Navy looking for fresh thinking on future warships.

* It took the Navy more than 10 years to design and start building its littoral combat ships. The warship that would succeed the LCS--dubbed "small surface combatant"--might be in the fleet within just five years.

The Navy took the first step toward that goal April 30 when it issued two "requests for information on ship technologies and designs that could be applied to the future combatant.

A team of naval warfare and ship technology experts--led by John Burrow, executive director of the Marine Corps Systems Command--has until July 31 to evaluate suggestions and decide which ideas merit further consideration.

The message to the industry is "tell us what you think," said Burrow.

Burrow's group was stood up in March following marching orders from Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel. The secretary told the...