2002 - EB Virginia Class Submarine Program: A Case Study

This must read case study of the Virginia Class Program was written in 2002 by Electric Boat. At the time, the lead ship was 70% completed and on schedule. The case study was written as a possible reference for others in setting up future complex system programs. The case study identifies 3 basic tenets of success underlie processes. tools. and manning levels:

1) Establish detailed plans and schedules early, make decisions as planned, get buy-in from individuals for each piece of the work they must complete. and doggedly manage the detailed tasks to ensure timely completion.

2) Establish cost and schedule procedures that encourage cost reduction and cost reduction approach development, evaluate cost and schedule effects in all decisions, and ingrain cost and schedule performance in the culture through continuous monitoring and reporting systems. This effort applies across all phases of the life of a ship: design, material and equipment acquisition, construction, test and validation. operation, life-cycle maintenance, and eventual disposal.

3) Get the right people from the appropriate organizations involved with the designers in time to provide the designers with the best possible knowledge for cost-effective design.

The study concludes that these points cannot be overemphasized. Aggressive execution of these tenets in VIRGINIA removed excuses for delinquent work and resulted in an atmosphere in which high quality, timely completions and cost-effective actions are the norm.

This document is unclassified Distribution Statement "A" and was approved for public release by NAVSEA Letter 5720/00DT, 2001-0722 dated 2/15/2002.

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