San Francisco Fleet Yards
The San Francisco Fleet Yards, located in geosynchronous orbit above Starfleet Headquarters in San Francisco, are the oldest Starfleet shipyards in the Federation. More Starfleet vessels have been constructed here than in any other shipyard throughout the Federation, and the San Francisco Fleet Yards continue their long history of service to both Starfleet and the United Federation of Planets. Although operations at the yards have been scaled back in recent years, in favor of never facilities like the Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards, the San Francisco yards continue to operate, and the first of the new Sovereign-class starships were constructed here.
The shipyards consist of a series of drydocks, where ships are built and repaired, and an orbital office complex, all located in geosynchronous orbit.
Among the ships built at the San Francisco Fleet Yards are the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701, U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-A, U.S.S. Excelsior NCC-2000, U.S.S. Sutherland NCC-72015 and U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-E.
In recent years, the majority of starship construction has been shifted to Antares Fleet Yards and Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards.
Orbital Office Complex
The shipyards' orbital office complex is a space station with a multilevel central core, opening up into a broad living and work area toward the bottom, with a central ring of docking pylons used for shuttlepods and work bees. The complex provides extensive living and work space for the personnel of the shipyard, including offices, drafting and design rooms, personnel quarters, and public areas such as replimats.
The bulk of the station is located below the docking ring, with administrative offices, including the Office of the Yard Master and the Logistics Department, which handles traffic in the yards, schedules repair work, and maintains communication with all vessels. The office complex remains in constant contact with the drydocks and with Starfleet Headquarters on Earth.
Drydocks
Ships are built and repaired at the yards' drydocks. They consist of articulated frameworks that enclose the work area and provide support for the ship (which often has to close down its structural integrity fields). Industrial replication systems provide construction parts according to design specifications.
Work bees move large sections into place, where they can be worked on by crew members in environmental suits. Drydocks always contain ships in various stages of repair and construction. At any given time, visitors may see the partially assembled hull of a Nebula-class vessel, the nearly completed stardrive section of an Intrepid-class ship, and an Excelsior-class starship undergoing repairs, along with many other starships.
Reference(s)
- Isaacs, Ross A., et al. A Cadet's Guide to Sector 001, New York: Last Unicorn Games, 1999.