Vanguard Magazine

HMCS Harry DeWolf crew members greet Canadian Rangers and members of the 5th Canadian Division in Bonavista, N.L., on November 19, 2020. Photo: DND. Sailor 1st Class (S1) Smith, Petty Officer 2nd Class Hamilton and S1 Pelletier conduct an emergency steering drill aboard HMCS Harry DeWolf on November 13. Photo: DND. www.vanguardcanada.com FEBRUARY/MARCH 2021 23 mine whether it should be removed from the requirement set. Due to the length of time it takes to design and build a ship, items procured ahead of time are sometimes not the most current. This may be overcome through meeting requirements that allow for soft- ware and hardware upgrades, obsolescence management or new capability insertions through ship refits and work periods. Q Given the working procurement relationship between the Navy and ADM (Mat), can you give an illustrative example of some of the decisions you wrestle with in helping ADM (Mat) and prime contractors deliver the right ship on time? Early on we work closely with the PMO to take the RCN requirements and make them into technical requirements. We sup- port the PMO in various ways. Require- ments are not taken on their own as a ship is a system of systems and as such the re- quirements are intertwined. Thus, where a requirement may not be fully met, another may compensate it to meet the overall ca- pability needed. Industry and the PMO look to the RCN team to understand how a requirement may be delivered differently through this system of systems approach, and we work together to determine the best way to do so. Another example is the sea trials for HMCS Harry DeWolf. The shipbuilder worked with the PMO and the RCN to find opportunities to allow both ADM (Mat) and RCN personnel to sail and see the ship at sea. It helped not only with initial train- ing on a new platform, but also the build- ing of crew confidence to operate an en- tirely new platform with some systems they had never used before. This was all parties working together for a common goal. It was through readiness review conferences with all stakeholders that ADM (Mat) and the RCN were able to make well-informed decisions regarding Canada's readiness to accept the ship from Irving Shipbuilding Inc. This entailed holding Readiness Re- view Conferences with the various Depart- ment of National Defence stakeholders that reviewed topics such as infrastructure, personnel and training to ensure the RCN was fully ready for the transition of the ship from the shipyard to the dockyard. These conferences ensured everyone was on task and allowed for the program as a whole not to miss a beat. interView

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