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News | June 26, 2019

Annual summit fosters acquisition excellence

By DLA Public Affairs DLA Public Affairs

Defense Logistics Agency Acquisition hosted its annual Fifth Estate Chief Contracting Officer Summit and senior procurement executive visit for DLA’s acquisition workforce in Lorton, Virginia, June 25-26. 

The forum focuses on advancing acquisition oversight and support with continuous process improvements throughout the Fifth Estate community, which implements procurement systems, policies and regulations.  

DLA Acquisition Deputy Director Roxanne Banks oversees DLA’s Fifth Estate organizations. They are: DLA Contracting Support Office, DLA Distribution, DLA Disposition Services, DLA Strategic Materials and the Joint Contingency Acquisition Support Office.

Only 5% of DLA’s acquisitions involve service contracts, Banks said, but they are no less important than other contracts. 

“We have two components to our operations in DLA. We have the material side, which is all our supply buys…,” she said. “And we have our internal operating costs, which are a part and a component of what feeds into our cost recovery rate. Service acquisition contracts feed into that.”

Banks stressed the importance of keeping operating costs down and following audit practices. She also mentioned the success of industry management courses at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia, and the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

Before introducing guest speaker Robert Clarke from the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for acquisition, Banks reviewed the roles and accomplishments of the Fifth Estate organizations. 

“What you do individually from an organizational standpoint is nothing to sneeze at. It’s just amazing what we’re all able to accomplish,” she said.