d o h R e Th s e c c u S to The Rhode to Success
Rhode Island Project Tank Area Manager, Angela Alexander, knows what it means to succeed at NNSY
BY ANNA TAYLOR • NNSY PUBLIC AFFAIRS SPECIALIST USS Rhode Island (SSBN-740) is due to arrive at Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY) in December for its 27-month Engineered Refueling Overhaul (ERO), a major availability during which the submarine will be refueled and upgraded before returning to support the country’s nuclear deterrence strategy. During the months leading up to the its arrival, Service to the Fleet is featuring “The Rhode to Success,” an installment focusing on some of the key project team members for the Rhode Island’s availability. Angela Alexander did not take the easy road to Norfolk Naval Shipyard. Her father was a Shop 26 Work Leader, and although he encouraged her to apply, she resisted. “After
I had my kids, we struggled for a while,” she said. “My dad kept telling me to come into the shipyard, but I decided to try going to college instead, and then I worked at department stores and other odd jobs.” But when NNSY restarted the apprentice program in 1996, Alexander’s dad pushed her again to submit an application, and after two years of waiting, she began work as a shipfitter apprentice. “I came to the shipyard because I wanted to better myself,” she said. “I wanted to learn something new while making a decent living.” Alexander worked hard to earn more responsibility and is now a Structural Group (Code 920) Shop 11 Zone Manager and the
▼ The Team (left to right): Richard "Money in the Banks" Bankston, Michael "Captain America" Sweet, William "Reece Cup" Anderson, Angela "Boss Lady" Alexander, Dreyson "Slick 50" Perkins, and Carlos "The Heavy Hitter" Medina.
PHOTO BY SHAYNE HENSLEY • NNSY PHOTOGRAPHER
8 • SERVICE TO THE FLEET • OCTOBER 2015
Rhode Island project’s Tank Area Manager. "Ms. Alexander has established herself as both a leader and a mentor for all projects and work areas that she has been assigned,” said Timothy Jacks, Code 920 Structural Group Superintendent. “She is a great resource for NNSY's future Tank Area Managers Core Competency Pipeline development and is professional in all her daily communications with project teams, Code 920 staff, and mechanics within her area of responsibility." When Rhode Island arrives in December, Alexander and her team of Shop 11 personnel will be responsible for opening, inspecting, repairing, and closing all of the submarine’s tanks, including the ballast, fuel, and sanitary tanks. For Alexander, learning how to grow from new challenges is one of the best parts of the job. “I also like watching the boat get torn apart and slowly put back together.” You can’t have a project without the people, and Alexander loves meeting new people and working closely with members of her team. “A big lesson for me on the Maryland project was how to treat people,” she said. “Of course you’re only as good as your team, so if I’m not treating my team correctly they won’t be happy or productive, which could impact the schedule. Don’t make assumptions; you have to ask questions.” Alexander’s primary goals for the Rhode Island project are to complete the work with first time quality, to keep up with the schedule, and to get the tanks closed as fast as possible. “Safety is always a priority,” she added. “And the tank workers, they don’t get the recognition they deserve. Tank work has always been the bull work; some may think it’s less important than the so-called high priority jobs, but people need to feel like they belong and the work they do is appreciated.”