Dry docks turn fleet numbers into usable ships

How would you make the case for better Royal Navy dry facilities?

Argue from availability: a larger escort fleet needs enough dry docks for planned maintenance plus spare capacity when accidents or defects disrupt the schedule.

Dry docks allow ships to complete the maintenance needed before they can deploy. The example assumes six destroyers and eighteen frigates operating on a one-in-three maintenance cycle, implying roughly eight escort dry docks. About ten docks would provide those eight plus spare capacity for accidents or unexpected defects. Naval expansion is therefore constrained by yards and support facilities as well as by hull orders.