Access Code: Material Sourcing and Project Management Division (Code 520)

Every successful project at Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY) culminates in the hands of a committed team working to meet the mission of repairing, modernizing and inactivating the Navy’s warships and training platforms.  But long before a single bolt is tightened, a silent, critical mission is already underway. This mission belongs to the Material Sourcing and Project Management Division (Code 520), the team responsible for ensuring the right material is at the right place, at the right time, and at the right cost.
Code 520’s primary mission is managing the end-to-end lifecycle of material readiness for every ship repair, overhaul, and modernization project.
“Mechanics can't turn wrenches if they don’t have parts, and engineers can't execute designs without the proper materials,” said Carolyn Parish, Code 520 Division Head. “Code 520 acts as the connective tissue between the high-level planning phases and the physical execution on the waterfront.”
This “connective tissue” is a team of approximately 47 specialists who process a staggering volume of requests. In a typical fiscal year, they handle roughly 102,000 material line items, and are on pace to procure material valued at over $575 million in the current year alone. Their work is a constant battle against unpredictable supply chains, long vendor lead times, and locating the needed parts.
“Our team works tirelessly to ensure supply constraints never become the reason work stops,” Parish said.
That tireless work was on full display during two of the shipyard’s most significant recent victories: the early completion of USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) and the successful undocking of USS John Warner (SSN 785).
Raven Sparrow, the Project Material Manager (PMM) for Eisenhower, managed over 33,000 material requirements to support the carrier’s availability. “My specific role was to ensure critical material is sourced, expedited and delivered in alignment with production’s priorities,” she said. “By working together across departments, we were able to help prevent delays, reduce wait times for critical material, and keep work progressing.”
For John Warner, the challenge was just as immense. Nitashua Tyson, the submarine’s PMM, led a team that tracked nearly 60,000 material items and dedicated an estimated 3,000 manhours during the undocking surge alone.
“The Material Management Team played a critical role… by ensuring the right material was available, tracked, and delivered to support waterfront operations without delay,” Tyson said. “We led daily coordination efforts focused on material readiness, tracking high-priority and mission-critical components from requisition to delivery while maintaining accountability throughout the process.”
This behind-the-scenes effort is often invisible. One of the biggest misconceptions, according to Tyson, is that material simply shows up from a vendor ready to go. “Every item… goes through extensive coordination, verification, tracking, inspections, and logistics management before it ever reaches the waterfront,” she explained.
The work continues on massive ongoing efforts like USS California (SSN 781). PMM Kimberly Brashears is managing over $130 million in specialized inventory, a daily effort of tracking thousands of items and coordinating with other naval shipyards. Her team’s proactive management recently enabled them to share staged inventory to mitigate work stoppages on other active submarine projects.
“In a shipyard, we are all one team,” Brashears said. “Being able to leverage our staged inventory to keep other active submarine projects on their critical paths is a huge win for overall fleet readiness.”
It is this dedication to the broader mission that defines the spirit of Code 520.
“When a ship hits a major milestone, the shipyard rightfully cheers for the project and mechanics turning the wrenches,” Parish said. “But behind every successful milestone is a Code 520 team member who spent weeks tracking down a rare valve or resolving a complex material discrepancy. When the supply chain is seamless, it’s practically invisible, and that is the true hallmark of our team’s quiet professionalism at America’s Shipyard.”t America’s Shipyard.”