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News | Jan. 31, 2019

Troop Support hosts JBMDL Logistics Officers Association chapter

By John Dwyer III DLA Troop Support Public Affairs

Leaders from the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support hosted members of the Logistics Officer Association’s Pudgy Chapter from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst to educate the members on its mission and warfighter impact during the visit Jan. 24 in Philadelphia.

LOA members were provided an overview of DLA and DLA Troop Support, as well as detailed presentations from each of Troop Support’s five supply chains: Subsistence, Clothing and Textiles, Construction and Equipment, Medical and Industrial Hardware.

Each presentation touched on the importance of the Troop Support mission and finding supply chain solutions for the warfighter.

“The main wording [in our mission] that always sticks out to me is ‘solutions,’” Janeen Hayes, Troop Support Corporate Communications chief, said. “That’s our main goal…to make sure we’re there to provide solutions to our customers, and primarily that is you – the warfighter.”

The LOA is an organization comprised of current and former military and civilian logistics professionals whose goals, as listed on their Facebook page, include logistic innovation and collaboration – a parallel to one of Troop Support’s objectives: “collaborate with customers, industry…to identify innovative supply chain solutions.”

As a member of the LOA, Air Force Maj. Justin Hickey, 305th Maintenance Squadron commander, appreciated the visit.

“These types of immersions are invaluable for developing our logistics professionals, both junior and senior,” Hickey said. “It’s a chance to see how our piece fits into the larger strategic puzzle and to be exposed to a broader perspective of how supplies and material get into the hands of the warfighter. The LOA visit filled in many of our knowledge gaps about the DoD logistics enterprise and was truly fascinating.” 

During his presentation, C&T director Air Force Col. Melvin Maxwell keyed in on the shared interest in joint solutions. He described the end-to-end logistics processes within C&T, and explained the supply chain’s coordination with military services, industry and other DLA offices to provide the best service possible.

“Big picture, it’s about integrated logistics solutions. It’s not just about acquisition,” Maxwell said.

The director of IH brought the point closer to home for the group when he detailed DLA’s coordination with the Air Force’s 635th Supply Chain Operations Wing, whose mission is to develop logistics solutions and deliver capabilities to the warfighter, according to their official Facebook page.

“[The SCOW] will reach out to DLA Aviation or DLA Land and Maritime,” Air Force Col. Adrian Crowley said. “And if it’s a supplier issue, they reach out to us and we work with [the SCOW] to prioritize and find a solution.”

The tour ended with a visit to Troop Support’s flag room, where presidential and vice presidential flags are hand-embroidered by seamstresses.