Recent changes in Engineering...

Locked
User avatar
Chrystian Merlin
Engineering - Commander
Engineering - Commander
Posts: 151
Joined: 090116.2327
Duty Post: Strategic Operations Officer | Cochrane
Ship/Station Posted:
Grid:
Contact:

100430.0929

Hello everyone,

Thank you for taking the time to read this post.

As you know, Cmdr. Wyp Luminos has been out on personal, and now extended medical leave for nearly 3 months.  We've had very little communication and virtually no direction for the Engineering Branch from him during this time.  This has understandably been of great concern to us in Engineering, as well as having affected our ability to perform our duties.  I accept the blame, have taken on the responsibility, and have done my best to work towards a better, more efficient and responsive branch.  No one blames Wyp, and I'm sure we all wish him the very best.

About a month ago, I was made Acting Branch Commander and began to enact policy changes that would help the next person that was put in my position. :)  And considering the challenge, I believe I have had some success.  One of the successes has been in convincing Lt. Cmdr. Millenia Infinity to return to Engineering as Vice Branch Head.  Her experience and guidance has proven invaluable in efforts to get Engineering back on her feet.  Together, we have made some sweeping and ground-breaking changes to Engineering policy.  Some of those changes may seem like a broad departure from the structure as it was but they were enacted to make things easier on everyone and to make sure that unpredictability of our "volunteer workforce" would no longer so easily disrupt the flow of work & schedules, etc.  

In any change of command there is a period of "disruption of services" (as several Academy seniors waiting for the senior projects can atest) and for that I can only apologize and assure you that we are working as best we can to address issues as, and before they come up.  I wanted to take a moment to highlight some of the recent changes, and introduce some others that we are considering.  We also want to open things up for questions and comments.

Likely the biggest policy change is probably the breaking down of the separation of Fleet & Corps engineers.  Before now, Fleet engineers could only build props, perhaps minor repairs, and submit builds to ASDB for approval, etc.  Since I have been a member of Engineering this has always seemed to me to be a huge loss of experience, drain on ASDB resources, and waste of branch-wide talent.  And while I am certain this was NOT one of the goals, it also seems to have served to feed elitism of the Corps.  

Today, Fleet engineers who have demonstrated some proficiency in building can volunteer for building, scripting, or other assignments previously only considered "Corps" responsibility.  They can also initiate and carry out their own new projects with prior ASDB approval and under ASDB supervision and inspection.  Also, a designated builder who is a crew member of a starship or station may request the pieces of their ship so that assembly can take place on THEIR schedule, not ASDB's.  I want to point out that construction and assembly will still be done under ASDB supervision and likely for the most part by Corps engineers, with Fleet engineers supplementing.

The basic difference between Fleet & Corps will be maintained: Fleet having a greater desire to RP, and Corps having a greater desire to BUILD.  This new policy will accommodate those engineers who want to do both.

We are also making some structural changes in Engineering Command hierarchy.  Engineering will now consists of 2 divisions instead of 4, and all Corps engineers (and participating Fleet engineers) will be in a "talent pool" available to either of these divisions.  

Research & Development will likely be a bit more centered in RP'ing new technologies but also building new shuttles, fighters, weapons, other props, etc.  They will also tend to be the "gatekeepers of canon" directing and guiding development of new technologies and making sure things make sense in the world of "Treknology."

ASDB will continue as the premiere builder of starship sets for RP.  They will be the final arbiters of design elements, schedule construction and assembly, and coordinate between engineers & Engineering command.  They will also, for the time being, absorb the responsibilities of creating & maintaining stations & ground facilities.  I tried very hard to come up with an acronym that would express all this, but couldn't find one that wasn't unwieldily long & cumbersome.  I stopped trying when I wound up just throwing all the letters of the alphabet into a pot, dumping it out on a table and seeing what appeared.  :)  So, for now it will remain as ASDB (Advanced Starship/Station/Structure Design/Development/Deployment Bureau).

In another effort to streamline command structure, the position of "Division Vice-Head" will be dropped.  We are considering a new temporary position called a "Project Lead" which will be assigned to individual projects to help keep things running.  This position will accomplish 2 things, it will allow officers & crewmen to distinguish themselves and come to the notice of Engineering command staff for consideration of positions should any open up.  And, should a Division Head become unavailable or in an extremely diminished capacity, Project Leads will keep projects alive & rolling along.

A word about "Acting" positions...  Because Corps Engineers produce starships & facilities that cannot be adequately "RP'd" into existence there is a higher expectation of them (especially by COs wanting their starships :D ).  In consideration of this it is being discussed that should an Engineering Command position become "empty" for a period of more than 7 days without substantive contact, someone will be assigned in an "Acting" capacity.  By "empty" it is meant totally or severely reduced availability to carry out the job in a timely manner.  UFS activity/productivity should not be held hostage because someone is having trouble logging in to SL or their RL responsibilities are demanding more of their time.  Everyone needs to understand that there is no animosity in this.  We all know "RL before SL" but there is still work to be done.

There is of course more. Things such as established building standards to ensure compatibility, "plug-n-play" rooms to speed construction, working technologies such as Holodeck, Replicators, Comm Systems, etc. to enhance your RP experience.  For now, we the staff and engineers of UFS Engineering want the UFS membership to know that we stand ready to serve.  Always moving forward, always improving, and hopefully becoming more responsive to the needs of the membership.

Thank you again for you time.

Lt. Cmdr. Chrystian Merlin
Acting Branch Commander
UFS Engineering
Last edited by Anonymous on 100902.1031, edited 1 time in total.
Image

Access Service Jacket

"I think God is as much a basic ingredient in the universe as neutrons and positrons. This is the prime force, when we look around the universe."
--Gene Roddenberry
User avatar
Mike Calhoun
Command - Fleet Admiral
Command - Fleet Admiral
Posts: 4783
Joined: 061028.1122
Duty Post: Commander-in-Chief UFS
Ship/Station Posted: UF Starfleet Headquarters
Grid: Unknown
Location: Venezuela
Has thanked: 1 time
Been thanked: 55 times
Contact:

100430.1046

Thank you for this update Chrystian.

Steps are being taken to make a more permanent staffing solution and you will get a meeting request from Command very soon
In Service to United Federation Starfleet

Image
MilleniaInfinity
Engineering - Captain
Engineering - Captain
Posts: 281
Joined: 090127.1000
Duty Post: Executive Officer | USS Banshee
Ship/Station Posted:
Grid:
Contact:

100430.2357

In addendum to what Lt. Commander Merlin said,
   We are deciding to remove the various billets in engineering and replace it with one for the bulk of engineering. This billet will be called "Engineer". The billets such as Hull and Armor specialist and Directed Energy specialist will now instead be a certification one obtains by taking the appropriate course in the Academy. These certifications provide an Engineer a specialty. With each specialty, comes proficiency. You will enhance your ship with your specialty; offering it advanced capabilities over its stock performance, such as faster repair times or higher power output. The downside to this is you can only specialize in one field, meaning if you specialize as an Environmental Engineer, you cannot specialize as a Hull and Armor Specialist as well. Specializing will be limited to Lt. (JG) engineers and above to provide an Ensign the time to decide where to focus their efforts. This will not come into effect until the classes are available in the academy. For referance, The only billets in engineering will be Branch Commander, Vice Branch Commander, Chief of Engineering, Division Head, and Engineer.
   
   Another change that will be happening, is the dissolving of the Engineering council, to be replaced by normal branch meetings. I believe this will help consolidate engineering so we may all continue in the same direction. Don't be alarmed, just because there will not be a council doesn't mean your voice will not be heard, there will just no longer be a vote to cast. I will listen to all opinions and concerns from any topics brought forward to the branch meeting (the first of which will be Saturday the 8th at 1500SLT). As Lt. Commander Merlin outlined above there will no longer be any Vice Head or Vice Chief positions. Instead there will only be a Head of each ASDB and R&D, and also a single Chief on each ship. There may be a "un-official" title of a Project Leader or Shift leader, Project Leaders are at the discretion of individual Division Heads and Shift Leaders will be at the discretion of the Chief on each ship. Project and Team leaders will not be a billeted position as mentioned above.
   
   One of the biggest changes will be the dissolving of the UF Starfleet Shipyards group that the Corp currently uses. With the changes happening allowing fleet engineers to build and having corp engineers becoming a vast talent pool for ASDB and R&D to tap for projects. This group has become redundant and takes up a group slot. We can accomplish the same thing we are doing with a single group, the UF Starfleet Corp of Engineers group, which we are all a part of anyway.
   
   Perhaps the most controversial change to be made will be a Building Agreement. This Agreement will outline the building rules set forth by UFS, and to protect our work from people only wishing to steal our designs. If an engineer cannot agree to the rules written in the Agreement they are by no means obligated to sign it, however they will not be permitted to build for UFS, plain and simple. I hate to be that cut and dry but things have been stolen before and people have lost tempers and taken their "toys" and left only to be found later in a store being sold. There is nothing more demoralizing than seeing something you made being sold by another person for profit. Once this Agreement has been written and looked over, I will be going around speaking with each individual engineer and having them sign or not sign this Building Agreement. I understand this is adding paperwork, but I think it's a necessary evil to protect all of our intellectual property.
   
   One last change will be the adding of a new board in the engineering section of the forum. In this board will be Topics and each topic will contain a single project Researched and outlined by the Head of R&D. Any engineer may pick a project from this board by responding to it stating they will be developing it. After that all that needs to be done is report bi-weekly at minimum or if any significant change has been done to the project. This is done merely so those who submitted the project to R&D and the Head of R&D can see the progress of said project. I think this will help increase the amount of RP done in both the corp and fleet, with developing these new technologies.
   
   I apologize for any inconveniances these changes may cause for some of you, but to put simply we need to take engineering in a new direction because the way it was, wasn't working. Take note, there will be bumps and hiccups while we continue smoothing everything out from all these changes. Despite these radical new changes, engineering will only fail if we dont take a stand and make a combined effort to see it succeed. Quite simply I am asking for your help to bring engineering up off its heels and back to making a difference being the leading edge of all UFS branches. We will find a way, or invent one engineers; lets show UFS what that means.

In Service to the Fleet
Lt. Commander Millenia Infinity

*EDIT* On a Secondary thought, removal of the specialization restriction will be lifted so that any Ensign or Crewman may specialize in what field they wish
Last edited by MilleniaInfinity on 100501.0117, edited 1 time in total.
MilleniaInfinity
Engineering - Captain
Engineering - Captain
Posts: 281
Joined: 090127.1000
Duty Post: Executive Officer | USS Banshee
Ship/Station Posted:
Grid:
Contact:

100508.1840

To outline what I previously stated in our Meeting today. I am going to be putting the specialties for each engineer to see.
  ~Hull and Armor Specialist
  ~Damage Control Specialist
  ~Shuttlecraft Maintenance and Repair Specialist
  ~Impulse Specialist
  ~Environmental Systems Specialist
  ~Cybernetics and Computer Specialist
  ~Matter-Energy Specialist
  ~Directed Energy Specialist
  ~Energy Field Specialist

Those specializations being said, there will be a corresponding class for each one. From these specializations you may only choose ONE, even if you take all the classes you may only choose one specialty. As was said earlier today as well, these specializations are VOLUNTARY, you do not have to choose one if you dont want to. Please leave me an IM if you have any further questions.
Locked

Return to “Engineering Branch Archives”