Analyzing the Costs to Reconfigure the U.S. Navy Platform to Support the Single Fuel Concept - JP5

Abstract

This research analyzes the reconfiguration costs of U.S. Navy amphibious assault vessels along with fuel depots at Defense Fuel Support Point (DFSP) to support the Single Fuel Concept (SFC). Previous research confirms that SFC would further improve military objectives and missions in a contested environment. The reconfiguration from F-76 to JP-5 would benefit logistic support, maintenance requirement, time on stations, and fuel posture. We gathered the most recent maintenance repair contracts and analyzed the data to determine the cost of reconfiguration. Using a Gantt chart, we show the series of actions that various stakeholders need to take prior to a ship entering the maintenance availability cycle as well as future actions to ensure maintenance is planned, executed, and completed. Since the energy content of JP-5 is lower than F-76, we analyze the total cost of using JP-5 in the deployment phase of operation. Furthermore, we conduct regression analysis on both fuel prices to estimate the delta percentage between both fuel products. This thesis recommends that stakeholders consider the overall long-term benefit of reconfiguration as the cost of conversion is reasonable, but transition to JP-5 requires time.