWC Naval Surface Warfare Center, Carderock Division
ONR Office of Naval Research
OCR for page 34
34 Naval Engineering in the 21st Century
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ment Point of View: How ONR Handles Department of the Navy’s Portfolio. Public
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