1423 Powhatan St., Suite 1
Alexandria, Virginia 22314
Phone (703) 836-6727
Fax (703) 836-7491
Email: asnehq@navalengineers.org

 

ASNE is the leading professional engineering society for engineers, scientists and allied professionals who conceive, design, develop, test, construct, outfit, operate and maintain complex naval and maritime ships, submarines and aircraft and their associated systems and subsystems.  ASNE also serves the educators who train the professionals, researchers who develop related technology, and students who are preparing for the profession.  Society activities provide support for the U.S. Navy; U.S. Coast Guard; U.S. Marine Corps; U.S. Merchant Marine and U.S. Army.

ASNE is the seventh oldest technical society in the United States.  It was founded in 1888 by a group of naval engineering pioneers, most of them officers of the U.S. Navy's Engineering Corps, who sought a unified approach to their profession in order to make the most of new advances in technology. The purposes of ASNE are:           

  • to advance the knowledge and practice of naval engineering in public and private applications and operations,
  • to enhance the professionalism and well-being of members, and
  • to promote naval engineering as a career field.

For 125 years, the Society’s objectives have been strengthened and preserved to meet the changing needs of a time-honored profession. Today ASNE conducts a variety of technical meetings and symposia, publishes the highly regarded Naval Engineers Journal and a number of other technical proceedings and publications, and fosters professional development and technical information exchange through technical committees, local section activities and cooperative efforts with government organizations and other professional societies.

The Society's annual meeting, ASNE Day, is typically held in February of each year in the Washington, DC, area. The meeting features major addresses by high level industry and government leaders and panel discussions by leading members of the profession.  It also includes presentation and discussion of technical papers on a variety of timely naval engineering topics, presentation of the Society's prestigious annual awards and a large exposition with government and industry exhibits covering the full spectrum of naval engineering technology. ASNE Day is highlighted by the Society’s annual Honors Gala, attended by hundreds of executives and senior managers from both government and industry.

Our website is designed to not only serve our members, but also to support scholars, students and others interested in the varied field of naval engineering.  We welcome your suggestions on ways we can improve your experience. 

Mr. Alan G. Forssell

Award: Harold E. Saunders Award
Year: 1996
Recipient:
Mr. Alan G. Forssell
Reason:
For his significant contribution to naval engineering as set forth in the following:

Mr. Forssell's career in the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program spanned approximately 40 years. As Director, Nuclear Propulsion Surface Ship Systems Division within the Naval Sea Systems Command, he was a commanding force in the Program's success in achieving the milestone of 100 million miles of safe reactor operation for propulsion of naval nuclear powered warships.

Widely recognized as an expert in the design and operation of naval nuclear propulsion plants, he is without peer in this field. Through his skillful and tireless efforts, seventeen nuclear powered cruisers and aircraft carriers and seven tenders with nuclear support facilities were built and delivered to the Navy. He personally reviewed machinery and system arrangements in propulsion plant spaces in a full scale mockup during design, to ensure adequate space for maintenance and operation. This, together with the training and mentoring he provided to key personnel, contributed substantially to the unblemished safety and performance record of these impressive ships.

During construction and throughout their service life, Mr. Forssell was a major force in ensuring safe and reliable operation of surface ship nuclear propulsion plants. He was the Navy representative in charge of the builder's sea trials for check-out of the propulsion plant for most nuclear powered surface ships. Under his experienced leadership, emergent propulsion plant problems were dealt with quickly and effectively without significant impact on the sea trial schedule. His proactive response to emergent problems on numerous occasions during ship operating or repair periods averted major impacts on ship operating/repair schedules. He also ensured safe and effective disposal of nuclear plants at the end of their service life.

Mr. Forssell championed review and elimination of cumbersome work practices without compromising safety or quality. He initiated a program to review the reactor plant operating manual for surface ships that resulted in significant simplification to many operating procedures. He prepared and issued a letter to redefine ship's force maintenance capability for all nuclear powered surface ships. This action greatly reduced the amount of onboard repair equipment, simplified ship's force maintenance procedures, reduced effort and cost for maintaining repair equipment and reduced cost for future construction.

Throughout his career, Mr. Forssell demonstrated productivity, growth, and outstanding accomplishments both as an engineer and as an administrator. His personal initiatives, professional commitment and innovative thinking resulted in major savings to the Government through innovative propulsion plant system designs which consistently met or exceeded the Navy's needs and enabled a significantly improved defense posture. He is recognized by his peers as a technical leader of the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program for our nuclear powered surface ship fleet. His successes have been critical to the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program and to our national defense. He is a most deserving recipient of the Harold E. Saunders Award for 1996.