General Membership Meeings

At the January meeting, we welcomed three new members: Cannon Sline Industrial; G.I. Marine, LLC and Munter, MCS. Due to a severe family illness, Congressman Forbes was unable to speak at our meeting. VSRA is grateful Mr. Jim Babcock, Chief Planner for the Future of Hampton Roads, agreed to step in and address the membership. Jim has been the energy and vision of the Hampton Roads Regional Structure Project. An important piece of that study has been regional transportation.

The February General Membership meeting will be held on Tuesday, February 19. Our guest speaker will be RADM DC Curtis, Commander, Naval Surface Forces, Atlantic. Of note, RADM Curtis has recently bee named to relieve VADM Etenyre as Commander, Naval Surface Forces. His change of commander will be held the Friday following our February meeting.

The March General Membership meeting will be held on Tuesday, March 18. Our guest speaker will be Senator Frank Wagner, who will provide his annual update on the Commonwealth’s legislative session.

Contractor Code of Business Ethics and Conduct

By Ron Ritter, Earl Industries

As discussed by Kevin Cosgrove of Hunton & Williams at the last VSRA Contracts Committee meeting, the Federal Government is incorporating a final rule and a new section of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR Subpart 3.10) effective December 24, 2007, concerning business ethics and contractor conduct.

The new rule applies to all contractors doing business with the Federal Government that receive awards worth more than $5 million (option years included) and involving work in excess of 120 days. Contractors meeting these criteria will be required to:

· put in place written codes of business ethics and conduct,

· provide these codes with training to each employee involved in the specific contract,

· establish an internal control system to facilitate timely discovery of improper conduct and ensure corrective measures are promptly carried out, and

· display fraud hotline posters obtained from the office of the inspector general of the contracting agency.

· In addition, prime contractors meeting the criteria are required to “flowdown” the provisions (FAR Clauses 52.203-13 and 52.203-14) to all subcontracts that meet the criteria.

There are a few exceptions to this new rule. Specifically, a small business is exempt from the requirement for a formal training program and internal control system (but not exempt from the requirement to have a written code of business ethics and conduct) providing the business represented itself as a small business prior to award. Also, commercial contracts awarded under FAR Part 12 are exempt from this new requirement as are contracts performed entirely overseas.

Contractors that have been doing business with the Department of Defense may recall that many of these new ethics and contractor conduct guidelines have been incorporated for some time in the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) in Subpart 203.70 – Contractor Standards of Conduct. However, it should be noted that these DFARS guidelines were not mandatory and were not enforced contractually. The new guidelines apply to all Federal contracts meeting the thresholds, are mandatory, and are enforced contractually. Thus, should a violation occur and the contractor has not implemented the new guidelines, contractual penalties could be enforced up to and including possible suspension and/or debarment for non-compliance.

As noted above, these new rules go into effect for all contracts meeting the thresholds awarded after December 24, 2007. Contractors that meet the requirements for coverage under these contracts must prepare a code of business ethics within 30 days of award and an internal controls system within 90 days of award unless granted an extension by the Contracting Officer. The new rule does not provide guidelines on the parameters required for the granting of an extension of time for implementation.

So, why has the Government decided it is necessary to make the above requirements mandatory instead of just extending the existing voluntary DFARS guidance to all Federal procurement actions? Citing issues such as “seeing contractor fraud and abuse increase” and specific events such as the convictions of former Air Force official Darleen Druyun, former Representative Duke Cunningham, former Office of Federal Procurement Policy head David Safarian, and lobbyist Jack Abramoff for procurement-related misconduct, the FAR councils said the “discretionary rule in the DFARS is no longer strong enough in view of the trend to increase contractor compliance with ethical rules of conduct.”

Could these new requirements be viewed as an over-reaction to a few highly publicized but isolated incidents of criminal activity and poor ethical judgment by a handful of individuals? Perhaps. Nevertheless, the new requirements are now part of the FAR and each contractor had best put these guidelines in place.

BAE Systems Appoints BILL CLIFFORD as President of Its Ship Repair Business

BAE Systems has appointed Bill Clifford, Chairman of the VSRA Board of Directors, as president of its Ship Repair business, effective April 1, 2008. Clifford will succeed Al Krekich, who will retire March 31, 2008, after serving as Ship Repair’s president for the past 10 years.

As president, Clifford will lead the operation and grow the business, which provides ship maintenance and modernization services to U.S. Navy, government and commercial customers from shipyards in Norfolk, San Diego, San Francisco and Hawaii. Ship Repair also includes the Maritime Engineering & Services business area, headquartered in San Diego.

“Bill Clifford brings nearly 40 years of leadership experience in the United States Navy and private sector ship repair industry to his new role,” said Marshall Banker, president of BAE Systems Customer Solutions. “During his past three years as president and general manager of our Norfolk Ship Repair business area, Bill has demonstrated extensive industry knowledge, a high level of customer focus, and superior leadership skills.”

Clifford has been with the company since 2004, when he served as president and general manager of Hawaii Shipyards, Inc., a United Defense Industries (UDI), Inc. company. He became president and general manager of BAE Systems Norfolk Ship Repair when BAE Systems acquired UDI in 2005.

Following a 20-year active duty career in the U.S. Navy -- during which he served in a variety of command positions at sea and ashore -- Clifford held positions of increasing responsibility in the private sector ship repair industry.

Clifford holds a Master’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School and a Bachelor of Science from the U.S. Naval Academy.

VSRA Silver Anniversary in 2009

Next year, the Virginia Ship Repair Association will celebrate its 25^th anniversary. The association was founded in 1984 as the South Tidewater Association of Ship Repairers (STASR) when the leaders of our industry joined forces to craft a coalition to “raise the tide” for the entire ship repair industry in Hampton Roads. Their vision charted a course that brings us into 2008 larger and stronger than anytime in our history.

In commemoration of this significant event, the newsletter will include a new feature called “In the Spotlight,” which will provide information on our member companies and their outstanding employees. The first VSRA member companies to be highlighted are AMSEC LLC and Goodman & Company.

AMSEC in the "SPOTLIGHT"

Q. How long have you been a member of VSRA?

A. AMSEC LLC has been a proud member of VSRA since April, 1988 for a total of almost 20 years.

Q. What is your number of employees—locally and nationally?

A. With our corporate headquarters in Virginia Beach, Virginia, AMSEC LLC has over 1300 employees in the Tidewater Virginia area, and a total of over 2100 employees nationwide and overseas.

Q. Your business focus (highlight what VSRA membership has meant to your business)

A. As a wholly owned subsidiary of Northrop Grumman Newport News, AMSEC LLC is a full service supplier to the Navy and commercial maritime industry, providing naval architecture and marine engineering, naval ship systems assessments, maintenance engineering, acquisition program development, shipyard industrial engineering, and complete logistics services from technical manual development to provisioning documents, to spare parts management and training. Membership in the VSRA has kept us current in the trends that drive our market, cultivated important relationships with industry partners and provided a means of making AMSEC’s ever growing capabilities known to the shipbuilding and repair industry.

Q. Your company locations

A. AMSEC is located where the fleet is with major employee concentrations in Virginia Beach VA, Norfolk VA, Chesapeake VA, Hampton VA, Washington DC, San Diego CA, Bremerton and Everett WA, Mayport FL, Pearl Harbor HI, as well as overseas in such locations as Guam and Japan.

Q. Company slogan/ motto

A. Since our inception in 1981, AMSEC’s company motto has served us well: “Quality People Providing Quality Services”

AMSEC would like to spotlight our employee Hillie J. Harris for the VSRA newsletter. Hillie is an outstanding asset to AMSEC as evidenced by his accomplishments working as a General Foreman in AMSEC’s Elevator Support Unit. We are especially proud of his leadership, dedication and personal integrity in providing quality ship maintenance and repair services to our U.S. Navy customers.

Q. Name:

A. Hillie J. Harris

Q. Hometown:

A. As a result of my Dad being in the Air force we moved around a lot, however I call home Cabot, Arkansas. I lived there the longest growing up.

Q. Hobbies:

A. My Hobbies would include kayaking (I built a wooden one 2 winters ago and have a total of 3 now with another one in the works), cycling and camping.

Q. What brought you into the ship repair industry?

A. What brought me here into the “ship repair industry” was my need for a job after getting out of the Navy in 1991. I worked Arresting Gear on the USS John F. Kennedy (CV 67) while in the Navy so I was “a hire” for AMSEC. The joke was at one time that to get hired on at AMSEC… all you had to be was a Kennedy Sailor!

Q. One interesting fact no one knows about you:

A. One thing no one knows about me? While I was stationed on the Kennedy (1987-1991) I did not even know there were any Weapons Elevators on the ship!

Goodman & Company in the "SPOTLIGHT"

Q. How long have you been a member of the VSRA?

A. Since 1996

Q. What is your number of employees, locally and nationally?

A. Locally in the Hampton Roads area Goodman & Company has 214 employees, regionally, (we are only located in VA and MD) we have 565 employees. Through our affiliation with the with Moore Stephens North America—an affiliation of approximately 60 regional accounting firms across the U.S. and Canada—and Moore Stephens International Limited, an organization of over 330 leading independent accounting and consulting firms, we serve multi-location and multi-national clients with interest in the global marketplace. This worldwide association consists of more than 500 offices in over 90 countries worldwide.

Q. Highlight what VSRA membership has meant to your business.

A. Membership in the VSRA has given us an opportunity to network with businesses in the ship repair segment of the government contracting industry. To serve the government contracting industry is a focus of our company, and we have established a team of experts to provide high-quality service, accounting and auditing work to many ship repair companies and other government contractors.

Q. Your company locations?

A. Chester; Danville; McLean (Tysons Corner); Newport News; Norfolk; Richmond; Roanoke and Virginia Beach, VA and Rockville, MD.

Q. Company slogan/motto.

A. Accounting For Your Future

Goodman & Company would like to spotlight Robert A. Farquer, CPA. Robert has over 27 years of experience with the DCAA as an auditor, audit supervisor, and technical specialist. For the past 10 years he specialized in Cost Accounting Standards (CAS) and claims, and provided technical guidance and review services to the audit staff related to both CAS and FAR issues. He has been a witness in ASBCA cases, a participant in ADR cases, and has provided litigation support.

Q. Hometown.

A. Robert was born in Philadelphia, PA, but now currently resides in Hampton Roads.

Q. Hobbies.

A. Robert enjoys playing the trumpet in his free time.

Q. What brought you to the ship repair industry?

A. Since Robert became a CPA, he has been auditing ship yards.

Q. One interesting fact that no one knows about you.

A. Before entering the accounting industry, Robert was a jazz musician.

We will expand the “Spotlight” size based on the number of inputs we get from you, our members. Please help us make this a memorable year of reflections leading to our actual anniversary. You can do that by providing the requested information about your company

Career Day Outreach

During the academic year, we expect to visit more than twenty elementary, middle, and high school schools to deliver occupational and career related information to students in the seven cities across the region. We are currently building a volunteer list to give companies an opportunity to directly connect with these future workers.

What we need career day volunteers to do:

Sign up for a school

Use the pre-packaged material supplied by VSRF to set up a kiosk or conduct classroom activities that highlight ship repair

Pass out ship repair brand goodies and information to students supplied by VSRA

Spend 2-3 hours per school interacting with more than 300 students to promote ship repair as a career choice.

The following career days are scheduled for February 2008:

2/15/08 Granby High School, Norfolk

2/15/08 Camden County High School, Camden, North Carolina

2/21/08 Shipbuilding and Repair Career Day event, Ted Constant

2/21/08 Portsmouth Career Coalition (Sports Hall of Fame)

2/28/08 John F. Kennedy Middle School, Suffolk

3/19/08 Northside Middle School, Norfolk

3/25/08 Granby High School “Junior Night”, Norfolk

4/30/08 Lego Competition (Nauticus)

Please call the VSRA office at 757-233-7034 and let us know if you are interested in attending.

VSRA Committee Update

COMMUNICATIONS COMMITTEE

The electronic communications survey was submitted in December and again in January. The results of the survey and the newsletter draft will be discussed at the February meeting.

CONTRACTS COMMITTEE

The committee is planning a Cost Contracting for Dummies Seminar for April. The committee discussed the certified purchasing system requirement, the disparate treatment of hazardous materials under Navy contracts, the award fee board process, increasing government attendance at its meetings, SEA 21, communication with the VSRA Board of Directors, and VSRA legislative liaison.

HUMAN RESOURCES COMMITTEE

Effective 12/26/07, all employers must use the revised I-9 (Rev. 06/05/07)N form for any new hire. OSHA ruled employers must pay for necessary PPE for employees.

QUALITY ASSURANCE COMMITTEE

The committee is working on updating subcontractor audits. A brief was given on the Global Lean Event, which was held in Jacksonville, FL in November. The FY-09 Standard Items are going into effect in February. They are available for download from the SSRAC website: http://www.sermc.surfor.navy.mil/ssrac/index.htm.

SAFETY COMMITTEE

The committee is updating the Employee Safety Handbook. A brief was given on the December OSHA Partnership meeting. The committee is discussing a standard Hot Work/Cold Work form. The new PPE standard will go into effect February 13 and must be implemented by May 15.

SECURITY COMMITTEE

The committee discussed gaining access to the bases and Norfolk Naval Shipyard. A brief was given on MARMC’s new electronic visit access Test Phase for USS MITSCHER.

Educational Opportunities

We are pleased to offer the following classes:

First Aid/CPR/AED/Emergency First Responder Certification

Location Sponsored by United Coatings Corp.

COST: $105.00 VSRA members; $140.00 Non VSRA members

DATES: February 14 and March 19, 2008, 7:30am - 4:30pm

LOCATION: Tecnico Corp., 831 Industrial Ave, Chesapeake, VA 23324

Emergency First Responders ~ OSHA Approved/Internationally Accepted

*This certification is OSHA-approved/internationally accepted and is a step beyond the Red Cross certification and is more oriented to industrial environments.* This course provides comprehensive instruction in CPR and First Aid, as well as Automated External Defibrillator (AED) use, emergency oxygen administration and conscious choking management skills. Upon successful completion of this course, attendees receive a Certification Card.

First Aid/CPR/AED/Emergency First Responder ½-Day Refresher Training

Location Sponsored by United Coatings Corp.

COST: $75.00 VSRA members; $110.00 Non VSRA members

SESSION 1 DATES: March 18, 2008, 8:00am – noon

SESSION 2 DATES: March 18, 2008, 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm

LOCATION: Tecnico Corp., 831 Industrial Ave, Chesapeake, VA 23324

NAVSEA Basic Paint Inspector Training (NBPI)

Sponsored by VSRA and course approved by NAVSEA

Location sponsored by MARMC

COST: $550.00 VSRA members; $675.00 Non VSRA members

DATES: March 31-April 4, May 19-23, June 16-20, September 22-26, and December 1-5, 2008, 7:00am - 5:00pm

LOCATION: MARMC Building LF-18, Norfolk Naval Base

Attendance is limited to 20 applicants. A score of 80% or higher is required to be eligible for the certification. Students passing the exam will receive a four-year certification and a laminated wallet card from SSPC. Test results will come directly from SSPC.

Due to changes with the SSPC, all documents related to this course need to be submitted to the SSPC representative, Jeannine Bodack. Her email address is: bodack@sspc.org, phone: 877-281-7772 x 2204, fax: 412-281-9995. These documents must be submitted two weeks before the first day of class. Please go to the SSPC website http://www.sspc.org/training/nbpi_prereq.html to view the current required documents.

NAVSEA Basic Paint Inspector Prep Course

Location sponsored by Old Dominion University Virginia Applied Technology & Professional Development Center

COST: $140.00 VSRA members; $175.00 Non VSRA members

DATES: March 18 & 19, May 27 & 28, September 9 & 10, and November 18 & 19, 2008, 8:00am-4:30pm day one and 8:00am-noon day two

LOCATION: Old Dominion University, 4111 Monarch Way, Suite 106, Norfolk, VA 23529

Recent changes to the NAVSEA NBPI Exam have resulted in lower pass rats. In order to better prepare your workers, VSRA is offering a 1-1/2-day pre-course specifically to address exam standards and increase inspector-level knowledge. Each attendee must bring a current copy of NAVSEA Standard Items 009-32 and 009-04 (FY08).

Blueprint Reading

COST: $325.00 VSRA Members; $399.00 Non-VSRA Members

DATE: February 19-22, April 14-18, and November 3-7, 2008, 8:00 am – 4:00 pm

LOCATION: Earl Industries, 3128 Victory Blvd., Portsmouth, VA 2370

This course is directed to rising welders and shipfitters, or workers who need a familiarity with blueprint terminology, symbols and design features specific to ships. The course provides 28 hours of instruction with take-home activities, 3 quizzes and a final exam. Attendees will receive critical drawing analysis experience, as well as hands-on blueprint activities. For a complete course outline please contact the VSRA office.

NAVSEA Cableway Training and Certification Training

Instructional Partnership by VSRA and AMSEC

This training is certified by NAVSEA

Location sponsored by Earl Industries, LLC.

COST: $595.00 VSRA Members; $745.00 Non-VSRA Members

DATE: February 25-29, April 14-18, and November 3-7, 2008, 8:00am – 4:00pm

LOCATION: Earl Industries, 3128 Victory Blvd., Portsmouth, VA 23702

Attendance is limited to 20 applicants. This course delivers 35+ hours of lecture, video, hands-on lab work and text-based assignments over a five day period. A score of 70% or higher on the comprehensive exam is required for successful completion. The course covers all NAVSEA requirements and skill sets in depth. Upon successful completion of this course, the attendee will receive a NAVSEA Cableway Certification Card.

Please register on the VSRA website www.virginiashiprepair.org for above seminars. Phone registrations are not preferred, however, can be accommodated. For questions/help registering please call our office at 757-233-7034, we want to make this transition process easy for our members.

**Please note, you must be logged in to receive the discounted VSRA price for seminars.**

Refund & Cancellation Policy: VSRA offers seminars at a greatly reduced rate to our members. Cancellations must be made within 4 business days of the course date to receive full credit contingent on slots being filled. Late cancellations will be given a 50% credit towards future training or 100% if open slot is filled. No-shows
WILL BE CHARGED the course fee, and no refunds will be made. Substitutions are welcome; however, please contact the VSRA office as soon as possible.

Newsletter: February/March 2008 Newsletter