Amphibious Assault Ship (LHD) Operational Safety Case

Requirements 

The Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO) is acquiring two Amphibious Assault Ships on behalf of the Navy in order to provide the Australian Defence Force with significant Amphibious capabilities supporting disaster relief, humanitarian aid and amphibious assault.

In delivering the capability, the Navy are required to ensure safety to personnel and the public is considered and driven into the capability throughout all stages of the lifecycle including Concept, Acquisition, Naval Operational Test & Evaluation, In-Service and Disposal.

In order to manage the safety obligations of the current and future lifecycle phases, the DMO requested industry support from system safety specialists to develop and implement a strategy which would satisfy Navy regulatory requirements.

Solutions 

In order to provide safety services which achieved the customer’s objectives, We took a wider view of the program, by focusing on more than just the current phase (acquisition). By engaging with stakeholders who will be responsible for safety management at subsequent lifecycle phases, BMT work closely with DMO in heightening safety awareness amongst the Stakeholder community and ensure a smooth transition in handing over the LHD vessel to the Navy.

We developed a safety product using GSN which interfaced with the LHD Hazard log, resulting in a tool that will provide a continuous understanding of the safety status of the LHD capability such that it can inform command decisions regarding safety of operation.

GSN was chosen due to the ease in which it can be interpreted by a wide stakeholder community with differing levels of exposure to the program, whilst at the same time, providing an effective method for structuring and managing the wide range of goals, assumptions, contexts and evidence that is developed through the course of the acquisition program.

Benefits 

We provided a clear, cohesive approach to lifecycle safety management within the Navy. The GSN drove clarity and accountability in the process, improving the effectiveness and usefulness of the safety activity. The framework that has been put in place will be carried forward to the next stage of the capability lifecycle and is expected to act as a useful tool in managing the safety of the capability through to disposal.