Naval Undersea Warfare Center, Division Newport, welcomed Assistant Secretary for the Navy for Energy, Installations and Environment Meredith Berger to the Navy on May 5, for tours and a series award presentations.
Berger opened her trip by awarding Division Newport the Chief Of Naval Operations Award for Safety Ashore in the large category, non-industrial. This was the second consecutive win of the warfare center.
Berger stated that it was an honor to be able to present the CNO Award for safety. This award shows that you not only fulfill the mission but also do so in a safe manner. We are grateful for your example and setting the standard.
The fiscal year 2021 award recognizes the quality of innovative programs managed by Division Newports Safety and Occupational Health Branch. This includes compliance to safety and occupational health standards and proactive mishap-prevention efforts.
Dennis Tierney (Infrastructure Division head), accepted the award for the team. He was joined by Camie Graley and Kenneth Hupf, Joseph Johnson and nurse Deborah Jones. Warren VanVelzer is Warren VanVelzer and retired employees Carol Bernier. Branch head, Sue Clarke and Mike Kalwak are also part of the team.
You can find more information about the award here. [link https://www.navsea.navy.mil/Media/News/Article-View/Article/3002515/nuwc-division-newport-wins-chief-of-naval-operations-award-for-safety-ashore/]
Division Newport Commanding Officer Capt. Chad Hennings said. This is a reflection of the great work that you all do.
Two personnel awards were also given out. The first was a Meritorious Civilian Service Award to John DiMaio, a project and design engineer/architect. This is the third highest civilian honorary award bestowed by U.S. Navy.
DiMaio, who was retired in December 2021 after serving as a project and designer engineer, and as Division Newports resident architects for 18 years. His knowledge and pride in ownership were key to the success of many facility renovations.
Second personal award was Sailor of the Quarter honors to Petty Officer 2nd Grade Brody Costantini (submarines), an information systems technician. Costantini was honored for his outstanding performance as a member of the Undersea Warfare Electromagnetic Systems Department’s test team.
Berger expressed his gratitude to all who were awarded the awards. I enjoyed getting to know you all and spending time with you.
Berger had the opportunity to tour several Division Newports facilities which tie into her role of ASN for EIE. She is responsible to provide oversight and policy for the Navy and Marine Corps energy, climate resilience, infrastructure sustainment, restoration, modernization, military construction, acquisition, utilization, and disposal of real estate and facilities; environmental protection and restoration and conservation of natural resources; safety and occupational health.
The tour also included stops at the Unmanned Undersea Vehicle Laboratory and the Submarine Ocean Interface Test Facilities.
Dr. Stephanie Watwood is the marine species technical project manger in Ranges Engineering and Analysis Department. She opened by describing some of Division Newport’s efforts in environmental modeling and monitoring.
This includes monitoring the Navy’s instrumented ranges passively, and developing and implementing methods to understand the impact of Navy activities upon marine species.
Watwood stated, “A lot of our work is fundamental research to understand biology and behavior of animals on ranges.”
This includes monitoring the Navy’s instrumented ranges passively, and developing and implementing methods to understand the impact of Navy activities upon marine species.
Berger said that understanding the dynamic between environmental factors and mission readiness is crucial for the Navy’s success in its mission.
Berger then visited the Advanced Submarine Launcher Facility, and the Three-inch Launcher Test Facility. These submarine-based, land-based testing facilities enable scientists and engineers from Division Newport to test the performance of existing and developing weapons systems on-site.
Torpedoes have been used here since the 1850s. So it has been a complete evolution of the system in Newport, Chris DelMastro of the Undersea Warfare Platforms and Payload Integration Department explained.
DelMastro also led an overview of the UUV Lab, explaining some of its projects. These projects involved both medium-sized UUV technology and long-duration UUV technologies.
DelMastro stated, “We partnered with the best in academia and industry to advance the state-of-the-art in UUVs.” Over the years, the Navy has made many investments and we are the stewards to ensure that the fleet has the capability to transition to those investments.
For more information about ICEX 2022, and to see photos from the event, please read NUWC Division Newports executes Navy’s Arctic strategy through ICEX Support. [link-https://www.navsea.navy.mil/Media/News/SavedNewsModule/Article/2994212/nuwc-division-newport-executes-the-navys-arctic-strategy-through-icex-support/]
The U.S. Navy’s shore command NUWC Division Newport works within the Naval Sea Systems Command. It engineers, builds, and supports America’s combat systems and ships. NUWC Newport is responsible for research, development, testing and evaluation, engineering, fleet support, and fleet support for subs, autonomous underwater system, undersea offensive, defensive weapon systems, and countermeasures related to undersea warfare.
The NUWC Newport is the nation’s oldest warfare center. Its history can be traced back to the Naval Torpedo Station, established on Goat Island in Newport Harbor, in 1869. Chad Hennings is the commander of NUWC Newport. The center has major detachments on West Palm Beach, Florida and Andros Island, Bahamas. It also has test facilities at Seneca Lake, Fishers Island, New York, Leesburg and Dodge Pond, Connecticut.
Join our team! NUWC Division Newport is one of the 20 largest employers on Rhode Island. It employs a diverse workforce that is highly educated, skilled, and highly qualified. We are constantly looking for engineers, scientists, business, finance and other support professionals who want to be at forefront of undersea development and research. You can connect with NUWC Division Newport Recruiting via this site.https://www.navsea.navy.mil/Home/Warfare-Centers/NUWC-Newport/Career-Opportunities/Follow us on LinkedIn @NUWC–Newport or on Facebook @NUWCNewport.
Source: NUWC Newport
