We assume the presence of large crews. In developing the ship designs, damage-control systems, equipment, organization, doctrine, and training for minimum manned ships, we must reorient our thinking to today's reality of fewer sailors. Tactically, we believe that our instantaneous response will give us leverage on the battlefield. Maybe we should designate a minimum number of sailors who do not respond when the ship sustains damage, e.g., the officer of the deck. Everyone else would perform planned damage-control actions until the damage is identified and contained.
Some new equipment is on the horizon.
It is designed to keep the damage-control deck more tenable by using remotely controlled, electrically operated ventilation dampers to remove smoke. These could evolve into a system, capable of remotely controlling fire mains, ventilation, ballast, sprinkler, and other components. Any new-design systems and equipment must also be reasonably priced, logistically supportable, and easy to maintain. They must be extremely reliable in the harshest of conditions. Sailors' lives will depend on them.