DLA NewsWire

DLA to help rid Army of excess equipment

Army officials are depending on the Defense Logistics Agency’s disposal and distribution experts to help remove more than 1.2 million pieces of excess equipment from unit inventories in the next two to three years.

The effort, known as “All Army Divestiture,” is expected to free soldiers from costly, time-consuming maintenance on unneeded items as the service reduces its force structure.

“All this extra equipment encumbers the service in terms of people, manpower hours, resources and money for parts. As we help take unneeded equipment off the Army’s property books, soldiers can focus on the mission-essential equipment that’s staying in the force structure. It’s all about readiness,” said Army Col. Mike Arnold, DLA’s Army national account manager.

DLA will assist with divestiture efforts at 13 U.S. installations. Initial planning for each location will be based on the Army’s Master Divestiture List and equipment calculations in the Army’s Decision Support Tool, which weighs the items on units’ property books with what units are authorized. That data will be used to create a plan agreed to by a joint working group comprising installation and unit leaders, as well as representatives from the Army’s Deputy Chief of Staff for Logistics, U.S. Army Forces Command and Army Materiel Command.

“We’re all going to sit down together and look at what’s excess, then do a bottom-up review of it. We’ll agree, on an installation and unit basis, to what’s going to be turned in or destroyed, what space it’s going to be done in and the process for how it’s going to be done,” Arnold said.

— Beth Reece

More online: http://go.usa.gov/cSQwA

Former employees inducted into the DLA Energy Hall of Fame

Six former Defense Logistics Agency Energy employees were inducted in the inaugural DLA Energy Hall of Fame induction ceremony at the McNamara Headquarters Complex, Fort Belvoir, Virginia, May 19.

“The DLA Energy Hall of Fame was established to honor and preserve the memory of past associates for their exceptional leadership, service, dedication to duty and contributions in supporting the DLA mission,” said DLA Energy Commander Air Force Brig. Gen. Mark McLeod. “Today, we begin a tradition of honoring those among us who continually went above and beyond; turning fuel into capability and Energy heritage into a proud and enduring legacy.”

The 2016 DLA Energy Hall of Fame inductees honored in the ceremony are:

• John Bartenhagen, who served in a number of positions within DLA Energy, formerly known as the Defense Fuel Supply Center and the Defense Energy Support Center, from September 1981 to April 2007.

• Edward Biddle, who served as the deputy director of Contracting and Production in acquisition management and contracting positions from July 1963 to March 1998.

• Donald Peschka, who served as the chief of the Contracting Division of Bulk Fuels from October 1983 to December 2004.

• William Robinson, who served as the deputy director of the organization and deputy director and director of the Bulk Petroleum/Fuels from May 1971 to August 2001.

Two of the honorees were inducted posthumously.

• Marshall Gore, Jr., a World War II veteran who served as the chief of Facilities Management from August 1974 to May 2009. 

• William Moon was recognized for his significant contributions and more than 50 years of service to DLA Energy while serving as the distribution manager of DLA Energy Americas at Houston from March 1952 to July 1998.

— DLA Energy Public Affairs

More online: http://go.usa.gov/cSQ74

Subsistence team sees Air Force food initiative at Dover AFB

Subsistence employees visited Dover Air Force Base, Delaware, April 27 to learn more about the Air Force’s Food Transformation Initiative.

The FTI pilot program was launched in 2010 in an effort to provide airmen with more variety and healthier food options, while ensuring that airmen receive training in food service and are ready to deploy.

The FTI was implemented at Dover Air Force Base in the fall of 2015 with the conversion of their dining facility to a college campus-style setup. The initiative allows airmen to use their meal cards at other venues on base.

The group explored the FTI at a base dining facility, two Morale, Welfare and Recreation facilities, and a food kiosk on the flight line. The team also took a tour of the kitchen and observed staff preparing food and updating inventory.

The Subsistence team sampled some of the available FTI items for lunch at the renovated Patterson Dining Facility. The facility now includes a salad bar, smoothie station, a Mongolian style grill and grab-and-go items. They still offer alternatives like pizza, hamburgers and hotdogs.

The FTI is still in the early stages but is gradually being adopted by other Air Force bases. It may also be adopted by other services in the future, said William Diaz, DLA subsistence account manager and retired airman.

— Alex Siemiatkowski,  DLA Troop Support Public Affairs

More online: http://go.usa.gov/cSQAd

Fitness Center enhances resiliency of DLA San Joaquin

The opening of a state-of-the-art fitness center at DLA San Joaquin, California, is meeting one of the main objectives of the DLA Strategic Plan; DLA San Joaquin employees are becoming more resilient in both their professional and personal lives.

DLA’s resiliency model offers four areas of focus to help employees understand what resources are available to them: mental, physical, social and spiritual. Programs like the DLA Fitness Program and offerings such as the Tracy Fitness Center build toward working on the physical component of the model.

The new fitness center has a dedicated exercise room equipped with WELLBEATS, a virtual class where patrons can choose a class on demand that best works for them.

Oanh Dang, an engineer with DLA Installation Support San Joaquin, is a happy patron. She enjoys the center and appreciates its great location by the installation’s employee gate, making it easily accessible. She also enjoys all the new and latest equipment, programs and tools for all types of exercises and health development programs.

“This fitness center is very much comparable to any commercial gym and it is free of membership fees,” Dang said. “Plus, employees don’t have to drive a distance to work out; it is right here on site. Employees can stop by in the morning before going to work, during lunch break, or right after work hours. The new gym has everything you need to continue or begin your physical program.”

— Annette Silva, DLA Distribution Public Affairs

More online: http://go.usa.gov/cSQfe