The Master Ordnance Repair Program

As in most complex endeavors, naval warfighting becomes a series of incremental developments interspersed with breakthrough differences in kind. The shift from sail to steam is a case in point. The shift from battle-ship to aircraft carrier is another. Today, we are into a third transition-from local command and control to network-centric warfare (Cebrowski.1998). The United States Navy requires-has always required-industrial support. This support falls into two categories: the manufacturers that design and develop new technologies and those who maintain and repair these technologies. Because of proprietorship, the latter have great difficulty keeping current and hence, capable. Yet, the Navy retains them for a host of economic and political reasons. The problem is how best to help these ship repairers renew their skills. As this problem will not go away, perhaps it is time to review how the Navy handled the private sector in the last major transition: from analog to digital data transmission. The answer can be found in the Master Ordnance Repair Program.