The dedicated, 180-strong team of engineers that makes up BAE Systems Submarine Solutions’ Dockside Test Organisation are pivotal to the commissioning process, not only prior to each submarine leaving Barrow and during its journey to HM Naval Base, Faslane, but also on the sea trials that continue when the submarine arrives at Faslane.

Meticulously going about their work, painstakingly detailed in their examination and testing of systems, it is their skills and expertise that are at the forefront of this process, be it planning for the months of sea trials, or dredging the dock system to pave the way for the submarine’s smooth exit.

The process runs concurrently with the build programme to ensure every one of the thousands of components, systems and modules are checked and proven, in line with the exacting standards demanded by both BAE Systems and the Ministry of Defence customer.

Housed within the 170-acre Barrow site are two specialist test facilities, built to put specific modules through their paces and prove their operability before they take their place inside Astute’s hull.

The Submarine Machinery Installation and Test Establishment, or SMITE as it is better known to workers and Royal Navy crews, is the main resource for this. It is here where many of the major modules are tested. These include the submarine’s Main Propulsion Machinery Package (MPMP) and Forward Engine Room Module (FERM). Astute’s MPMP, the ‘engine’ of the submarine, was test run for a period equivalent to propelling the submarine to Australia and back. No stone was left unturned in the quest to prove the system’s capability. The second such dedicated test facility is named Warspite, after a previous Barrow built submarine. This is another structure custom built to house, outfit and test specific modules, including the hub of Astute’s operations, the 220-tonne Command Deck module.

Its S2076 sonar suite has long been lauded as the most advanced of its type, but first it had to be trialled to prove the system’s capability before being integrated within this first of class vessel. To achieve this, engineers looked to Astute’s predecessors, the serving Trafalgar class, where S2076 was initially installed and tested. This enabled vital data to be collated, resulting in the ahead of schedule delivery to the new class.