June 10, 2013
WHAT
NOT TO FLUSH
Story and Photo by MCSA Victoria Ochoa
S
ailors tend to take the little things for granted, such as flushing toilets or running sinks. When those fail to function as they should, the ship’s Hull Maintenance Technicians (HTs) are the first on the scene to fix the problem. “The purpose of an HT is to keep the ship habitable,” said Hull Maintenance Technician 2nd Class Jessie Lindsay. “We make sure that all the piping that leads to the showers and sinks are in good conditions and we make sure that you can use the head or shower whenever you want.” The job of an HT is not an easy one. On any given day the pipe shop may be completely swamped with trouble calls, but somehow the
Vol. 2 Issue 39
HTs who work there always seem to have a smile on their faces. “We’re a thick-skinned group of people,” said Lindsay. “It comes with the job.” “When you have to work with the things we deal with, you tune out the petty argument you might have had earlier in the day and when you get the call that a pipe is clogged you forget about it and get your stuff ready,” said Lindsay. Many of the trouble calls the HTs respond to turn out to be pipes clogged with unusual objects such as dip cans, apple cores, drink shaker balls, urinalysis bottles, cheesecloth, baby wipes and underwear…to name a few. “People accidentally drop that stuff in there and then they don’t take it out, but they don’t realize Continued on page 3
Warfighting First Story by Terrina Weatherspoon, Defense Media Activity - Navy
The Chief of Naval Operations has developed a working group focused on reducing the administrative overhead on commands, allowing Sailors to spend more time and energy on “Warfighting First.” “Our goal is to give back to our warfighters, and includes everyone from the CO to the deckplate leaders, more time to focus on the things they need to do,” said Rear Adm. Herman Shelanski, deputy to the director of Naval Nuclear Propulsion, and director for the working group. “These Sailors need to be mission ready, they need to understand their weapons systems, they need to know how to get their ship underway safely, and they need time to do that.” Instead, feedback from the fleet indicates that Sailors are spending far too much time on administrative tasks, such as duplicative training or competing requirements. CNO is hoping that a review of these requirements with an eye toward restoring balance will allow our force to be more efficient and effective. “We plan to accomplish this task in phases,” said Shelanski. In phase one we plan to really gather information, and look at the broad brush picture of everything out there that can affect us. In phase two we plan to narrow the scope and take a hard look at what we can take care of very quickly. Phase three is about putting that information into action - then repeat. This will be a flywheel where Commanding Officer CAPT Jeff Ruth
we constantly repeat the cycle to continue to find balance.” Within the week the team plans to have a Website up, which will allow Sailors to begin submitting feedback immediately. The hope is that some commands have already identified ways to reduce some of these administrative burdens and will now have access to a broader audience in which to share that information. A survey will also be going out to solicit even more information from commands to find out what they are spending the most time on and get it fixed. “We want amazing, innovative creative young Sailors of any rank to write in to us,” said Shelanski. “Here is an administrative process that I’m spending all my time on and if I had an IPAD and an App, I could save three hours a day.” The hope is that in a couple of weeks, once the team has a full excel spreadsheet of inputs; they can narrow the focus to some of the things that they can handle. Maybe the training piece cause I think that is one that tends to affect a lot of the commands throughout the fleet. “We think there is going to be a flood of information,” said Shelanski. “So putting together that information in a proper manner so we can systematically go through it will be a challenge. But an even bigger challenge is the cultural change that we hope to effect in the future.” For more information, visit Navy.mil.
Executive Officer CDR John Cummings
Editor MC2 (SW) Jason Behnke
Command Master Chief CMDCM Teri McIntyre
Public Affairs Officer LCDR Karin Burzynski
Lead Designer MC3 (SW) George J. Penney III
Nimitz News accepts submissions in writing. All submissions are subject to review and screening. ”Nimitz News” is an authorized publication for the members of the military services and their families. Its content does not necessarily reflect the official views of the U.S. Government, the Department of Defense, the Department of the Navy, or the Marine Corps and does not imply endorsement thereby.
Continued from page 1
that it could damage the pipes,” said Hull Maintenance Technician Fireman Brayton Hougland. “Some of the pipes in the ship are as old as the ship itself, and something as flimsy as a baby wipe could obstruct the flow of water,” said Lindsay. When a trouble call arrives about a toilet that won’t flush the first thing the HTs do is grab a snake and the appropriate personal protective equipment. A snake is a piece of machinery that looks like a spool of wire that is fed into the pipes. The tip of the snake has different shapes and sizes according to the pipe and is used to grab onto whatever is obstructing the pipes. “We call it fishing, and it takes a lot of talent to catch something,” said Hull Maintenance Technician Fireman Apprentice Dennis “Nemo” Nemeth. With the rising temperatures on the ship, proper hydration has been stressed to all hands, and with the increased usage of the heads on board, trouble calls have been steadily rolling into the pipe shop. “We get a lot of trouble calls during the day and we’re always busy,” said Lindsay. “We’ve
never had less than two trouble calls in one day.” HTs work long hours in environments that have disagreeable smells, sights and sounds and occasionally during the process of unclogging the pipes an overflow can happen. When the HTs are called into a head to fix a pipe it involves securing the area for a period of time in case a collection, hold and transfer (CHT) leak happens. “Most of the CHT leaks we’ve dealt with haven’t been pretty,” said Nemeth. “You don’t want that all over your deck, believe me.” If an occurrence happens where CHT touches the deck, there are safety precautions put in place to protect Sailors. “Every time CHT touches the deck we have to have Medical certify it habitable,” said Lindsay. According to Hull Maintenance Technician Fireman Derrik Purdy, Sailors may stop flushing things down the toilet on board if they know how much work the HTs do everyday. Keeping the ship’s pipes in working order helps keep the deployment running smoothly and provides small comforts that every Sailor can enjoy.
Breath of LIFE Story and Photos by MC3 Derek Volland
T
he Safety Office on board the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) is holding fit tests to certify Sailors with the 3M Respirator. The need for respirators comes from the hazardous fumes that are released from paint and from the dust and particulates that are released into the air when using a needle gun or grinding an object. “The respirators need to be properly fitted to the Sailor that’s going to be using it,” said Information Systems Technician 2nd Class Benjamin Anderson, a member of Nimitz’ safety team. Sailors needing a fit test can pick up the form from the Safety Office. It must be signed by their division officer and by medical. “It’s not hard to get a fit test,” said Boatswain’s Mate 2nd Class Christopher Pettit. “We have time set aside for them at 10 o’clock everyday and at 1 o’clock for the night shifts.” The fit test is straight forward; a minimum group of five Sailors will be subjected to a smoke made of stannic chloride before they are fitted with respirators to ensure a reaction. While the smoke is harmless it will force those exposed to it to cough. Next they are fitted with the masks. Once sealed, the smoke test is administered again to ensure there are no weak points in the seal. Afterward, Sailors are given training on where and when the respirator is needed, as well as of the penalties involved if a respirator is not returned within the scheduled check out time. “Repetition is the key,” said Anderson. “This is
IT2 Benjamin Anderson and CS2 Karlton Gregson demonstrate a 3M respirator fit test.
your respirator and your respirator only, nobody but you is allowed to wear it. Lock it up if you are not wearing it and return it same day.” Fit tests must be renewed once a year as an additional precaution. For more information please contact the Safety Office at J-Dial 6464 or go to 2-123-2-Q.
AROUND THE DECK PLATES What has been your favorite part of deployment?
SN Paul Cociuba “I’ve been able to save a lot of money and balance my budget.”
MM1 Jason Taken “I’ve had time to work on finishing my degree and to learn a new language.”
IT2 Ian Mochow “I’ve been able to pick up nice things to send home to my family while seeing and experiencing things I would never otherwise be able to.” HM2 Nicholas Behel “I appreciated the opportunity to perform community service and experience the cultures of Korea and Thailand.”
QUESTION: State the seven principles of Naval logistics. ANSWER: Responsiveness Simplicity Flexibility Economy Attainability Sustainability Survivability
QUESTION: Define FLOLS. ANSWER: Fresnal Lens Optical Landing System - The visual landing aid normally used by the pilot to bring the aircraft down a glide scope to the deck within the arresting gear cross deck pendant pattern with a safe clearance between the tail hook and the stern of the ship.
Through the Lens
An F/A-18C Hornet lands on the flight deck.
MR2 Justin Persek manufactures a part within the machine shop.
QM3 Maygan Tracy raises a flag.
AMAN Skylar Rubickuehnl performs an engine maintenance check in the jet shop.
Photos By: MC2 (SW) Devin Wray MC3 (SW) Nathan McDonald MC3 Raul Moreno MC3 Christopher Bartlett MC3 Derek W. Volland
PR3 Matthew Sandman installs a Camelbak pouch into a pilot’s survival vest in a paraloft.
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