The Dreadnought Class Submarine Programme
Dreadnought Submarine profile
sewage. And we then put this whole system in the sea, under pressure, for months at a time and provide it with the capability to navigate in this hostile environment. It is this unique blend of requirements that demand a huge range of unique talents in engineering specialisms across the range; in manufacturing and construction; and in the highest end of programme management in the UK today.
The Dreadnought programme received a fair amount of press in October last year when the start of production was announced by the Secretary of State for Defence, Sir Michael Fallon in a formal 'Cut Steel' event in Barrow‐in‐Furness, Cumbria. This wasn't however, the start of the Dreadnought programme, which has existed under the name 'Successor' (as in 'Successor to the Vanguard Class') since the start of the concept design phase in 2007. Since that time, the design has been evolving and maturing under the leadership of the collaborative team comprising the MOD, BAE Systems, Rolls‐Royce and Babcock. This integrated team was created to ensure the coherent development of the Submarine itself (BAE Systems‐led) and the nuclear reactor (Rolls‐ Royce led) whilst ensuring that lessons from in‐service submarines were fed back into the design under a programme of 'design for support' (Babcock‐led). Also significant is the input from the USA. Under a treaty between the two nations which has been in place since 1963 and has supported the Resolution and Vanguard classes of submarine, the US Navy, through their contractor, General Dynamics Electric Boat, provide the design and key components for the Common Missile Compartment, 'common' because it will also feature in the US submarine that will replace the existing Ohio class, the recently named Columbia class.
New Construction Hall in Barrow
In parallel to the developing design, significant effort and investment was made to capitalise on the learning from the Astute class programme and on the sharing of best practice from our colleagues in the US. This includes a large investment in production engineering from the early stages of design – a programme known as 'Design for Build and Test'. This entailed a significant involvement of those who build the submarine in the design process, to ensure that the design is ultimately easier to build.
There has also been a significant investment in new facilities both at Rolls‐Royce in Derby and at BAE Systems in Barrow‐in‐Furness to provide the capacity and capability required to deliver the programme. This includes a key building in Barrow known as the Central Yard Facility which will open later this year and will deliver major parts of the submarine build and a new £25m training facility to manage the large numbers of apprentices joining the submarine enterprise to meet the needs of the programme.
In addition to the work underway in BAE Systems, Rolls‐Royce and Babcock, there is extensive engagement with the broader defence supply chain and given the sensitive nature of much of the submarine technology, over 90% of this supply chain is based in the UK. In fact, the delivery of Dreadnought truly is a national endeavour with substantial input from companies from Scotland to the South West.
William Blamey Managing Director, BAE Systems Submarines
Members of the Society of Maritime Industries (SMI) 22 Society of Maritime Industries Annual Review 2017
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