Project Number: S2951

Project Title: Insulated Bus Pipe Manufacturing Improvements

Period of Performance: APR23 – APR25

Insulated Bus Pipe (IBP) is seen by the Navy as a facilitating technology for the use of high energy applications for future Naval platforms that will reduce weight, cost, labor, and schedule in construction and maintenance while improving the overall power distribution capability for ships as a viable replacement to cables. When compared to current electrical cables on the DDG-51 class ship, the transition to IBP is estimated to save 20% of installation labor as well as provide significant weight and space savings dependent upon the electrical ratings and the specific shipboard cables being replaced. Weight and space savings can both be in the range of 40% for given applications. Current electrical cables are unable to handle the higher power demands of future warships without installing multiple parallel cables driving up weight, clutter, cost, and installation labor. The ship’s electrical power distribution and specifically high-power applications are being handicapped with the continued use of cables creating a limitation of capability. Shipboard technologies such as high energy weapons and sensors, new apertures and arrays and self-defense systems will benefit from the use of IBP as they draw so much more power than legacy systems.

The objective of this Center for Naval Metalworking project is to develop and demonstrate manufacturing capabilities to improve the production of IBP in a manner that supports the future quantity, quality, performance, and cost requirements of the Navy for the integration of advanced shipboard power distribution systems. Each of these objectives will result in improving the MRL of IBP. This project will investigate the use of improved manufacturing processes and QA inspection methodologies that will enable the ability to move away from the artisan IBP manufacturing process which includes manual hand wrapping of the insulating layers. Improved processes could significantly accelerate production time, improve yield, and reduce the cost of IBP to the Navy and potentially to the commercial industry at large. Readily available and high TRL manufacturing processes will be explored for potential use and integration.

This project will establish an improved manufacturing process for insulated bus pipes. Hepburn and Sons anticipates an EROM savings of $1.1M per FFG-62 for combined EROM savings of $8.8M.

The results of this ManTech project may be implemented in the production of FFG-62. The schedule for implementation activities is dependent on the project results.