Sailors aboard the aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) are preparing to enter Newport News Shipbuilding, a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries, next year to begin the ship's midlife Refueling Complex Overhaul (RCOH).

One of the larger-scale operations the crew members will take part in is the Shipboard Coordinated Offload and Outfitting Plan (SCOOP), which involves unloading the ship's equipment, furniture and tools not welded, wired or piped into place.

"The official SCOOP process will start Feb. 28, but we have already started the process of de-trashing the ship, removal of the F/A-18 Hornet shell and aviation support equipment," said Lt. Cmdr. Michael Kidd, the ship's SCOOP coordinator. "Over the next two months, collection of several items such as float coats and life preservers will occur to ensure we have good accountability."

Everything on the ship must be accounted for and inventoried to be placed in storage or transferred to the floating accommodation facility (FAF) before the ship's scheduled 40-month RCOH period.

"Planning for SCOOP has been underway for over a year," said Kidd.

All supplies and items on the ship will be inventoried and logged, before being moved to a warehouse for storage.

"Each item will receive a bar code, during the December underway, by ship's force, then departments will log and scan every item into a database during the SCOOP evolution," said Lt. Dan Simonds, Assistant SCOOP Coordinator. "Teams are already receiving training on the computer system that is used for the database entry, and additional sessions will be provided for the entire crew in early February. The training, itself, will take several hours, and we expect most people to be proficient on the system within the first few days of using it."

After all supplies and items have been accounted for and logged into the database, teams of contractors will transport the materials from the hangar bays to General Electric's warehouse, located in Suffolk. Once the materials have arrived in Suffolk, a group of GW Sailors will work at the warehouse to assist the contractors in moving the items.

The departmental offload schedule is based on zones of the ship. Most departments' offloads are scheduled over a 51-working-day period.

"The way the offload schedule is set up ensures departments have the manning to focus on a smaller number of spaces on any given day," said Simonds. "The zones are aligned with the master RCOH schedule to provide accessibility to spaces to conduct smart-start work."

Smart Start is an RCOH preparation phase before the ship moves to the shipyard in Newport News.
"This allows a more efficient start and enables a number of preparatory items to be executed at a much lower cost to the Navy," said Lt. Cmdr. Jeremy Smith, the ship's maintenance manager. "Our Smart Start will accomplish some critical plant repairs and SCOOP."

The SCOOP process is currently scheduled to take place at Pier 11 aboard Naval Station Norfolk.

"This is an extremely demanding evolution. Imagine trying to pack your house, put everything in a pod, and then have another group of people unpack it in 4 years and put everything back where it should be," said Kidd. "That is what we are doing, but on a far larger scale. Accountability of property and safety of personnel will be paramount."

SCOOP will be the largest evolution conducted by GW before it enters RCOH, and despite the immensity of the process, Kidd said that preparation, attention to detail and the diverse experiences of the military and civilian team will ensure a successful SCOOP evolution.

"Preparation is exceptionally important. Getting trash and personal items off the ship will make the pack out far smoother," said Simonds. "Care in packing and inventorying items will be essential as we get into the hustle and bustle of the SCOOP. Attention to detail will be of utmost importance when inventorying items. We are the ones setting GW up for success or failure in four years based on how well we execute now."

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