Buying the Boat - Choosing a Ship for the Sealift Conversion Program

One of the first steps in any ship conversion program is determining which ship to convert. The Strategic Sealift Programs offered an opportunity to develop a tool for selecting the ship, and then put that tool to use for an actual conversion program. A preference based, measure of merit system was used based on the Governments technical requirements for the converted ship. The selection tool served to narrow the choice set of candidate hulls such that ship owners could be pursued and a class of ships finally selected. The system used to review each of the candidates will be reviewed, as well as some of the particulars of the candidates. The factors that resulted in selecting the class that was converted will also be discussed.