ENSURING QUALITY WEAPONS FOR THE NAVAL WARFIGHTER - A MATERIALS ENGINEER'S PERSPECTIVE

摘要

Defective ordnance not only negates the mission for which the ordnance was intended, but can be a strain on defense budgets, as increased funding is required to assess the nature of the defect and pinpoint how widespread the problem may be. If the weapon defect is severe enough, it may be deemed unworthy for flight, resulting in downtime, lost missions, increased inspection costs, etc. This paper will describe the procurement life cycle utilized for Naval ordnance, which has transformed over the years from "lowest bidder" to "best value". Materials engineering involvement throughout every stage of the procurement process (planning, source selection plan and evaluation, pre-award meetings, post-award meetings, first article testing and quality systems reviews) is crucial in providing the warfighter with the most reliable and highest quality weapons.