Proceedings of the REAPS Technical Symposium. Paper No 3: Navy Manufacturing Technology Program.

The Integrated Programs for Aerospace-Vehicle Design (IPAD) National Symposium was held September 17-19, 1980 in Denver, Colorado and was attended by some 420 people from the aerospace, computer, automotive and allied industries and agencies. The Symposium was sponsored by NASA and the IPAD Industry Technical Advisory Board. In lieu of a summary of the presentations given at that conference, reproduced herein is the official IPAD Executive Summary.

Proceedings of the REAPS Technical Symposium. Paper No. 12: Network Scheduling of Shipyard Production, Engineering, and Material Procurement.

The planning environment in American shipyards has undergone a change[of technique and attitude with the upswing in use of computers. Traditional planning mechanisms have given way to PERT networks and sophisticated data collection and reporting computer systems. This transition has not been as successful as was intended as evidenced by the planning and scheduling problems faced by many of these computerized yards. Data processing was moved from the basic accounting arena into operations research and massive production-oriented systems which has diluted the planning effort. This is caused by planners which have not evolved from production, a planning attitude that the computer can solve all problems. and management's inability to recognize the shortcomings of computer software. Technology is available to assist the shipyard with total planning and complete ship's plans and schedules. However planning. in itself, must be adapted to use this computer technology and not be driven by it.

A growing amount of attention has been turned to Group Technology which deals with the area of batch-type manufacturing for those who are engaged with small lot sizes and a variety of products. Development and implementation of integrated computer aided manufacturing (ICAM) will lead to rapid changes in U.S. manufacturing industry. It has been recognized that Group Technology is an essential element of the foundation for the successful development and implementation of ICAM through the application of the part-family concept.

The Ship Production Committee is made up of representatives from approximately twenty-four shipbuilders plus the American Bureau of Shipping, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Navy Research and Development and, of course, the Maritime Administration whose budget is the backbone of this vital project. We poll the industries to see who would use the results of a research project. The more yards that would use, the higher the priority; the higher the potential saving, the higher the priority. We then list the projects in priority sequence, see how far the budget reaches for the year, and submit those to the Maritime Administration for approval. When approved and a shipyard agrees to act as sponsor, a suggested contract is worked out between the sponsor shipyard and the Maritime Administration. The most valuable result of this program is that the shipyards are talking to each other at the working level for the betterment of our industry.