❒ 135-year-old company supplies Navy’s Gerald R. Ford with key component

A Benicia company has played a big role in the upcoming launch of the U.S. Navy’s newest aircraft carrier, the Gerald R. Ford, that will be christened Saturday.

The Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) is the first new carrier design in 40 years, and is expected to remain on duty for a century, said Terry Allvord, RIX Industries’ director of business development.

RIX itself has been around for 135 years. Headquartered at 4900 Industrial Way in Benicia’s Industrial Park, it has 115 employees and occupies a manufacturing space covering 51,000 square feet; another 11,000 square feet is office space, and inventory occupies 10,000 more square feet.

RIX Industries has a strong track record with the Navy, Allvord said, and the company has built its reputation on the reliability, innovation and experience needed for the longevity expected from this new aircraft carrier.

RIX’s equipment on the Gerald R. Ford, named for the late president, are MARC-350 low-pressure air compressors and NGEN 30S nitrogen generators, used where high-pressure inert gas generation is needed.

“RIX Industries is recognized as the global leader in design and manufacture of oil-free, continuous-duty, highly reliable air and gas compressors and nitrogen-generation systems for shipboard, airborne and commercial applications,” Allvord said.

“We have equipment on one-third of all ships in the Navy Fleet,” he added. RIX has been an active supplier to the federal government for more than 90 years. “That’s why they called on us.”

RIX compressors and nitrogen-generation systems have been put on board more than 25 classes of Navy ships, from destroyers to cruisers, as well as Nimitz-class nuclear aircraft carriers, amphibious assault ships and Seawolf-class and Virginia-class submarines, as well as the new aircraft carrier design.

Those Modular Air Rotary Compressor (MARC) 350 units first were put on Nimitz aircraft carriers after the Benicia company was awarded a contract Feb. 12, 2001. Since then, Allvord said, the company has developed “a well-deserved reputation as an industry leader with vast experience and innovation on critical defense programs.”

The new aircraft carrier to be christened Saturday will be able to launch 25 percent more flight missions, said Steve Bassermann, a spokesman for the company.

Its design will reduce necessary maintenance by 30 percent, and is expected to save the Navy about $4 billion during the ship’s lifetime.

The Gerald R. Ford is the first of a class of 10 aircraft carriers that will be introduced to the Navy fleet in five-year intervals.

“I think what makes this so exciting is that this is our first new platform,” Allvord said. “It’s so unique. This ship will be in the water until 2110.”

Built at Northrop Grumman in Newport News, Va., the Gerald R. Ford replaces the USS Enterprise, which started its Navy career in 1961 and will ends its operations in 2015.

Though the new ships are about the same size as their predecessors, the Nimitz class, they require 500 to 900 fewer crew members, a reduction that stems from both better carrier technology — particularly in maintenance requirements — and greater automation.

Among other changes, the ship’s island is smaller and moved farther aft. The flag bridge has been moved to a lower deck, off the island. Internal configuration and the ship’s flight deck also have changed. Lower decks can be reconfigured quickly, and to reduce weight an aircraft elevator and a hanger bay have been eliminated.

The ship will carry Sea Sparrow missiles to defend against high-speed and highly maneuverable anti-ship weapons. The ship also is equipped with rolling airframe missiles.

The Gerald R. Ford can carry up to 90 planes, from F-35 Joint Strike fighters, Super Hornets, Advance Hawkeyes, Growler electronic attack craft and helicopters, and unmanned air vehicles and combat air vehicles.

The ship has a nuclear propulsion system and zonal electrical power distribution system.

The need for a higher sortie rate, at 160 a day with surges up to 220 sorties a day, led to the design changes.

The next ship in this class to be commissioned will be the John F. Kennedy, which also will carry RIX Industries equipment.

“We’ll be on the Kennedy, and we’ll bring our technical expertise,” Allvord said.

The company didn’t have to modify its equipment to accommodate a ship that will be on duty for a century, Allvord said, but there were technical challenges.

Its liquid oxygen (LOX) system was “one of the most important things we brought to the table,” he said.

“Our systems will work in concert with new systems. There is no doubt we’ll see drones on and off those carriers pretty quick.”

The technology is greener, too, he said, combining an oil-free technology and more efficient operation. “A lot of money goes into making the first ship right,” he observed.

Allvord isn’t the only one who is happy to see his company’s products incorporated in the new carrier’s design. The company’s president, Bert Otterson, is, too.

“We are proud to be part of an American manufacturing feat that built a U.S. Navy ship designed for efficiency and ready for the future,” Otterson said. “When Ford is christened on Saturday, our workers and community will be part of this historic day as a new era of aircraft carriers begins.”

U.S. Rep. Mike Thompson has been to the Benicia plant, and said he was impressed with what he saw.

“Having visited RIX Industries and met with their dedicated staff, I’ve witnessed their incredible work firsthand,” he said.

“Not only are the employees highly skilled, motivated and produce products that are second to none, they also play a central role in making sure the U.S. Navy has the tools it needs to keep our country secure,” Thompson said.

“I am extremely proud of the work they do. Without companies such as RIX Industries, advanced aircraft carriers like Gerald R. Ford would not be possible.”

Thompson isn’t the only dignitary to visit the plant. Allvord said others, too, have inspected the operation, and frequently are escorted by city officials, such as Mayor Elizabeth Patterson, as well as plant employees.

Having the Industrial Park situated in a charming city like Benicia has been a bonus, he said. In fact, when he first visited the company, as he was being hired, he found Benicia captivating.

He enjoyed seeing the downtown area and having a seafood dinner at a restaurant with a coastal view.

The Benicia plant, too, has a coastal view. In the distance are the old warships, in the Suisun Bay Reserve Fleet, that have been replaced with newer ships carrying RIX Industries products.

“The view is awesome,” Allvord said. “You see all the tradition and history of the ships.”

Being in the Industrial Park, he said, “we have great neighbors.” Its location has been convenient for employees’ travel to work.

A company that is active in such efforts as the Wounded Warrior project and aid for underprivileged children, RIX wants to become “more engaged with the city,” Allvord said. Meanwhile, it’s active in bringing visitors “from all over the world” to Benicia.

And after his own experience seeing the city as well as his plant’s operations, Allvord said visitors get similar walkthroughs, so they, too, get to see the many sides of Benicia.

Allvord will fly Friday to Newport News to witness the ship’s christening ceremony, which will be attended by the late president’s daughter, Susan Elizabeth Ford Bales, who chose items for a time capsule that has been welded into the ship.

“We’re glad to be there. We’re extremely excited to be part of this technological enhancement,” Allvord said, explaining that he’s proud that “you can have a company like RIX in small-town America supply these advanced systems.

“We’re doing our part.”