Dr. Wayne Chepren, a Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division engineer, received the 2014 Rear Admiral William S. Parsons Award for Scientific and Technical Progress at the 2015 U.S. Navy League national convention in Tampa, Fla. Since 1957, this Navy League award for scientific and technical progress has been presented to a Navy or Marine Corps officer, enlisted person or civilian who has made an outstanding contribution in any field of science that has furthered the development and progress of the Navy or Marine Corps. (Submitted photo)
DAHLGREN, Va. - A Navy engineer was honored for scientific and technical achievement impacting the solution of complex Navy, Marine Corps and joint forces problems, the Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD) announced Aug. 19.
U.S. Central Command Deputy Commander Vice Adm. Mark Fox presented the Rear Admiral William S. Parsons Award for Scientific and Technical Progress to Dr. Wayne Chepren, NSWCDD Lethality and Effectiveness Branch engineer, at the 2015 U.S. Navy League convention in Tampa, Fla.
"It's an honor to be among the list of distinguished recipients of this prestigious award and it's a result of my good fortune in working with outstanding people," said Chepren. "This award is really the result of a group effort by NSWC analysts and management over many years."
Chepren was commended for scientific and technical progress based on his substantial contributions towards incorporating the disciplines of computational physics and modeling into the vulnerability, lethality, and effectiveness analysis process.
"Dr. Chepren has advanced the state of understanding of materials properties," according to the citation. "In doing so, he has helped solve complex Navy, Marine Corps and joint problems, and in turn, lives."
The Navy League bestows the award each year to a Navy or Marine Corps officer, enlisted person or civilian, who has made an outstanding contribution in any field of science that has furthered the development and progress of the U.S. Navy or Marine Corps.
"NSWC Dahlgren has provided our analysts with the computational resources necessary to increase the role of computational physics in acquisition and testing," said Chepren, who credited at least 50 people in the Department of Defense and Department of Energy for the contributions described in his citation. "The analysts have applied new developments in computational physics tools and computer hardware to increasingly larger and more challenging problems."
The award, presented since 1957, is named for Rear Adm. William Parsons in recognition of his dedication to all aspects of scientific and technical advances. Moreover, the Navy League recognizes Parsons as "responsible to a marked degree for ensuring that the U.S. Navy remained in operational consonance with the ever-shifting and increasing demands of the changing world."
The award is presented with a certificate and a watch along with other Professional Excellence Awards (Sea Service Awards) at the National Convention of the Navy League of the United States.
NSWCDD, a Naval Sea Systems Command warfare center division, is a premier research and development center that serves as a specialty site for weapon system integration. The command's unique ability to rapidly introduce new technology into complex warfighting systems is based on its longstanding competencies in science and technology, research and development, and test and evaluation.