In 1983, a young David Horne began work as a welder at Newport News Shipbuilding. Over the next 41 years, he would rise through the ranks to become vice president of Trades, a position from which he will soon retire.
Looking back, Horne had a head start on what it takes to build good ships. It began well before he walked through the gate.
His dad, Homer Horne, started at the shipyard in 1958, and would carve out his own noteworthy career as a nuclear engineer. Back then, NNS had begun to enter the nuclear age, including the planning and construction of the former Enterprise (CVN 65), the world’s first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier.
The Rickover Principles became part of the company’s language. This series of truths put forward by Adm. Hyman G. Rickover, often called the Father of the Nuclear Navy, spoke of accountability, learning from mistakes, continuous improvement and respect.
As a child, David Horne learned those principles.
“The Rickover Principles were big in our family,” he recalled with a smile. “We had critiques in the Oldsmobile going down the road sometimes. When my behavior was not as it should have been, dad made sure we had a root cause analysis right there. We were not going to beat around the bush. He was very rigid on doing the right things and me holding myself accountable.”
David Horne is actually a third-generation shipbuilder. His grandfather worked at the shipyard for a few years after serving in the Merchant Marine. His mother and wife worked here. His brother, Robert Horne, currently works at NNS as an electrical engineer.
The fourth generation has already started. David Horne’s son, Nicholas, began work at NNS last year. He’s in finance.
After starting out as a welder, David Horne enrolled in The Apprentice School, which had an opening for pipefitting. That happened to be his dad’s first job.
“I wasn’t sure I wanted to follow in my dad’s footsteps,” he said. “I was still fairly rebellious at that point. But it had worked for my father, so I gave it a try. All these years later, it turns out to be one of the best decisions I made at the shipyard, to apply to The Apprentice School.”
Horne eventually worked in nuclear engineering – again, just like his dad – before gravitating back to the trades. He credits fellow shipbuilders for his successful career.
“Every job has excited me,” he said. “Every job, I could see myself staying there forever. But openings came along, and I had nudges from others to say, ‘Why don’t you think about this?’ I always had people invest in my development and challenge me. That’s truly been important.”
That same concept – investing in the development of people – is the recipe for success going forward with a new generation of younger shipbuilders.
“We have to make sure we develop their skills, starting with teaching safety every day,” he said.
“We have to invest in their development, and we have to invest in our young leadership too, because leadership for them is different than it was for me.”
Early in his career, Horne did not envision himself at NNS for 41 years. He was a welder, and good welders can work in many places. But he came to respect the importance of working at NNS.
“You would never go anywhere and have the same sense of mission that you have here,” he said. “When I see world events unfolding, we always talk about where the ships are, the carriers and the submarines. Knowing we build those great products, that’s really cool.”
