Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center (MARMC) Executive Director Dennis Bevington served as a spotlight speaker at the Imagination Theatre during this year's Fleet Maintenance and Modernization Symposium (FMMS) in Hampton, Virginia, Sept. 14.

The American Society of Naval Engineers (ASNE) annually hosts the event, alternating between Hampton Roads and San Diego, bringing together the entire naval ship maintenance and modernization community.

"Each year that MARMC has a chance to participate in the FMMS, it is an opportunity for us to continue to tell our story and give the maintenance community our perspective as a leader in surface ship maintenance, charged with the mission of fixing ships," said Bevington.

Along with setting standards of quality, efficiency, safety, technical compliance, and fiscal responsibility, MARMC also holds a steadfast vision of operating in modern facilities that employ cutting-edge technologies. The symposium is the perfect setting for representation from the private industry, government, and academia to act as a "think tank" in helping to achieve these goals wherever ship repairs are taking place.

"The focus of my discussion was on MARMC's initiatives, priorities and current happenings, which opened a conversation about MARMC's challenges," Bevington said. "These are areas such as critical path management, manning and overseeing out of homeport availabilities, being successful at meeting the new contract strategy, and incorporating new technology into the way we execute our work."

Colanna's Shipyard Business Development Manager Jessica Galassie, a member of ASNE who also served as moderator for the discussion, focused on the importance of building partnerships.

"I have been involved with the Virginia Ship Repair Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) teams as a judge and coach for design projects," said Galassie. "When it comes to MARMC, we can get ASNE involved with supporting your command's efforts to reach out to the local community. We can help support some of the local high school programs and put our brains together with the industries and local governments in the area to find ways to continue to support STEM in the region."

MARMC's New Technology and Innovation Fabrication Lab (Fab Lab) was also on exhibition at the event. A 3-D printer, along with several examples of the Fab Lab's capabilities, were displayed showing off real-world fixes for problems the command has encountered while overseeing ships during maintenance availabilities.

"Our lab is a 2,000 square foot, technical prototyping platform complete with off-the-shelf, industrial-grade fabrication and electronics tools," said MARMC Guided-Missile Destroyer Continuous Maintenance Availability/Deployers Class Team Officer, Lt. Gregory Dejute.

The Fab Lab is a platform for high velocity learning and innovation, as well as a place for Sailors to mentor, develop, and create modern solutions with emerging technologies for ships undergoing maintenance and modernization in the fleet.

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