DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

The Nation’s Combat Logistics Support Agency May / June 2018

SPACE: DLA’S ENERGY FRONTIER

Boosting

the Future

 DLA Supports the Next

 Level of Space Launches

 with Reliable, Quality 

 Sources of Propellant

 

Waste Not, Want Not

DLA Disposition Services Refines 

Approach to HAZMAT Handling

Transporting History

DLA Distribution Helps Return 

Antique Rifles from the 

Philippines to the United States

Feeding the Spirit

Helping Chaplains Meet Spiritual 

Needs of Service Members with 

the Religious Supply Program
DLA DIRECTOR 

Army Lt. Gen. Darrell K. Williams

DLA VICE DIRECTOR

Ted Case

CHIEF OF STAFF

Kristin K. French

DIRECTOR, PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Joseph M. Yoswa

DEPUTY DIRECTOR, PUBLIC AFFAIRS

Patrick H. Mackin

MANAGING EDITOR

Phil Prater

SENIOR EDITOR

John R. Bell

WRITERS

Beth Reece

Dianne Ryder

LAYOUT AND DESIGN

Paul Henry Crank

LOGLINES

THE OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION OF THE 

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY 

Army Lt. Gen. Darrell K. Williams

Director, Defense Logistics Agency

From the Director

As I approach the one-year mark as director of the Defense 

Logistics Agency, I’ve come to a few bedrock conclusions — that 

we’re a phenomenal agency with great people, performing a 

unique mission.

Over the past year, I’ve visited our warfighters and customers 

around the United States and the globe. Wherever I go, I’m invariably 

asked what it is DLA does. 

To simplify my answer, I attempt to compare what we do in terms 

of civilian corporations. Our fuel mission compares to a large oil 

company. Our FedMall capability is similar to an online shopping 

retailer. We have warehouse storage capacity and delivery solutions 

like a package delivery company. 

But my explanation falls short when I talk about all the services 

under the DLA umbrella — the disposition piece, military support, 

documents and maps, support to other federal agencies and all the 

other aspects that add up to DLA’s incredibly broad capability.

The bottom line is few organizations, civilian or military, have 

a range and depth of mission that rivals that of DLA. We can take 

pride in how well we accomplish such a unique mission and how 

indispensable we’ve become to what gets done in our nation.

This issue of Loglines features outstanding examples of our mission 

diversity, starting with DLA Energy’s initiatives to provide propellants 

to commercial space programs. We feature DLA Document Services 

and its mission to print not only documents, but also maps, banners, 

signs and more used throughout the federal government. 

We also spotlight the DLA Disposition Services team and its 

important mission to safely and efficiently dispose of hazardous 

materials. We feature an article about DLA Troop Support’s religious 

supply program, which supports the spiritual needs of our military, 

regardless of their faith. 

I’m always interested in the latest activities of my former 

command, DLA Land and Maritime, so it’s great to see an in-depth 

interview with its commander, Navy Rear Adm. Michelle Skubic. And 

in a related article, we celebrate the 100th anniversary of Defense 

Supply Center Columbus.

From the ocean depths to the depths of space, our agency engages 

in an impressive scope of activities, all with the world-class dedication 

and professionalism of our phenomenal DLA team. I am pleased to 

present more examples of DLA’s unique mission in support of our 

warfighters and our nation — no one else does what we do. 

Please enjoy this issue of Loglines! LL

LOGLINES is the authorized publication for the Defense 

Logistics Agency’s workforce of federal civilians, activeduty military and Joint Reserve Force augmentees at 

agency activities worldwide and industry customers of 

DLA. Contents of this publication are not necessarily the 

official views of, or endorsed by, the U.S. government, the 

Department of Defense or the Defense Logistics Agency. 

LOGLINES is prepared electronically, using desktop 

publishing applications; no commercial typesetting 

costs are involved. Photos not credited are courtesy of 

agency sources. Submissions and correspondence may 

be sent to the address below:

Headquarters, Defense Logistics Agency 

Office of Public Affairs 

8725 John J. Kingman Road, Suite 2545 

Fort Belvoir, VA 22060-6221

DLA ON THE WEB www.dla.mil www.facebook.com/dla.mil

SUBSCRIBE TO LOGLINES MAGAZINE

If you would like to be on the Loglines mailing list, 

please email loglines@dla.mil with your name, 

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Boosting the Future ..............................02

As commercial entrepreneurs take space launch to the next 

level, DLA Energy is there to provide reliable, quality sources 

of propellant. 

Waste Not, Want Not ............................08

Disposing of hazardous waste ever more securely, efficiently 

and in a way that’s safe for the earth takes creative thinking 

from the people at DLA Disposition Services. 

Transporting History ............................ 13

Halfway across the globe, DLA Distribution is helping return 

antique rifles from the Philippines to the United States.

Feeding the Spirit .................................. 16

DLA helps military chaplains meet service members’ 

spiritual needs with a religious supply program that includes 

over 500 items. 

Defense Supply Center Columbus:

100 Years of Warfighter Support ........25

For 100 years, a small military post in central Ohio has 

played a major role supporting U.S. servicemen and women 

around the world.

More Than Memos ................................30

Document Services produces much more than documents — 

from targets to maps to signage and other products. 

02

25

13

30

Features

Departments

A Conversation with ... ......................... 21

Navy Rear Adm. Michelle Skubic

DLA NewsWire .......................................28

I am DLA ..................................Back Cover

Rhonda Blum

www.twitter.com/dlamil www.youtube.com/dodlogisticsagency
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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

THE NATION’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

Boosti

An Atlas V rocket from United Launch Alliance lifts off from Cape 

Canaveral, Florida. DLA Energy provides propellants to ULA for 

commercial space launch. — Photo Courtesy United Launch Alliance
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May / June 2018 3

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DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

ng the Future

Story by Connie Braesch, DLA Energy

Since long before Neil Armstrong took “one 

giant leap for mankind” onto the moon July 

20, 1969, people have been in awe of our 

place in the universe. For decades, scientists and 

engineers have sought to reveal possibilities in 

what was thought impossible. 

As space exploration enters a new phase with the 

commercial space-launch industry sending larger, more 

efficient and reusable rockets into space, so does the 

need for reliable, quality sources of propellant. 

As the Department of Defense Integrated Materiel 

Manager for space and space-related products since 

2001, the Defense Logistics Agency Energy has 

provided fuel sources for a variety of DoD, federal and 

commercial missions as well as research. 

Provider of Choice

Averaging about 15 launches per year, DLA 

Energy Aerospace Energy powers the rockets carrying 

vital satellites and other spacecraft to improve 

communication, weather forecasting and knowledge of 

the solar system.

While DoD and NASA are prominent DLA Energy 

customers, in recent years private space companies 
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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

THE NATION’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

were added to Aerospace Energy’s 

customer list under the Commercial 

Space Launch Act. The CSLA was passed 

by Congress in the 1980s to encourage 

private industry to develop space-related 

technology. 

“One benefit offered by the legislation 

was access to government infrastructure 

and resources, including the services DLA 

provides in managing and distributing the 

fuel and related products used for these 

activities,” said Ken Grams, director of 

DLA Energy Aerospace Energy Customer 

Operations. “With the emergence of 

several new launch/space companies 

in the last few years; the legislation is 

certainly achieving its goals.” 

In fact, when the first privately built 

and funded spacecraft from Space 

Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX, 

connected with the International Space 

Station in May 2012, it used DLA Energy 

Aerospace Energy products to get there.

Aerospace Energy also provides 

propellants for another commercial 

company, United Launch Alliance. ULA 

rocket launches carry DoD or NASA 

equipment, including a satellite used 

to detect ballistic missile launches and 

provide advance warning of nuclear 

attacks; satellites designed to improve 

ground communications for U.S. forces 

on the move; and a satellite to study the 

Earth’s carbon dioxide levels and their 

effect on climate change.

While the commercial space launch 

industry is gaining prominence, DLA 

Energy Aerospace Energy has a long 

history of supporting federal agencies 

like NASA, the National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration and the 

National Weather Service (both agencies 

of the Department of Commerce).

When NASA’s Orion deep-space cap-

sule was launched in December 2014, 

it carried Aerospace Energy products. 

It was the first mission since Apollo to 

Workers wear hazardous materials suits and follow 

decontamination procedures around dinitrogen tetroxide or 

hydrazine at the Hypergol Storage Facility on Vandenberg Air 

Force Base, California. Hypergolic propellants spontaneously 

ignite when they come into contact with each other.

Nutan Chada
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carry a spacecraft built for humans to 

deep space. It was also the first time 

this next-generation spacecraft was 

tested against the challenges of space, 

and the first operational test of a heat 

shield strong enough to protect against 

4,000-degree temperatures.

In February 2015, Aerospace Energy 

provided the products for a joint NASA 

and NOAA mission that launched a commercially owned SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket 

carrying the Deep Space Climate observatory satellites into space. The satellites, 

powered by Aerospace Energy hydrazine, 

serve as a NOAA weather platform to 

monitor the solar wind and provide early 

warning of geomagnetic storms that 

could affect satellites, communications 

and power grids.

As NASA’s unmanned Juno spacecraft 

headed toward Jupiter in July 2016, it 

carried propellants provided by DLA 

Energy to help steer and maintain its 

position once in orbit, where it would 

remain the next 20 months.

Aerospace Energy also helped NOAA 

launch a rocket carrying a satellite 

system to improve weather forecasting 

and detect climate patterns, help 

emergency managers respond to events 

and help communities recover from 

severe storms.

Galactic Gases

While supplying products to support 

space exploration isn’t rocket science, 

it does involve careful planning and 

complex supply-chain management. 

In a car or airplane engine, fuel 

mixes with oxygen in the air to produce 

combustion. Rockets and satellites 

also rely on a fuel and an oxidizer, but 

because of the large quantities needed 

and because there is practically no 

oxygen in space, the satellites have to 

take the oxidizer with them or rely on a 

monopropellant grade of the fuel.

“For instance, for boost you might 

have liquid hydrogen, which is the fuel, 

and liquid oxygen, which is the oxidizer,” 

Grams said. “It’s the combination of the 

two that causes the reaction to create the 

energy required to send the tonnage up 

into space.” 

Grams added that the fuel of 

choice for satellites is hydrazine and 

the oxidizer is dinitrogen tetroxide, 

due to their stability and long shelf life. 

They’re know as hypergolic propellants, 

meaning that when they’re combined, 

they self-ignite. DLA Energy Aerospace 

Energy stores both.

Of the 92 products DLA Energy 

Aerospace Energy provides, 11 are 

specific to space missions: rocket 

propellant-1 and -2, hydrogen, oxygen, 

nitrogen, helium, gaseous nitrogen, 

dinitrogen tetroxide, hydrazine, methane 

and isopropyl alcohol.

For example, when NASA launched 

a rocket carrying the New Horizons 

spacecraft bound for Pluto in January 

2006, it carried a variety of Aerospace 

Energy products.

The Lockheed Martin Atlas V rocket 

itself lifted off with more than 91,000 

gallons of propellants, quickly reaching 

36,000 mph, more than 47 times the 

speed of sound. 

Other chemicals onboard supported 

a variety of functions, according to the 

rocket’s manufacturer, Lockheed Martin. 

Liquid nitrogen was used to chill the gaseous helium, which cooled the rocket’s 

Centaur engine pumps. Gaseous helium 

pressurized propellant tanks, provided 

purges and operated valves. Gaseous 

nitrogen purged the various rocket compartments. Hydrazine helped position the 

spacecraft before separation and settled 

the fuel in the tank. Rocket propellant-1 

and liquid oxygen powered the rocket’s 

RD-180 engine in stage 1, and liquid 

oxygen and liquid hydrogen were used to 

power the Centaur engine in stage 2. 

The rocket’s payload, the New 

Horizons spacecraft, also relied on DLA 

Energy Aerospace Energy fuels. Its 

onboard propulsion system required 

enough hydrazine to power a dozen 

A DLA Energy Aerospace Energy contractor pulls a sample 

of rocket fuel out of the tank at Vandenberg Air Force Base, 

California, to send to the Air Force Petroleum Office’s fuel 

laboratory for testing.

Nutan Chada
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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

THE NATION’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

“Quality assurance has to be exact 

due to the duration of the missions,” 

said Doug Smith, director of DLA Energy 

Aerospace Energy Supplier Operations. 

“Any little imperfection can horribly affect 

the mission. Because our controls are 

tight, this mission was a big success. 

The New Horizons spacecraft traveled 

more than 3 billion miles over almost 10 

years, fueled by our products. So that 

gives you an example of how important 

maintaining quality is.”

Getting the Goods

From gathering customer requirements to procurement, transportation, 

storage and testing, DLA Energy Aerospace Energy is a one-stop shop for its 

customers, Smith said. 

“We have quality assurance representatives at the DLA Energy regional 

offices worldwide who inspect the product. We have a team of chemists internal 

to DLA Energy who partner with both 

the Air Force Petroleum Labs at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, and 

Kennedy Space Center [Cape Canaveral, 

Florida], as well as with the Air Force 

Research Labs. We manage the containers as well, so customers don’t have 

to go out and procure or manage their 

own. And we have a team of buyers and 

customer account specialists who know 

these products and are experts in them.”

 “We gather requirements and put 

them all together. If you buy more of 

something, you get more interest from 

industry, which in turn typically gets you a 

better price,” he said. 

Getting the aerospace products 

efficiently from point A to B is part of 

managing the supply chain, and because 

these products are hazardous materials, 

safe handling is a top priority. 

“Dinitrogen tetroxide and some 

of the hydrazine fuels are inhalation 

hazards, are corrosive and have a lot of 

different labels on them,” Grams said. 

1-pound thrusters for orientation and 

small maneuvering capability to complete 

its 10-plus-year mission.

“It’s very important that the products 

meet the specification requirements,” 

Grams said. “Especially for the hydrazine 

and dinitrogen tetroxide that’s put in a 

satellite or a space probe. The last thing 

they want is for something to go wrong 

with the fuel so they can’t get the mission 

accomplished. So we have tight controls 

on the purity.”

On July 14, 2015, nearly 10 years 

after launch, New Horizon accomplished 

its mission and became the first 

spacecraft to fly by Pluto and its moon 

Charon, sending back high-resolution 

photographs of Pluto and Charon.

Nutan Chada

Mike Miller (left) and Dan Lerma (right) from the DLA Energy 

Aerospace Energy Customer Operations team, along with a 

vendor, stand on top of the giant liquid nitrogen tank during 

a tour of the Gaseous Nitrogen Plant on Vandenberg Air 

Force Base, California. The nitrogen is converted from liquid 

to gas on site and pushed through a pipeline to the different 

space-launch complexes on the base.
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information among the military, defense 

agencies, NASA, U.S. industry and 

academia to respond to current and 

future aerospace propulsion needs. 

“We come together to make 

educated decisions on investment 

strategies inclusive of the propellants 

to support their projects,” Smith said. 

“Wherever space launch goes, we’re 

trying to position ourselves to support 

their needs.”

Aerospace Energy is also partnering 

with the Air Force Research Labs looking for the fuel of the future, Smith said. 

It’s part of a group looking at cleaner 

aerospace energy products, as well as a 

satellite project that could use a “green” 

monopropellant.

“It could be a replacement for 

hydrazine at some point,” Smith noted.

As the desire to explore and challenge 

our limits pushes the boundaries of 

science, DLA Energy Aerospace Energy 

will be there, ensuring the agency’s 

whole-of-government partners have a 

reliable and high-quality source for their 

space fuels.

While we might still think of movies 

like Star Wars, Alien, Interstellar and 

The Martian when we think about 

space travel, out-of-this-world space 

exploration isn’t just for Hollywood. LL

“So the transportation side of it is not as 

straightforward as sending something 

via FedEx. You need dedicated drivers 

and in some cases dual drivers that are 

HAZMAT certified.”

Smith and Grams don’t recall any 

safety problems in transporting these 

products. The closest call Smith can 

remember was when there were 

wildfires out near Vandenberg several 

years ago.

“They dug trenches to protect the 

fuels, so it was a nonevent from a safety 

standpoint, due to all the hard work the 

folks did at Vandenberg,” he said.

Finding efficient ways to get these 

products to the customer also helps to 

keep the costs low. 

“A lot of the products start out in the 

normal atmosphere as a gas, but we buy 

them as a liquid,” Smith said. “They’re 

usually hundreds of degrees below zero, 

but you get a lot more product if you get 

it in a liquid that you can turn into gas. 

And it’s a lot more efficient to move it that 

way too.”

At Vandenberg, DLA Energy Aerospace Energy contracts a gaseous nitrogen plant where the product is converted 

from a liquid back to gas on-site.

“The plant has pumps and vaporizers 

to convert the liquid to gas, pump it 

up to a high pressure and push it out 

via pipeline to the south base launch 

complexes,” Smith said. 

Also on Vandenberg is a storage 

facility for hypergolic propellants.

“The products we manage are 

specialized, and a lot of work goes into 

ensuring this supply chain runs smoothly,” 

Smith said. “Being a part of space 

missions as the logistics supplier for the 

propellants is something very special. 

The team isn’t just negotiating contracts, 

placing orders, managing inventory or 

creating transportation movements; 

they’re [also] impacting historic 

exploration and scientific discovery.”

The Future of Space 

Propellants

With DLA and its customers looking 

at ways to be more cost-effective and 

efficient, partnering during the research 

and development is important. 

“Rocket scientists are always looking 

for a better, safer fuel,” Grams said. “We 

try to get involved in the early stages to 

help them develop specifications. We’re 

there at the front end to help them avoid 

issues that can arise in the procurement 

process at the tail end.”

As a member of the Joint Army Navy 

NASA Air Force Interagency Propulsion 

Committee, DLA Energy Aerospace 

Energy promotes and facilitates the 

exchange of technical and programmatic 

“ROCKET SCIENTISTS ARE ALWAYS LOOKING FOR A BETTER, 

SAFER FUEL”

 — KEN GRAMS

Army 1st Lt. Caitie Sweet

Ainsley Allen, lab chief for the Air Force Petroleum Office’s 

fuel laboratory at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, 

receives samples for testing. The lab tests propellants 

and gases used on the rockets and analyzes them for 

contaminants and particles that could interfere with 

spacecraft operations.
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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

THE NATION’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

Waste Not,

 Want Not

Story by Dianne Ryder

lists of hazardous wastes — such as 

cleaners, chemicals, oils and fuels. The 

Department of Defense also generates 

wastes that are not regulated as 

hazardous but that require controlled 

treatment and disposal, said Rick Klingel, 

DLA Disposition Services Environmental 

Division chief.

“There are some things that are not 

toxic or dangerous enough to be on the 

EPA’s lists but are still not so innocuous 

DLA 

DISPOSITION 

SERVICES 

TEAMS ENSURE 

HAZARDOUS

WASTE IS

DISPOSED OF 

PROPERLY

AND

EFFICIENTLY

When people think about 

hazardous waste, they might 

imagine barrels marked with 

a skull and crossbones, containing 

highly toxic chemicals. But how does 

the Defense Logistics Agency support 

the disposal of hazardous waste — 

especially those the government 

produces daily? 

The Environmental Protection 

Agency maintains definitions and 

A DLA contractor prepares hazardous waste to be removed from a Defense Department generator site.

Courtesy Photo
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that you want to throw it in the regular 

garbage or toss it down the drain,” he 

said. “You treat oils differently from 

solvents, corrosives and paint waste.”

For example, latex paint does not 

qualify as hazardous waste, but oilbased paint or primer does. Likewise, 

used motor oil and antifreeze are 

technically not hazardous waste, but 

DLA has contractors who dispose of all 

these materials in an environmentally 

sensitive way.

While only half to two-thirds 

of what DLA Disposition Services 

receives is regulated as hazardous 

waste, the other portion “is toxic 

enough that you want to dispose of it 

responsibly,” Klingel said.

He noted the installations that 

generate the waste are bound by law 

to thoroughly identify the material.

“If they have an industrial process 

where they’re painting fighter jets, 

they’ve probably got tanks of solvent, 

because they have to strip the wing before they repaint it,” he said. “All kinds of 

chemicals may be mixed, as they have 

to clean out the paint guns frequently.” 

The installations share information 

about the materials’ properties with 

the DLA Disposition Services team, 

who then issues a disposal task order 

to the contractor. The contractor must 

know the chemical composition of the 

waste to choose the proper treatment 

or disposal facility, Klingel said. 

Around the world, DLA Disposition 

Services has about 100 field offices 

that dispose of excess property, he said. 

About two-thirds have environmental 

protection specialists whose main duty 

is to function as contracting officer 

representatives on about 80 contracts.

Chunky But Smooth

“You could break the mission into four 

chunks,” Klingel said. His staff and regional 

staffs around the world handle the first 

chunk: gathering the requirements and 

building the procurement request.

The DLA Disposition Services 

Acquisition office does most of the 

second chunk, he said: soliciting and 

awarding the contracts. 

Next, the environmental protection 

specialists put on their COR hats to 

oversee the contractors doing the 

actual waste removals. “That’s the third 

chunk,” Klingel said. The Acquisition 

contract officers and worldwide CORs 

do most of the heavy lifting. 

Contractors handle the fourth chunk, 

submitting documentation to prove they 

responsibly transported and delivered 

the waste to the disposal facility.

Special Handling Required

Klingel’s staff in Battle Creek, 

Michigan, conducts quality assurance on 

the contractors’ performance.

“For most of the missions DLA 

Disposition Services supports, DoD 

customers bring their excess property to 

our field offices. We physically take it and 

run it through the disposal cycle,” Klingel 

said. “Hazardous-waste disposal is the 

opposite of that. You don’t want to unnecessarily move pails and drums of toxic 

hazardous waste from place to place.”

That’s where the contractors come 

in. All the hazardous-waste contracts 

are service contracts, Klingel said. 

“We take the service provider to the 

customer. We’re essentially a specialized, 

just-in-time hazardous waste 

contracting service,” he said. “When an 

installation has hazardous waste they 

want to dispose of, they’ll give us turn-in 

documents. But instead of physically 

bringing it to our site, we’ll do a receiptin-place and then issue a task order to 

the contractor.”

“YOU DON’T WANT TO UNNECESSARILY MOVE PAILS AND 

DRUMS OF TOXIC HAZARDOUS WASTE FROM PLACE TO PLACE.”

 — RICK KLINGEL

Air Force Airman 1st Class Tessa Corrick

Expired hydraulic fluid sits in a storage locker at Barksdale Air 

Force Base, Louisiana. One of the main criteria for repurposed 

chemicals is that they must be used on noncritical and 

nontactical vessels. 
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THE NATION’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

used were hazardous-waste treatment, 

storage and disposal facilities identified 

in DLA’s Qualified Facility List. Only after 

they verify this does DLA authorize payment to the contractor.

Schneider’s team also develops 

and submits to the contracting office 

a procurement request, “basically a 

hazardous-waste disposal contract,” 

he said.

It’s a long process, beginning a 

year out. Schneider and his team meet 

with customers, hazardous-waste 

generators, military service members 

and CORs, to gather all the requirements 

and consolidate them into a contract.

Schneider said the contracts are 

typically renewals or follow-on contracts. 

But sometimes they write brand-new 

contracts or requirements, such as the 

one they’re working on for a foaming 

agent used in firefighting. 

His team is writing a contract for 

removal, destruction and disposal of the 

chemical for the Army, Navy and Marine 

Corps, having developed one for the 

Air Force last year. The foaming agent 

contains chemicals that are “on the 

EPA’s radar,” Schneider said. 

The most common waste items the 

team disposes of are generated by motor 

pools: petroleum, oils, other lubricants 

From there, the contractor picks 

up the material from the installation 

and takes it to a landfill, incinerator or 

treatment site.

Location, Location, Location

Having global service contracts 

means the specifications can vary 

according to the location. The Resource 

Conservation and Recovery Act, or RCRA, 

governs the disposal of hazardous waste 

and is enforced by the EPA. However, 

the RCRA only applies to U.S. locations, 

Klingel said. In foreign countries, disposal 

is governed by that country’s laws or 

international law.

In the United States, contractors 

usually must retrieve the wastes within 

15-30 days. 

“Some contracts, in the Middle East 

for example, specify that the contractor 

has to respond within 60 days because 

international environmental and local 

customs requirements take extra time,” 

Klingel said.

Klingel said Jacksonville, Florida, is 

DLA’s largest customer because it’s 

where the Navy maintains and services 

its planes. 

“It’s an industrial base with a high 

operation tempo, so that contract has 

a 15-day contractor response time,” 

he said. 

Contracts are tailored to meet 

the regional customers’ operational 

requirements. For example, Afghanistan 

has a 90-day window, because it 

demands of the contractor a lot more 

work and effort to transport people, 

supplies and equipment from Europe, 

Klingel said. 

Joining the Environmental Support 

Branch at DLA Disposition Services 

Headquarters is the Hazardous Disposal 

Branch, led by Steve Schneider, its 

branch chief.

Schneider has a team of manifest 

trackers whose primary mission is to 

track every pound of hazardous waste 

turned in under DLA’s contracts, from 

generation to disposal. As they look at 

the documentation the contractor provided his or her staff, comparing it with 

the information the COR entered into 

the Distribution Standard System, the 

manifest trackers verify the contractor 

properly managed the waste in accordance with the contract requirements. 

This includes verifying the only facilities 

Larry Allen, aircraft painter, L3 Communications Integrated 

Systems Vertex Aerospace, applies paint to protect the C-130 

aircraft body from corrosion that can easily occur at high 

altitudes, at Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas. Aircraft painters 

remove grease, dirt, paint or rust from the aircraft services in 

preparation for paint application, using abrasives, solvents, 

brushes and sandblasters. 

A truck from Japan Iron Engineering waits by the pier at 

U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, Japan, to transport hazardous 

materials to a facility for disposal, treatment or storage.

Danny Webb
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and antifreeze. But they also dispose of 

“everything coming out of the various 

installations,” he said. 

The team has 54 contracts that 

cover nearly all U.S. military bases, 

Schneider said. 

“Some bases specialize in different 

operations like metal plating, for instance, 

where they’re generating waste that 

contains cyanides and heavy metals. We 

manage a broad spectrum of hazardous 

wastes, including ignitable, corrosive, 

reactive and toxic wastes,” he said.

CLINching a Victory

Schneider said the most significant 

task his team has done is reengineering 

DLA Disposition Services’ hazardouswaste disposal contracts, aligning them 

with private-sector standards.

Starting four years ago, the team 

launched the first-of-its-kind profilebased, contract line-item-number 

contract, known commonly as a CLIN.

This helps contractors make better 

informed, more competitive bids, 

Schneider said. 

“It’s been quite a challenge to 

convert our contracts from a 25-yearold, outdated model to one that’s 

vastly different but much more 

efficient,” he added.

Schneider explained previous 

contracts were designed solely around 

EPA waste codes. He also said the 

Federal Acquisition Regulation forbids 

the government from imposing financial 

risks on the contracting community that 

companies don’t normally encounter 

in the private sector. But the previous 

contracts did just that.

“The contractors had to make a lot 

of assumptions because our CLINs were 

so broad and generic,” he said. “Our 

CLIN descriptions now are much more 

specific and developed with the different 

technologies in mind.”

Schneider said a lot of CLINs are very 

technology-centric. 

“Some CLINs do require certain 

technologies, but for the most part, we 

don’t tell our contractors how they must 

dispose of the waste,” he said. “But by 

looking at our CLIN descriptions, they 

can leverage their best assets to provide 

a more competitive bid.”

When Schneider’s team designs 

the CLINs, they use cost triggers in the 

descriptions to indicate which technologies might best be used. For example, 

a CLIN may describe the energy value 

of a waste, enabling the contractor to 

base pricing on using fuels blending for 

disposal, rather than the more costly 

technology of incineration. 

In fuels blending, organic waste 

is used as an alternative fuel to 

manufacture cement. It displaces the 

coal that would otherwise be burned 

by the cement kiln. The cost to the 

contractor is a fraction of the cost of 

incineration, where the waste is simply 

destroyed and no energy is recovered.

“It’s always more expensive to burn 

something for the sake of destroying 

it than it is to recover energy from 

it,” he said. “What we’ve done is 

eliminate much of the guesswork and 

financial risk to the contractor without 

transferring any of that risk to our 

warfighter customers.” 

With Disposition Services providing 

more details about the waste, “contractors can better determine their technology of choice rather than base their 

costs on worse-case assumptions they 

had to make under the previous, generic 

CLIN structure,” Schneider said. 

“We’re clearly seeing more competition for our business,” he added, 

“and the data indicates that DoD and 

taxpayers are saving approximately 

17 percent for the management of 

Pallets containing hazardous materials, such as oil and 

paint, are stored prior to use at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard 

in Portsmouth, Virginia. A system implemented by DLA now 

manages hazardous materials at four Naval Sea Systems 

Command shipyards.

Yasuo Tsunoda

Randall Wisinger
page

12 www.dla.mil

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DLA LAND AND MARITIME

Supplier Conference

June 19 - 20

Greater Columbus Convention Center

Columbus, Ohio

http://go.usa.gov/xRsTg

military-generated hazardous waste 

under the new contract model.”

Another reason for the change from 

waste-code-based CLINs to profilebased contracts is to standardize 

contracts across DLA worldwide, 

Schneider said. 

“When DLA employees go from one 

region to another, the contracts are very 

similar in format and content,” he said.

The Weighting is the

Hardest Part

One of the biggest differences is 

that the previous government contracts 

were on a per-pound basis to comply 

with RCRA, established more than 25 

years ago.

“We’ve now aligned with industry 

in that most of the waste is managed 

and priced by container size — that’s 

been a big change,” Schneider said. 

“Some things, like batteries and 

polychlorinated biphenyls are still 

measured in pounds. But by far, most 

of the waste now is turned in, managed 

and priced by container size because 

that’s the way industry does it.” 

Schneider said the conversion from 

pounds to container size presented 

challenges to many customers. 

“Our reporting and our data only 

showed how many pounds of toxic solids 

were turned in for a given period. Because 

everything was based on pounds, we 

couldn’t tell how many of those pounds 

were turned in as 55-gallon drums and 

how many were turned in as 20,000 

pound bulk loads,” he said. 

“So we had to create a new 

contract model with estimated 

quantities that were, at times, much 

of a guess. But now that everything is 

by container size, renewals of these 

five-year contracts are easy, because 

we can pull a report and we can see 

how many 5-gallon pails were turned 

in, how many 55-gallon drums, how 

many gallons were removed by tanker 

trucks versus drums — it’s a lot more 

specific now.”

Schneider said he sees potential 

for further improvements, such as 

transportation pricing that’s separate 

from disposal pricing, and an increase in 

waste minimization. But one thing will 

not change.

“Everything revolves around RCRA,” 

he said. “That’s our ‘holy grail’ and is at the 

centerpiece of our disposal contracts.”

From contracting and manifest 

tracking to ultimate disposal, the focused 

effort by so many employees across 

the agency helps DLA avoid a type of 

waste many consider one of the most 

hazardous of all: waste of the American 

taxpayers’ money. 

That’s a hazard no one at DLA 

will accept. LL
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May / June 2018 13

LOGLINES

DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

Transporting 

History Story by James McCormack

Deputy Director, DLA Distribution Business Development

Armed Forces of the Philippines agreed 

to support this initiative and submitted 

the paperwork with the Department 

of State. The Army asked that DLA 

Distribution facilitate the inventory and 

shipment of these weapons.

Background

In March 2017, six agencies formed 

a coalition to develop a plan for returning 

the WWII vintage M1 Garand rifles: 

The U.S. Army Headquarters, Army 

Tank and Automotive Command, the 

Defense Security Cooperation Agency, 

the Joint U.S. Military Assistance Group–

Philippines, U.S. Transportation Command 

and the Defense Logistics Agency. The 

plan was to transport the rifles from just 

outside Manila to a facility in Alabama for 

retrieval by the Army.

DLA’s involvement stemmed from 

its Foreign Military Sales Distribution 

Services Initiative with USTRANSCOM. 

This initiative is a freight-forwarderlike service offered to partner nations. 

The service can move FMS cargo from 

within the continental U.S. to areas 

beyond, as well as repair materiel for 

FMS customers. 

DSCA officials believed the repair 

component would be a good solution for 

the repatriation of the M1 rifles, which 

would then be passed on to CMP.

Once CMP has the weapons, it 

will refurbish the M1s and offer them 

Defense Logistics Agency 

Distribution provides global 

distribution to America’s military 

and other federal agencies. With a 

focus on its core mission — the receipt, 

storage and issuance of materiel — the 

organization regularly seeks ways to 

increase warfighter readiness.

To that end, DLA Distribution 

was given a unique mission last year: 

accounting for and transporting nearly 

90,000 U.S.-provided rifles from the 

Philippines to the United States.

The project was the result of a World 

War II agreement in which the U.S. would 

provide M1 Garand rifles to the Philippine 

government for military assistance. 

The M1 Garand (rhymes with errand) 

is a .30 caliber semiautomatic rifle that 

was the standard U.S. service rifle during 

World War II and the Korean War. It also 

saw limited service during the Vietnam 

War. Most M1 rifles were issued to U.S. 

forces, though hundreds of thousands 

were also provided as foreign aid to 

American allies, such as the Philippines. 

Recently, the Army asked if foreign 

partners could support the Civilian 

Marksmanship Program by returning 

small arms they no longer need. The 

Team members from the Joint Armed Forces of the Philippines 

and the United States conducting M1 Inventory.

Photo Courtesy Joint U.S. Military Assistance Group – Philippines
page

14 www.dla.mil

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

THE NATION’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

for sale to the public. The rifles, which 

initially sold for the equivalent of $1,200 

during World War II, can sell for the same 

price in current-year dollars or even 

more after being refurbished.

Mission Planning and 

Execution 

The DLA team arrived in the 

Philippines in mid-August and began 

joint inventory operations with the AFP 

team within days. 

DLA Distribution conducted overall 

project management and placed 

personnel and equipment at Camp 

Aguinaldo, near Quezon City, Philippines, 

to inventory, pack, crate and arrange 

transportation of the M1s. 

Inventory, based on each M1 serial 

number, had to be done by U.S. and 

Philippine representatives, so both 

parties would be confident in the 

accounting and transportation of each 

rifle. DLA Distribution used its Global 

Distribution Expeditionary Contract to 

direct its service provider to do the work. 

The contract allows DLA to support 

new or surge-related, storage and 

distribution missions around the world 

that fall outside its capacity. 

DLA Distribution also deployed a DLA 

civilian trained in contract oversight to 

perform quality assurance and to directly 

interact with the JUSMAG and AFP at 

Camp Aguinaldo.

Overcoming Challenges

Accounting for and transporting 

90,000 small arms from the other 

side of the globe is challenging under 

any circumstances. Throw in termite 

infestation, monsoon season, and 

asbestos contamination, and it’s a recipe 

for disaster. 

Early in the planning, the M1 project 

team learned many of the rifles showed 

termite damage. This was validated 

during the team’s initial site visit to 

Camp Aguinaldo in April 2017. 

However, it was also clear most of 

the weapons were still restorable. The 

team first had to determine if there was 

still an active termite infestation. If so, 

then termite treatment would be next. 

There were active infestations in the 

warehouses — but there were no active 

infestations in the rifles themselves. As a 

preventive measure, since the rifles were 

to remain in the warehouses for about 

six more months, the team arranged for 

the rifles to be treated for termites. 

However, there were more 

challenges to come.

After several days inventorying and 

packing the M1s, the team encountered 

its first torrential downpour. Though they 

were doing the work inside a warehouse, 

they quickly discovered the roof of the 

WWII-era warehouse was damaged, 

allowing significant rainfall to enter. 

Fortunately, the area where the already 

inventoried M1s had been positioned 

was spared any rain damage. The team 

immediately marked the locations with 

rain leakage and reorganized operations 

and storage away from these areas. 

During the project, there were at 

least six episodes of torrential rain, but 

the lessons from the first event helped 

the team make sure there was no 

damage from the later storms.

In addition, the heat and humidity 

were oppressive. The team worked inside 

warehouses with no climate control 

or ventilation systems and very little 

THEY QUICKLY 

DISCOVERED THE 

ROOF OF THE WWIIERA WAREHOUSE WAS 

DAMAGED, ALLOWING 

SIGNIFICANT RAINFALL 

TO ENTER.

The M1 Garand, a .30 caliber semiautomatic rifle, was 

the standard U.S. service rifle during World War II and the 

Korean War.
page

May / June 2018 15

LOGLINES

DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

solution was available to meet the 

unique requirements of this mission,” 

said Craig Beatty, DLA Distribution 

traffic manager.

“This repatriation project was 

a giant task that involved close 

coordination with our Armed Forces 

of the Philippines partners,” said Army 

Maj. Anthony Nelson, Ground Programs 

chief for JUSMAG-Philippines. “Their 

support and assistance on this project 

represents the continued friendship, 

unwavering alliance, and shared history 

of our two countries.” LL

lighting. Temperatures often exceeded 

90 degrees, with relative humidity in 

the mid-80s — similar to the summer 

climate of the U.S. Gulf Coast.

Though each M1 weighs only about 

10 pounds, handling thousands a day 

under extreme conditions proved taxing. 

With the temperatures, humidity and 

working conditions, frequent breaks and 

constant hydration were critical to success over the four months of the project. 

Finally, within weeks of starting the 

inventory, the team learned three of the 

warehouses might contain asbestos. 

They stopped the project immediately, 

and an environmental specialist and the 

DLA project manager arrived within days 

to conduct testing. 

They found that two of the three 

warehouses did have some level of asbestos contamination. The joint inventory 

teams continued work inside the “clean” 

warehouse while an asbestos remediation firm was brought aboard. 

The weapons were cleaned and 

tested. Only when the test results came 

back validating the cleaning process 

had removed all the asbestos could the 

weapons then be passed to the personnel conducting the inventory. 

Mission Success

After months of planning and four 

additional months of execution, and 

despite several significant problems, the 

team finished the project. A ship carrying 

44 shipping containers set sail in early 

December and arrived in time to meet 

the delivery date. 

In addition to ensuring these weapons were safeguarded until they arrived, 

the transportation solution needed to 

accommodate limited cargo handling 

at the original location. This required a 

carefully orchestrated “container rotation 

plan” that stretched over four weeks, 

requiring the carrier to follow a schedule 

for container deliveries and pickups. 

The transportation plan also required 

the carrier to find secure storage until 

the designated vessel arrived to pick up 

the cargo. 

“DLA’s close partnership with the 

USTRANSCOM was instrumental 

to ensuring the right transportation 

U.S. and Armed Forces of the Philippines teammates at 

Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City, Philippines, performed all 

inventory, packing and crating of the antique M1s and 

arranged their shipment back to the United States.

Photo Courtesy Joint U.S. Military Assistance Group – Philippines
page

16 www.dla.mil

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

THE NATION’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

— Photo by Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Kelsey Adams

— Photo by Air Force Tech. Sgt. Erik Gudmundson

— Photo by Air Force 2nd. Lt. Clay Lancaster

— Photo by Air Force Airman 1st Class Nathan Byrnes
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May / June 2018 17

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DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

Army Col. Carleton Birch was 

in his first year as a chaplain 

and on a 30-day field exercise 

in Hohenfels, Germany, when his 

supervisor pulled up to him in a Jeep 

and unloaded several boxes at his feet. 

“You have some Jewish soldiers in 

your unit; here are their names. Go find 

them and give them these Seder kits,” 

he was told. 

Birch, a Baptist minister, didn’t 

know anything about Seder, the Jewish 

ritual feast that marks the beginning 

of Passover. But as a military chaplain 

responsible for providing religious support 

for all troops regardless of their faith, he 

set out that frigid February night on a 

search for the soldiers. He found one of 

them asleep in the back of a vehicle. 

“I woke him up and said, ‘Here’s your 

Seder kit for Passover.’ His eyes got real 

big, and tears rolled down his face as he 

thanked me for thinking of him. I already 

knew it, but he reaffirmed for me that 

faith is a critical component of most 

soldiers’ lives. We shouldn’t neglect 

that,” Birch said.

The Defense Logistics Agency helps 

chaplains meet service members’ 

Story by Beth Reece

spiritual needs by supplying over 

500 religious items. Birch oversees 

the mission, which is handled by 

the Clothing and Textiles and the 

Subsistence supply lines at DLA Troop 

Support in Philadelphia.

Though Bibles were issued to 

troops as far back as the Civil War, 

DLA has been providing other religious 

items only since the mid-1990s. Troop 

Support C&T provides items ranging 

from communion wine to rosaries and 

Hanukkah candles. 

Made Just for the Military

Chaplain’s kits are a hallmark 

of DLA’s religious supply program, 

Birch said. Designed for use in field 

or combat environments without a 

nearby church, synagogue or mosque, 

the kits contain basic supplies and 

come in Christian, Jewish, Muslim and 

Eastern Orthodox varieties. Standard 

Christian and Eastern Orthodox kits 

include chalice assemblies, holy water 

and crosses, for example. Muslim kits 

have compasses and prayer rugs, 

and Jewish kits contain Kiddush cup 

assemblies and Torah scrolls.

“In the Army, you get this kit when 

you graduate from chaplain school. 

Receiving it is sort of a rite of passage 

into the Chaplain Corps,” Birch said. 

Most chaplains personalize their 

kits. Birch added to his things like a 

cassette player, battery-powered 

speakers and music on laminated 

Feeding 

the Spirit

Navy Capt. John Shimotsu, U.S. Pacific Command Catholic 

chaplain, celebrates Mass at the Courtyard of Heroes 

during a remembrance ceremony at Joint Base Pearl 

Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii. 

— Photo by Air Force Tech. Sgt. Heather Redman

(Inset Images) From candlelight vigils to personal prayer time 

and baptismal ceremonies, DLA helps the Chaplain Corps 

by supplying over 500 religious items.
page

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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

THE NATION’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

DLA Troop Support the period between 

Ash Wednesday and Passover is the 

most hectic as customer account 

specialists closely track customer 

orders for simultaneous observances. 

The frantic season begins with orders 

for ashes for Ash Wednesday and 

continues with palms for Palm Sunday, 

followed by Seder kits, kosher meals and 

sacramental wine for Passover. 

Orders for palm fronds start trickling 

in as early as September, and by 

February Chris Gaudio from Clothing and 

Textiles’ Religious Supply Items Team 

starts to manually process them. He 

closely watches delivery from the time 

the palms leave the vendor’s facility until 

they’re in customers’ hands to ensure 

they arrive fresh.

“It’s live vegetation, so there are 

transportation and shipping challenges. 

You can’t have the palms dry out because 

they’ve been sitting in a warehouse or 

truck. They have to be kept at a regulated 

temperature,” he said. 

Tracking of overseas shipments 

is critical to ensure palms are sent to 

the proper consolidation point, where 

packages are loaded on military aircraft 

because Department of Defense 

policy prohibits the shipment of live 

vegetation via commercial flights. The 

process eliminates potential hangups 

with customs officials who closely 

scrutinize plant imports and exports. 

And to prevent ashes or palms, typically 

shipped in small boxes or envelopes, 

from getting misplaced amid hundreds 

of packages flowing in and out of 

consolidation points, DLA requires the 

vendor to boldly mark the items. 

Seder kits go through a similar 

process. They contain everything 

needed to observe the first two nights 

of Passover, with food items like matzo 

and bitter herbs, as well as ceremonial 

items such as an ornate plate and 

grape-juice box. When digital tracking 

information indicates Seder kits or palms 

have been delivered, customer account 

cards. Though the kit he received over 

25 years ago was heavier than today’s 

version, he still uses parts of it. 

“Chaplains are usually dressed 

like all the other soldiers, so it’s hard 

to tell us apart when we perform 

services. In a combat zone, we use a 

stole that’s included in our chaplain’s 

kit to distinguish us as clergy,” he said. 

“The last time I used mine was a few 

years ago in the mountains of Turkey, 

overlooking the Syrian border, with U.S. 

soldiers at Christmas.”

The chaplain’s logistics support 

package is another religious supply 

made specifically for the military. It 

resembles a plastic cube and can be 

configured into a desk or altar and even 

has enough storage space to transport 

chaplains’ supplies during deployment. 

The field immersion baptismal liner 

was also designed for military chaplains 

who need to perform baptisms in the 

field. The liner is placed in a hole in the 

ground, lined with sandbags to hold it in 

place, then filled with water.

Coinciding Holidays

Christmas is the busiest religious 

holiday for many Americans, but at 

Air Force Capt. Andrew Cohen, chaplain, stands behind a lit 

menorah during the eighth night of Hanukkah at Joint Base 

Balad, Iraq. Jewish military chaplains receive a full range of 

religious supplies from DLA.

Air Force Senior Airman Jason Epley
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May / June 2018 19

LOGLINES

DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

specialists reach out to chaplains to 

personally verify it. 

“Being delivered doesn’t actually 

mean the chaplain has those items 

in his chapel, only that it’s reached 

the destination on the address label. 

Sometimes the package has been 

received by a unit supply sergeant 

who doesn’t have any idea where to 

direct items like Seder kits, and there’s 

no interaction between that supply 

sergeant and the chaplain. We get the 

communication going,” said Paul Diak, 

a supervisory customer relationship 

specialist for C&T. 

At the same time, rations experts 

are orchestrating the production and 

delivery of kosher for Passover military 

field rations known as meals, ready to 

eat for Jewish troops refraining from 

foods such as rice, legumes and baked 

goods made with leavening agent, 

like bread and cake. Service members 

observing Passover receive two cases of 

Passover MREs, enough for three meals 

a day for the eight-day observance.

Like traditional MREs, the meals 

come in a flexible pouch and contain 

an entrée and side items equal to 

about 1,200 calories. Though kosher 

MREs are available year-round, the 

kosher for Passover version requires 

manufacturers to go through a 

labor-intensive process of shutting 

down machinery so it can be cleaned 

according to Jewish law. Each step 

is observed by a rabbi who certifies 

meals as being kosher.

DLA also provides halal MREs, which 

are certified by an imam. And Birch has 

visited the facilities where kosher and 

halal MREs are produced to ensure 

workers are adhering to strict guidelines 

outlined in the contract. 

“It’s amazing to see the halal meals 

being packaged by church ladies who 

take great pride in ensuring both the 

quantity and quality of the production 

are maintained regardless of their faith. 

They get it; they know how important it 

is for our service members to be able to 

celebrate religious holidays no matter 

where they’re stationed,” he said.

Emerging Needs

Birch and his team are working 

with the chief of chaplains for each 

military service to refine DLA’s religious 

supply program. The goal is to eliminate 

items that’ve had no demand since the 

program was created 20 years ago and 

increase the variety of religious items 

provided for smaller or lesser-known 

faith groups. The environment of 

worship is ever-changing, he said, and 

the challenge for DLA is providing items 

that may only be needed by a handful 

of customers.

“We’re going out and asking 

customers what exactly it is they 

need so we can be responsive to 

those needs. DLA has a tremendous 

capacity for providing supplies, but 

it’s another thing to find out what the 

warfighter actually has a need for,” 

Birch said.

Service chaplain chiefs have 

requested that DLA create a more 

encompassing one-stop-shop for 

religious supplies so chaplains and 

religious affairs specialists don’t have to 

Sailors prepare to read from the Torah during Shavuot 

Service in the chapel aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier 

USS George Washington. DLA helps ensure chaplains have 

the items they need so service members can practice their 

religious faith wherever they’re stationed.

Air Force Airman 1st Class Christian Ruhe and Air Force Staff 

Sgt. Manuel Chacon, assigned to the 817th Expeditionary 

Airlift Squadron guide Javed Iqbal, Peshawar International 

Airport ramp supervisor, as he backs a pallet of halal meals 

provided by DLA out of a C-17. The meals were en route to 

flood-damaged areas in northwest Pakistan.

Courtesy Photo

Navy Seaman Brian Sloan
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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

THE NATION’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

hunt for things they’re unfamiliar with on 

the economy. 

“To meet the need for those ‘onesie 

and twosie’ items, chaplains have 

been forced to go out there on the 

marketplace and fend for themselves. 

And in most cases, they don’t even 

know where to get these things,” Birch 

said. “Where do you find a Buddhist 

wheel or some of the Muslim supplies 

when it’s not your faith tradition?” 

DLA Troop Support and DLA Logistics 

Operations officials are exploring the 

possibility of an open marketplace pilot 

program in FedMall, the online ordering 

system customers use to buy DLA-managed goods. The concept would allow 

commercial vendors to sell items without 

having a contract with the agency, similar 

to the way office supplies are sold. 

“We’d continue to offer supplies as 

we do now, and make this an additional 

source for our customers. It would 

require us to make sure the goods being 

sold aren’t degrading to other faith 

groups, but it would enable chaplains 

and their enlisted assistants to find 

the stuff they need on a government 

platform. In my view, that’s critical to 

enabling the free exercise of religion for 

our warfighters,” he continued. 

DLA has already made ordering 

easier for chaplains with the recent 

introduction of the chaplain’s corridor 

on FedMall. FedMall is better for 

chaplains and religious affairs personnel 

than the previous ordering system, 

EMall, because it can be accessed by 

anyone with a government-issued 

Common Access Card. That’s critical, 

since chaplains aren’t familiar with 

military ordering systems traditionally 

used by supply specialists. 

“Our customers aren’t supply 

people, so we’ve had to take into 

account that they probably don’t have 

access to some of the systems a supply 

officer would. That means they’re not 

aware of the tracking tools we offer,” 

Birch said, adding that a benefit of 

FedMall is the availability of tracking 

numbers for vendor-direct shipments.

And since many of the items offered 

today have remained unchanged 

since DLA created the religious supply 

program, DLA Troop Support officials are 

also working with the chaplain chiefs 

of each military service to determine 

whether products like chaplain’s kits 

need an update. Potential changes 

include a change in the size and material 

used in crosses, Diak said. 

“Small changes like this could 

potentially bring the cost down. 

Another thing we’re talking about is the 

possibility of a pick-and-choose option 

so chaplains can decide what they want 

to include in their kits,” he added.

While the purchase of religious 

supplies is minimal compared with 

things like repair parts and fuel, it’s 

still important to chaplains like Army 

Lt. Col. Michael Crawford. He serves 

with the Black Sea Area Support 

Team, providing religious support 

to troops in Romania and Bulgaria. 

Seeing items like communion sets 

and vestments worn by priests, 

Crawford said, reminds service 

members of how they practiced their 

faith before joining the military. 

“These things connect them with 

home and connect them with faith, 

which for many is what builds resilience 

and enables them to continue forward 

with the mission,” he said.

 Birch agrees. “Like the Seder kit 

I provided for that Jewish soldier in 

Germany, these small items show 

service members that their command 

cares about them. And that can have 

a positive influence about their morale 

and attitude toward the military.” LL
Can you give us an overview of what DLA Land and 

Maritime does and how it aligns with the overall 

DLA mission? 

DLA’s six major subordinate commands supply 86 

percent of the military’s spare parts and almost all the 

consumable items America’s military forces need.

DLA Land and Maritime is one of those six MSCs. Here 

in Columbus [Ohio] and 37 other locations around the 

world, we manage two of the agency’s nine supply 

chains. They both support a variety of weapons 

systems across the Department of Defense, but we 

provide dedicated, focused support to the Navy’s 

surface and subsurface forces and to Army and Marine 

Corps ground forces.

We do this by leveraging DLA’s well-established 

global network and by building and maintaining 

A Conversation with ...

Navy Rear Adm. Michelle Skubic

collaboration with the military services, suppliers 

and other key partners. We communicate frequently 

with critical stakeholders to ensure our planning and 

daily activities match current and future operational 

requirements, optimize sustainment, improve 

readiness and lethality and enable the full range of 

military operations worldwide.

Of course, we wouldn’t be able to accomplish any 

of this without the devoted men and women of 

our 2,500-plus workforce. Our Land and Maritime 

associates are the force behind $10 million in daily 

purchasing, more than 500,000 contract awards 

annually and over $3 billion in annual sales — all in 

direct support of more than 2,000 weapon systems. 

Our people meticulously manage more than 2 million 

repair parts and can supply anything from tires and 

batteries to electronic components and motors. 

They’re embedded with customers all over the world 

and part of specialized teams providing depot-level 

repairable and industrial support for the Navy, Army 

and Marine Corps. 

Our workforce is also responsible for the development, 

execution and support of special projects and 

programs. For example, we have a multifunctional 

The commander of DLA’s service 

provider for ground and maritime 

weapon systems reflects on

a year at the helm.

DLA Land and Maritime Commander Navy Rear Adm. Michelle Skubic discusses the results of blunt-force-impact testing for helmets with DLA lab technician Sally Schuster during a visit 

to Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania.

Charles Morris

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LOGLINES

DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

May / June 2018
team that oversees a counterfeit detection and 

mitigation program. By identifying and removing 

fraudulent and substandard contractor materiel, the 

team directly contributes to supply-chain resiliency 

and security across the agency.

We also play a key role in strengthening support to 

the Nuclear Enterprise by managing the repair parts 

for our nation’s most strategic assets. We recently 

logged more than 10 years of exceptional support 

to the Navy’s nuclear reactor program, exceeding 

performance goals at every step. This is a testament 

to what an extraordinary team can accomplish 

throughout DLA.

The Land and Maritime team contributes mightily to 

DLA’s global impact. DLA exists to ensure our nation 

has access to the most dependable global logistics 

solutions, and DLA Land and Maritime stands ready, 

every day, to do its part to help answer the call.

You’ve just wrapped up your first year in command. 

What are some of the highlights, and what are your 

expectations for the coming year? 

Well, I can tell you we’ve had a great year. Our hard 

work garnered the 2017 Commander in Chief’s 

Annual Award for Installation Excellence — the 10th 

time our installation has received this prestigious 

award. Its title might imply purely a focus on 

installation management, which our installation 

services team does superbly, and the additional 

duties the leader in my seat holds as installation 

commander, hosting two dozen tenant organizations 

and their 8,000 personnel performing various tasks 

onboard the Defense Supply Center Columbus. 

Installation excellence is certainly that, but it’s more 

accurately a reflection of the global and enduring 

impact our geographically dispersed Land and 

Maritime team and those other Columbus-based DoD 

organizations have on our nation’s defense. We share 

this recognition with all these dedicated patriots.

Looking at the big picture, 2017 saw us develop 

innovative, strategic solutions to challenges such as 

obsolescence and a shrinking supplier base in some 

commodities. We refined our processes and systems 

to reinforce the supply chains and are investing 

steadfastly in the professional development, resilience 

and cohesion of our team. In 2018, this critical work 

will continue.

And as we turn the page on a new calendar year, we 

look forward to celebrating a century of supporting our 

warfighters May 4.

Recently, your two most senior executives retired. As you 

transition your new leadership team, what changes do 

you see for DLA Land and Maritime? 

Yes, we’re still working through some senior leadership 

changes, with a goal of selecting motivated leaders 

who are well suited to our mission and culture. 

James McClaugherty, our former deputy commander, 

retired last summer after 14 years in the seat, on 

the heels of his successful 30-year Air Force career. 

Admiration for him abounded, by teammates and 

customers alike, and we lost a wealth of corporate 

knowledge the day he left. His legacy of commitment 

continues to inspire our efforts. And as we rebuild our 

leadership team, the example he set and the positive 

culture he fostered will undoubtedly serve us well as 

we face future operational challenges. 

Fortunately, we found a superb new deputy 

commander and brought Steve Alsup aboard in 

September. I’m very pleased he’s joined our team. 

Coming to us after 30 years in Air Force logistics, 

Steve has the right experience and energy, and his 

fresh perspective has already inspired innovative 

approaches to improve our team’s performance. 

We’re also working on filling acquisition executive 

position after Milt Lewis’ retirement in March. Milt too 

was an iconic leader in the Land and Maritime front 

office who left a legacy of acquisition excellence. Our 

new acquisition executive will focus on examining and 

honing our procurement processes and re-evaluating 

training initiatives for our acquisition professionals. 

As this leadership team takes form, we’re engaged 

with DLA’s increased focus on an operational plan 

support to the combatant commands. As the 

ultimate architects of any military engagement, it’s 

imperative these commands have effective logistics 

support solutions. DLA-wide, we have amped up our 

attention here. 

To that end, I often say that it’s in DLA’s DNA to go 

forward, when needed, where needed, side by side 

with the warfighter on the battlefield. It may be in 

the form of people, inventory stock positioning or 

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22 www.dla.mil

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

THE NATION’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY
other solutions to support warfighter sustainment. 

But without reservation, every current and future 

procurement process and operational adjustment 

we make will be implemented with total focus on our 

warfighter’s success.

Can you share some important initiatives you’re working 

on that could significantly affect the agency’s current or 

future operations? 

A couple of our strategic efforts come to mind, all 

geared to improving DLA’s ability to support the 

demands of the DoD and the military services.

We’re working proactively with industry partners 

Raytheon, Rockwell Collins and General Dynamics, 

among others, to boost readiness through improved 

procurement strategies and processes — increasing 

DLA mission-support capabilities.

Our use of a performance-based logistics 

agreement with Raytheon has achieved efficiencies 

that have led to follow-on support for the Army’s 

Patriot Missile system. Using this procurement 

action is helping consolidate our service spend. 

The effort on this critical system required close 

collaboration with Army Contracting Command and 

was spearheaded by our DLA Land detachment at 

Aberdeen [Maryland].

We’ve also established a PBL with Rockwell Collins 

that directly supports our Air Force maintainers at 

Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. By introducing and 

developing kitting systems that are more costeffective and more maintenance-technician-friendly, 

we’re moving from strictly transactional procurement 

to broader readiness solutions. We’re confident this 

concept will prove itself through wider use, further 

improving our capabilities to support warfighters 

around the globe. 

I don’t want to omit our work with General 

Dynamics. [As we] target support for the Abrams 

tank, we’re working with U.S. Army Tank Automotive 

Command to expand this relationship. This 

project will enable General Dynamics to improve 

its operating efficiency while maintaining a 

manufacturing capability if an increased production 

need should arise. This procurement action helps 

increase the DoD’s response capability and mitigates 

pricing and obsolescence concerns. 

Our renewal of the Global Tire PBL is slated for later 

in 2018 and will consolidate management of DoD’s 

tire requirements, with the planned inclusion of Naval 

aviation tires, enable us to leverage our spend through 

scale of purchase and improve cost stability. 

Lastly, DLA has ongoing exploratory PBL efforts. This 

is a results-oriented strategic approach to contracting 

that would have us tactically positioned to best 

support future fielded platforms. Exploratory PBLs 

allow us to develop strategies, often in advance of 

the need for new weapon platforms. And they let us 

address current or expected readiness issues.

A few years ago, Land and Maritime established its 

own People and Culture Directorate. Tell us more 

about the directorate, its efforts and how the culture 

has been affected.

DLA’s earlier focus on People and Culture empowered 

us to create our directorate in 2015, and we’ve 

had many successes. We’ve recorded the highest 

Denison Survey results and participation rates in our 

history, and we continue to see improvements in our 

onboarding and offboarding surveys. 

As the DLA director, [Army] Lt. Gen. Darrell Williams, 

often says, “People are our secret sauce.” They’re at 

the heart of what we do for our nation every day. 

Before we created the directorate, we had multiple 

culture programs supported by our senior leadership, 

who served in roles we called culture champions. 

Additionally, we benefited from the active participation 

of project managers and very involved culture councils. 

We stood up the People and Culture Directorate to 

centrally manage our expanding culture program — 

which includes our DLA Pathways to Career Excellence 

internship, numerous change and culture initiatives 

and other projects and events. The impact has been 

phenomenal, and we’ll continue to evolve and grow 

this focused approach to people and culture. 

Mentorship programs are energetically supported 

here. Mentors, protégés and supervisors frequently 

praise our program. As our People and Culture 

program evolves, we’re expanding the scope of our 

Resiliency Program, and we’ve created a popular 

People and Culture website to share news, events and 

programs to keep the workforce constantly engaged. 

We’re also designing a new Social Contract Program, 

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expanding our College Student Intern Program and 

increasing opportunities for supervisors to take 

leadership development training. 

Several of our programs have garnered agencywide 

attention, and we were recognized for achieving the 

highest on-time rates among large DLA organizations 

for earning Defense Acquisition Workforce 

Improvement Act professional certifications.

The positive atmosphere the People and Culture 

Directorate creates for our workforce is truly inspiring. 

We’re definitely better at our mission of serving the 

warfighter because of our commitment to our cultural 

efforts. The two go hand in hand. And because we 

know culture is crucial to our success, we’ll stay on 

course to improve opportunities for our workforce and 

sharpening our organization’s competitive edge.

Whole-of-Government is of key interest in today’s 

climate. How do Land and Maritime’s operations fit into 

DLA’s support for non-DoD agencies? What are the most 

relevant capabilities we can offer? 

As we continue to focus intently on our primary 

mission of logistics support to the U.S. military and 

allied armed forces, we’ll look for ways our team may 

be uniquely qualified to support DLA’s expanding 

Whole of Government mission.

For example, DLA recently provided assistance in 

response to Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, 

as part of the Federal Emergency Management 

Agency’s support to the Defense Support to Civil 

Authorities mission.

Much of DLA’s contribution came from DLA Troop 

Support, in the form of items like prepackaged meals, 

tarps, generators and emergency care items. 

Here at DLA Land and Maritime, we supported FEMA’s 

Mass Care Items requirement with batteries and 

water purification supplies, two areas of our expertise. 

We also deployed personnel as part of the DLA 

Rapid Deployment Teams supporting Hurricanes 

Harvey and Maria, to help expedite delivery of 

critical items. Their participation was part of a 

combined DLA effort to deploy personnel to 

supplement local first responders. 

I mentioned the intrinsic drive by DLA’s workforce 

to directly support warfighter missions. Today this 

commitment may present itself in a contingency 

or crisis as we expand our support to the whole of 

government. The greatest proof is the large number 

of DLA volunteers who raised their hands when we 

needed rapid deployers to support hurricane relief 

last year. I’m proud to say that spirit of support is 

ever-present in the fine patriots on our Land and 

Maritime team and across the DLA enterprise. 

Your career spans conflicts from Desert Shield to 

Enduring Freedom. What piece of advice would you give 

junior supply officers just starting out in their careers? 

First of all, embrace the journey. Relationships with 

those serving alongside us and our shared experiences 

through the years are the golden nuggets in our 

careers. Cherish them. 

While you must find the path that’s right for you, 

realize that many have gone before you. You don’t 

always have to be a trailblazer, and you can often 

benefit from following the trails blazed by others. Trust 

that you’ll know a good trail when you see one. Know 

when to follow and when to lead. 

Don’t be afraid to challenge yourself, because you 

can’t possibly know what you can accomplish until you 

do. Sometimes that means comfort with discomfort, 

as they say, because you won’t have all the answers. 

Just remember you have a network that’s strong 

and trusted and stands ready to help you with your 

greatest challenges. 

Never pass up the opportunity to make a 

difference; they’re presented to us every day. Find 

the value in each moment; keep your perspective 

and a positive attitude. 

When things go wrong, ask yourself what you can 

learn from the experience. In addition, can you help 

others by sharing? 

See the future for yourself, and dare to tell others what 

your vision is. Many will step up to help you achieve 

your aspirations. 

Be passionate, patient and persistent. And again, 

embrace the exciting journey that lies ahead. LL

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100 Years of

Warfighter Support

Compiled by Craig Rader

DLA Land and Maritime Public Affairs

Photos Courtesy DLA Land and Maritime

For 100 years, a small military 

post in central Ohio has played 

a major role supporting U.S. 

servicemen and women around the 

world. On May 4, the Defense Supply 

Center Columbus — home to Defense 

Logistics Agency Land and Maritime — 

celebrates its centennial and recognizes 

a century of warfighter support from 

thousands of military and civilian 

personnel over the decades. 

In 1917, the site was a combination 

of undeveloped swamps and tracts of 

farmland 5 miles east of downtown 

Columbus — a considerable distance at 

the time. But its location was an asset. 

Ohio’s capital city was within 500 miles 

of most of the nation’s manufacturing 

centers, where military supplies and 

equipment were produced. 

The city itself had become a major 

Midwestern rail hub and a military 

center during the Civil War and into 

the 1900s. During the Mexican border 

conflicts in 1916, the Columbus 

Barracks, built in 1905, was one of five 

posts that supplied the Army through 

the Jeffersonville Quartermaster 

Depot in Indiana. 

In the early 1900s, Columbus 

boasted one of the greatest 

DEFENSE SUPPLY CENTER COLUMBUS

concentrations of rail and highway 

networks in the central United States, 

with the potential for faster shipping. 

Not only did Columbus afford immediate 

access to three important rail lines, 

but its moderate climate and a highquality labor market made it even more 

advantageous to a logistics mission.

Although World War I for Europe 

began in August 1914, the United 

States didn’t enter the “Great War” 

until April 1917. By early 1918, 

America’s war production had reached 

a critical point. There were suddenly 28 

different types of Army quartermaster 

units. Specialized units needed to 

be deployed for the first time as 

transportation lines to ports of 

The Broad Gate entrance to the Defense Supply Center 

Columbus provides an interesting contrast to the entrance 

(top inset) as it stood in 1938. The seven-story office for DLA 

Land and Maritime (bottom inset) serves as Defense Supply 

Center Columbus’ main operations center.
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DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

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war, many of these were dismantled 

and sent elsewhere.

During the 1920s, the depot’s 

mission was to recondition war 

materiel for resale. In 1930, it was 

renamed the Columbus General 

Depot, and shortly thereafter became 

the District Headquarters for the 

Civilian Conservation Corps for Ohio 

and West Virginia.

In August 1942, the quartermaster 

general assumed responsibility of 

the General Depot Branch, Service 

of Supply, and the depot became 

known officially as the Columbus 

Quartermaster Depot, jointly occupied 

by all the military services.

Even in the early days of World 

War II, the Columbus General Depot 

had begun to play a key role in the 

Army’s supply system. In December 

1942, the government purchased 

an additional 295 acres, expanding 

the depot to 576 acres, as storage 

space grew to almost 13.5 million 

square feet in 41 warehouses, 64 

supplementary structures and open 

storage areas. 

The vast network of warehouses 

stored supplies for what were then the 

seven primary supply services: chemical, 

engineer, medical, ordnance, signal, 

transportation and quartermaster. 

Meanwhile, the depot had grown to 

become the second largest employer in 

Franklin County.

In March 1943, the name was 

changed to Columbus Army Service 

Forces Depot, and the installation 

became the largest joint military supply 

embarkation for troops and materials 

became filled to capacity.

To relieve the pressure, the War 

Department appropriated funds to 

purchase 281 acres about 5 miles east 

of Columbus and to build a military 

installation supporting the Allied 

Expeditionary Forces. Columbus would 

become part of a complex and extensive 

depot system to handle millions of tons 

of supplies for more than 4 million troops. 

Half those troops were with the American 

Expeditionary Forces in France. 

Following its May 4, 1918, 

dedication, workers immediately 

began building warehouses to hold 

goods and equipment. Meanwhile, 

administrative and hiring offices were 

set up in downtown Columbus at Fourth 

and Long streets. An Aug. 1, 1918, 

newspaper article reported that “1,000 

more workers were needed immediately 

at the government’s military depot on 

East Fifth Street.” At that time, more 

than 3,000 men and women were 

already on the job, with about 2,500 of 

those working 10-hour shifts daily.

Three months later, six warehouses, 

each more than 1,500 feet long and 

181 feet wide, were receiving materiel 

for storage. In its first 155 days, eight 

warehouses provided more than 1.5 

million square feet of storage space for 

a war effort that created unprecedented 

logistical problems.

The Army site was named the 

Columbus Quartermaster Reserve 

Depot; its mission to route materiel for 

shipment overseas. The first delivery 

to arrive was reportedly a shipment 

of canned pork and beans. The 

depot primarily handled military food 

throughout WWI. 

In the years to follow, the facility 

developed into one of the largest and 

busiest installations of its type in the 

world in supporting the Quartermaster 

Corps’ demanding mission: to feed, clothe 

and equip the military. 

Additionally, it furnished many 

vehicles, operated laundries, conducted 

schools for more than 70 trades 

and procured the Army’s horses 

and mules. It also handled repairs, 

salvaged materials, buried 

deceased soldiers and 

supervised Army and 

national cemeteries. 

Many of these tasks were 

performed at the Columbus 

Depot, where as many as 

7,500 military and civilian 

personnel worked at the 

height of WWI.

By the end of the First 

World War, the depot 

had expanded until there 

were 25 warehouses 

— 17 of which were 

transportable. After the 

The May 4, 1918, dedication of the Columbus Quartermaster 

Reserve Depot. More than 3,000 workers built six buildings 

and a barracks in the first three months. Eventually the 

facility held nearly 800,000 square feet of warehouse space 

for World War I supplies.

Armada Ruffner, director of Columbus 

Quartermaster Depot’s spiderweb 

production shop, coaxes a black widow 

from its jar. Huffner harvested silk from 

the deadly spiders for use in gun sights 

and compasses. 
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May / June 2018 27

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DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

Editor’s Note –

Tony D’Elia, former historian for DLA Land and 

Maritime, contributed to this article.

installation in the world in tonnage 

handling capability. It employed more 

than 10,000 civilians and played a large 

part in the war effort.

Near the end of WWII, the installation 

took on a new role. About 400 German 

prisoners of war, ranging in age from 22 

to 52, arrived at the depot Jan. 22, 1945. 

By spring, their number rose to 500. 

Guarded by a staff of 58 men, mostly 

former military, the POWs did work 

compatible with the Geneva Conventions 

rules and received 84 cents per day. They 

remained on-site for 11 months before 

departing for Camp Perry, Ohio, in January 

1946, on their way home to Germany. 

The Log of Columbus, the installation’s newspaper at the time, 

reminded employees to clean up after 

themselves, because “Prisoners of War 

cannot continue their Saturday cleanup 

duties much longer for soon they will be 

cleaning up the rubble of Germany.”

On Jan. 1, 1963, the installation was 

assigned to the Defense Supply Agency 

(now the Defense Logistics Agency) and 

combined with the Defense Construction 

Supply Center on an adjoining property. 

In 1996, the Defense Electronics 

Supply Center in Dayton, Ohio, was closed 

due to Base Realignment and Closure 

Commission recommendations. The 

workload and workforce of DESC merged 

with DCSC to become the Defense Supply 

Center Columbus. That same year saw 

the opening of a new seven-story granite 

building that remains the central operations center for DLA Land and Maritime.

Through the years, the installation 

saw many hundreds of thousands of 

workers pass through its gates. The 

post’s function to supply parts and 

equipment made up the mission, but it 

was the people who gave the installation 

its character. 

One manager with a unique 

responsibility was Armada Ruffner. She 

supervised a workforce of hundreds 

of silk production specialists in 1943. 

Ruffner’s job was unlike any other in 

support of the WWII war effort; she 

oversaw the office where staff extracted 

silk from black widow spiders for repair 

technicians to use in gun-sight crosshairs 

and compasses. Until improvements in 

synthetic fiber made it obsolete, the shop 

for harvesting silk from black widows in 

Columbus was the only one of its kind in 

the Quartermaster Corps. 

In July 2014, Stephen F. Byus, a 

supervisory supply specialist with 

DLA Land and Maritime, deployed to 

Afghanistan to help the Afghan military 

improve its maintenance and supply 

systems. On Sept. 16, his two-vehicle 

convoy was attacked. Byus became 

the first DLA civilian killed during 

Operation Enduring Freedom. One of 

the installation’s original buildings was 

renovated into a community center and 

named in his honor. 

Today, DSCC remains a vital logistics 

center, providing weapons system and 

platform support to U.S. forces and 

other federal agencies across the globe. 

DLA Land and Maritime manages 

more than 2 million unique inventory 

parts to support several thousand 

multiservice weapons systems and 

the warfighters who rely on them. The 

installation also hosts Defense Finance 

and Accounting Service Columbus, 

National Guard and Reserve units and a 

military recruiting headquarters. 

For the 8,000 military and civilian 

employees who work at DSCC, the 

long legacy of warfighter support is 

one forged in consistent dedication 

to service — one that has remained 

steadfast for 100 years. LL

Warehouse 1 stored supplies and served as the installation’s first headquarters in 1918.

— Columbus Quartermaster Reserve Depot— Columbus General Depot— Columbus Quartermaster Depot— Columbus Army Service Forces Depot— Columbus General Depot— Columbus General Distribution Depot, U.S. Army— Columbus General Depot, U.S. Army— U.S. Army Engineering Maintenance Center

— U.S. Army Engineering Maintenance Center

 and Military Construction Supply Agency

— U.S. Army Engineering Maintenance Center— U.S. Army Mobility Support Center— Columbus Army Depot— Defense Construction Supply Center— Defense Supply Center Columbus

1918 1930 1942 1943 1946 1947 1948 1956 1960 1961 1962 1963 1996 to Present

A Century of Names For defense supply center columbus

100 Years – 14 Names
DLA NewsWire

SCHOOL CHILDREN, 

WARFIGHTERS 

HELP EACH OTHER 

THROUGH DLA 

FOOD-ACQUISITION 

PARTNERSHIP

A partnership between the 

Department of Agriculture and the 

Department of Defense is enabling 

the warfighter and school districts to 

spend money more efficiently while 

providing nutritious foods.

The USDA DoD Fresh Fruit 

and Vegetable Program, which 

is managed by Defense Logistics 

Agency Troop Support, leverages 

whole-of-government buying power.

While some military installations 

are clustered together, forming 

large military communities, the vast 

majority of bases are spread out 

across the country as small standalone installations. The relatively 

small buying power of a stand-alone 

base makes it difficult to secure 

favorable contracts with fresh fruit 

and vegetable vendors.

Many school nutrition programs 

face similar constraints.

But by combining the 

demand of the school 

districts with that of 

military dining facilities 

in the same contract 

zone, DLA Troop Support 

acquisition professionals 

in the Subsistence 

supply chain are able 

to negotiate contracts 

with vendors that 

provide greater access 

to fresh, locally grown, 

reasonably priced fruit 

and vegetables. 

“Instead of buying 50 cases of 

fruit for the dining facility each week, 

we are buying hundreds of cases 

of the same fruit for the school 

cafeterias in the contract zone,” 

said Pat Scott, the division chief of 

garrison feeding for the Subsistence 

supply chain.

And the program continues to grow.

When it started in 1994, the 

program tallied $3.2 million of fresh 

produce acquisitions. That number 

quickly grew to $50 million, where it 

was capped by legislation for several 

years. Once the cap was lifted, 

produce acquisitions surged.

“This year we hope to reach annual 

sales of $280 million,” Scott said. 

“That’s a lot of lettuce!”

The Sayre School District in Northeast Pennsylvania is contributing to 

the surge.

“We love the DoD fruit and vegetable program,” said Alice Bennett, 

the director of nutrition services for 

Sayre schools. “While we appreciate all 

the government commodities we are 

offered, the DoD items are those items 

we really choose to focus on in our 

lunch program.”

— Shawn J. Jones, DLA Troop Support

More Online: go.usa.gov/xQY78

PORT HUENEME’S 

TEAM SUPPORTS 

ANNUAL ANTARCTIC 

RESUPPLY MISSION

Each year, the Preservation, 

Packaging, Packing and Marking 

team at Defense Logistics Agency 

Distribution San Diego, California, at 

Port Hueneme supports Operation 

Deep Freeze, the National Science 

Foundation’s Antarctic research 

mission at McMurdo Station, 

Antarctica, the logistics hub for 

NSF’s research mission. Due to the 

area’s harsh climate, the resupply 

occurs in January — summertime 

on the continent — when the ice is 

at its thinnest. 

The Office of Polar Programs 

manages and initiates NSF funding 

for basic research and its operational 

support in the Arctic and Antarctic. 

Additionally, the NSF supports 

scientific research and oversees 

the cooperative efforts of civilian 

contractors, the military and several 

federal agencies by coordinating 

scientific research and related 

logistical support in Antarctica and 

the Southern Ocean.

During this year’s mission, 

Distribution personnel packaged more 

than more than 450 containers of 

construction and packing material, 

frozen and dry foods, repair parts and 

lumber. The cargo was loaded onboard 

the Military Sealift Commandchartered vessel, the Polar Star; and 

departed Port Hueneme shortly 

before the first of the year.

When the Polar Star returns 

to Port Hueneme, the haul will 

include a year’s worth of scientific 

data and ice core samples that will 

assist the NSF‘s continued study 

of the Antarctic.

— Brianne M. Bender

DLA Distribution Public Affairs

More Online: go.usa.gov/xQYwJ

Courtesy Photo

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THE NATION’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY
DLA R&D BOOSTS PERFORMANCE, 

SAFETY FOR BATTERIES POWERING 

WEAPONS SYSTEMS

Battery systems that power some of the military’s key weapons 

systems are being updated with new technology as a result of 

Defense Logistics Agency partnerships with Army industrial sites 

and battery manufacturers. 

Recent work led by DLA’s Battery Network research and 

development program includes the development of a new lithium 

ion-based power system for the TOW 2 anti-tank missile system 

and new lead-acid batteries used on armored vehicles such as the 

Bradley Fighting Vehicle. 

The current “flooded” lead-acid batteries, in the 4HN and 2HN 

configurations, still require users to deal with the messy and potentially 

dangerous task of opening the cells and refilling them with acid. These 

batteries were commonly used in the ‘50s and ‘60s to keep cars running 

but have been replaced with safer, more powerful alternatives, said Matt 

Hutchens, an industrial engineer who leads the BATTNET Program.

“Industry got away from what’s called a liquid electrolyte 

and moved to a gel or glass-like material that’s solid. It actually 

lengthens the life of the battery and takes away the hazardous 

issues of dealing with acid. They also charge quicker, hold the 

charge longer and have fewer issues in terms of disposal,” he said.

The Army’s Tank-automotive and Armaments Command sought 

DLA’s input in 2017 on whether the 4HN and 2HN batteries could 

be replaced with ones made with new absorbent glass material. 

“Part of the problem was, we couldn’t find any of the big 

producers of lead-acid batteries that wanted to fool with these 

military-unique batteries that DLA buys only 1,000-2,000 of a 

year,” Hutchens said.

— Beth Reece 

More Online: go.usa.gov/xQxU8

SAGAMI EMPLOYEES PITCH IN TO PROTECT ENVIRONMENT

Environmental Branch chief at Sagami, said PFOS disposal 

for Japan (including Okinawa) started in fiscal 2017 using 

incineration, because PFOS disposal in landfills is not 

allowed under by Japanese regulation. 

Quitugua called the sessions a win-win engagement, 

noting that “what the other services learn could be used 

to piggyback ideas onto their programs.”

She said DLA Disposition Services’ working knowledge 

of Japan’s environmental rules and regulations means 

DLA is looked on as the last check to ensure the armed 

services are compliant in their disposal of hazardous 

materials in Japan.

— Tim Hoyle, DLA Disposition Services

More Online: go.usa.gov/xQgTC

Defense Logistics Agency employees in Japan helped 

U.S. Forces Japan staff think “green” in a quarterly environmental meeting March 7-8.

The participation by DLA Disposition Services 

Environmental Branch staff at the Sagami site 

informed USFJ staffers in their discussions with 

officials from the Japanese Ministries of Environment 

and Defense and the U.S. Environmental Protection 

Agency. The DLA Sagami personnel were able to review 

conservation programs and surveys, along with U.S. 

installation programs funded by Japan. 

Sagami personnel also presented an update on the 

833,000 pounds of perfluorooctanesulfuonic acid, or 

“PFOS” they have disposed of to date. Norma C. Quitugua, Army Maj. Randy Ready

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More Than 

Memos

Story by Amber McSherry

Photos Courtesy Document Services

Defense Logistics Agency’s 

Document Services manages 

far more than just documents or 

printing. Maps, firearm targets, banners 

and even signs at the White House — 

they’re all part of the mission for this 

unit of DLA Information Operations.

Document Services serves as the 

DoD’s print manager, printing and 

shipping products to customers around 

the globe.

Manual Labor

To make sure airmen have the latest 

versions of the manuals they use to 

maintain equipment and systems, the 

Air Force relies on Document Services 

to issue hardcopy technical orders. 

Airmen at Air Force Materiel Command 

use the Technical Order Distribute 

and Print Gateway to load the latest 

technical orders, so Document Services 

employees can print them at the facility 

nearest where the order is needed 

before shipping them.

The joint Air Force/DLA system 

“allows the delivery of critical content, to 

include safety-of-air requirements to the 

Air Force, along with supporting foreign 

military sales,” said Daral Valtinson, 

program manager for the system.

Document Services also uses the 

same system to print updated Navy 

maintenance, reference and training 

manuals for Document Services 

employees to pull and print when sailors 

need them. The manuals can be on a 

variety of storage media, depending on 

what the customer needs.

Maps, On Target

Some customers, such as DLA 

Aviation and the National GeospatialIntelligence Agency, require maps in 

multiple sizes and types, including 

topographic, maritime and aeronautical 

maps. Document Services meets that 

need by producing maps on demand at 

four facilities. 

The maps-on-demand capability 

means customers receive the most 

current editions — essential for 

warfighters and rescue workers. Space 

is a big advantage Document Services 

offers; 140 million warehouse line items 

have been removed since the maps-ondemand program started. 

Maps have been printed to support 

the Pan Am Games and Ebola relief. To aid 

in evacuation and recovery after Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, Document 

Services produced over 16,000 maps. 

Document Services also produces a 

range of targets for the armed services, 

for everything from training exercises to 

MAPS, TARGETS

AND MASSIVE 

POSTERS ARE 

AMONG THE MANY 

PRODUCTS OFFERED

BY DOCUMENT 

SERVICES

Document Services employees cutting out targets with the 

large paper cutter at Rock Island Arsenal.
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May / June 2018 31

LOGLINES

DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

weapons qualification. Targets range in 

size from standard office paper to over 6 

square feet. There are targets for specific 

weapons systems, including small arms, 

heavy artillery and long-range rifles. 

There are also aerial targets towed 

behind boats. 

Checks and Balances

Business cards, banners, posters 

and signs are all in a day’s work for the 

folks at Document Services, who print on 

everything from vinyl to polyester house 

wrap to large sections of construction 

material of up to 400 square feet. 

Document Services can transform 

almost any idea into reality — like 

the large blank check it created for 

the Oklahoma Air National Guard. The 

check is signed by Uncle Sam and is 

erasable, so it can be used repeatedly in 

photos with new recruits. The customer 

plans to use the photos taken with 

the check as part of a social media 

campaign to help recruitment. 

“People always seem to have a 

big smile when they see the check 

and the amount of money they have 

coming to them in overall compensation 

and benefits as a member of the Air 

National Guard,” said Chief Master Sgt. 

Chad Pearce, recruiting and retention 

superintendent for the unit.

Talent on Display

Civilians can see Document 

Services’ work as well. At the Fort 

Huachuca Museum in Arizona; at 

the U.S. Naval Undersea Museum in 

Keyport, Washington, or the Puget 

Sound Navy Museum in nearby 

Bremerton; or at the Army Corps of 

Engineers Lake Sonoma (California) 

Visitor Center, visitors can see some of 

Document Services’ displays: panels 

with photographs and information, 

and “wall action” vinyl displays applied 

directly to a wall. 

Graphic artists spend great time 

and effort setting up, producing and 

finishing their work, said Kathy Kruczek, 

graphic artist at the Travis Air Force Base 

Document Services. 

“It’s all worth it when we see the 

finished product displayed in its environment and hear the satisfaction from our 

customers,” she said. “We get the satisfaction that we are supporting the warfighter and that our work is on display.”

Document Services also creates 

decals for vehicles and aircraft, using 

special processes depending on where 

the decal will be placed. The employees 

know the complexities of these items, so 

the customer doesn’t have to. 

Automatic for the People

While many of these items are best 

in physical form, Document Services also 

helps customers recognize where they 

can ditch the paper and go digital. 

Document Services provides scanning 

services to eliminate boxes and drawers 

full of paper. Document Services employees carefully scan paper files and either 

place the digital files in a repository for 

search and retrieval or provide the files on 

other media. Many customers are looking 

to provide secure, global, anytime access 

to traditionally stovepiped information.

That’s not where it ends, though. 

Document Services can help automate 

customers’ work using technology that 

streamlines manual tasks, especially in 

the review and approval processes every 

organization deals with. 

Document Services provides Electronic Content Management that starts 

with a detailed requirements analysis 

on customers’ processes to determine 

workflows that can be created electronically. This helps avoid multiple file 

versions and allows the process to flow 

smoothly by alerting users when they 

need to review or approve something.

Some customers simply want 

to do more with the information 

available to them. Take the Army’s Tank 

Automotive Research, Development 

and Engineering Center, part of the 

Army Materiel Command. 

Aaron Ford, Document Services employee in the Norfolk 

mapping facility, holds up a freshly printed map.

Kevin Hogan, DMS employee at the Tinker Air Force Base 

facility, displays the check created for the Oklahoma Air 

National Guard’s recruitment campaign.
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32 www.dla.mil

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

THE NATION’S COMBAT LOGISTICS SUPPORT AGENCY

the schedule required by regulation. DLA 

continues to transition customer data and 

applications into DACS-RM.

As DoD moves through the audit 

process, these services are key to 

maintaining audit readiness.

Office Device Management

Document Services helps customers with office printing by providing a 

range of equipment, including devices 

that print, copy, scan and fax, at a fixed 

monthly price. This includes an assessment of the optimal number of devices 

needed based on usage, network 

requirements and needed features. 

The Navy knows the value of this 

service and has issued policy establishing 

Document Services as the single provider 

of office document devices enterprisewide. 

To date, the Navy has saved an estimated 

$94.2 million and reduced its devices by 49 

percent through Document Services, with 

over 965 assessments completed. 

Other customers include DLA and 

the Coast Guard, said Terra Nguyen, 

Equipment Management Solutions 

division director. 

“We’ve had great success in 

reducing the number of devices our 

customers need and saving them 

“TARDEC realizes that integrating 

separate data sets and applying some 

tools to run analytics, for example, 

will offer new insight to research and 

development that will provide the 

warfighter better tools to perform 

their missions,” said Joe Fagan, director 

of Electronic Data and Content 

Management Solutions.

For the Record

The biggest benefit of ECM services 

is that it’s compliant with recordsmanagement regulations — a big deal 

in the world of audit. Team TARDEC 

implemented records management 

from the beginning of its project with 

Document Services. Its records manager 

worked with Document Services to 

migrate the organization’s content and 

files into an approved, compliant file plan. 

Document Services introduced the 

Document Automation and Content Services – Records Management solution in 

2015, to organize and manage electronic 

records. DACS-RM provides a user interface for DLA’s financial processes that 

routes and stores evidentiary matter on 

Monochromatic specialty printing gives the Marine Corps Eagle, Globe and Anchor on this plastic card a gold pearl effect.
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May / June 2018 33

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DLA’S OFFICIAL FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION

Thanks to the skill of DLA Information Operations employees, the 

personnel at a Navy training school can now say they’re literally a 

part of their institution.

The Document Services team at Travis Air Force Base, California, 

created a mural made of the photos of 100 staff members for the Navy 

Technical Training Center Lackland’s Master-at-Arms “A” School in San 

Antonio. The finished product was installed in February.

The mural, a black-and-white photo collage, is over 7 feet tall and 

almost 40 feet long. To make installation easier, the Travis team printed 

the mural in 12 panels of wall-action vinyl — the same material used to 

create large, wall-mounted cutouts of athletes. 

Kathy Kruczek, graphic designer on the Travis team, cropped and 

edited the photos and arranged them so they would easily blend but still 

showcase each person as an integral part of the school. The finished file 

took about six hours to print. 

“The technical skill to compose these pictures in the proper format, 

lay out the design and print the large images is exactly why Document 

Services exists. I’m proud to be a part of an organization that can 

directly support the warfighter in ways that make people say, ‘Wow!’,” 

said Nick Janik, Print Facilities director for the group.

The school trains more than 28,000 students every year to be 

masters-at-arms, who help maintain order with law enforcement and 

security on Navy ships and commands. 

Sara Horvath, the school’s public affairs officer and the person who 

came up with the idea, said that even though the task was “a tall order,” 

the team’s work was “just wonderful.” 

The Document Services employees at Travis are no strangers to 

large projects like this. They’re equipped with wide-format printers and 

materials for creating anything from decals to banners and museum 

displays. And yes, even murals.

— Amber McSherry

Document Services Creates Mural

for Master-at-Arms School

money in the process,” she said. “The 

savings continue year after year.” 

Document Services hopes to earn 

the “best in class” designation from 

the Office of Management and Budget 

by fiscal 2019. This would make the 

program a governmentwide preferred 

solution for all federal agencies, to 

save costs. It would likely more than 

triple the program’s revenue over the 

next four years, from $100 million 

currently to a projected $365 million.

A Click or Call Away

Document Services Production 

Operations employees are customerdriven and provide many services to 

help promote, organize, maintain or 

even produce data more efficiently. 

Customers can place print orders at 

www.dso.documentservices.dla.mil or 

through their local customer relations 

specialists. Call the Customer Support 

Center at 1-866-736-7010 to find a 

local CRS and get information on the 

other services. LL

(Below) The photo collage is over 7 feet tall and almost 40 

feet long, printed on 12 panels of wall-action vinyl — the 

same material used to create large, wall-mounted cutouts 

of athletes.

— Photo Courtesy Document Services
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cover4 WWW.DLA.MIL

LOGLINES

THE RIGHT SOLUTIONS — ON TIME, EVERY TIME

My name is:

Rhonda Blum

I am:

A product specialist on the Aircraft Launch and Recovery Equipment Team at DLA 

Land and Maritime, Columbus, Ohio. My team manages the equipment that launches 

each aircraft from an aircraft carrier, guides it back to the ship or expeditionary airfield 

and recovers the aircraft safely.

Describe your job in a sentence: 

I evaluate technical data to make sure DLA procures the right critical items for 

launching and recovering military aircraft from ships. 

How long have you worked at DLA?

I’ve worked at DLA since 2006 after serving in the Navy as an aviation ordnanceman.

What is your favorite thing about working for DLA? 

I love that I work on items used on the ship my husband was stationed on twice before 

he retired from the Navy. 

What are your best memories of working here?

We recently created a tool to collect information to predict long 

lead times and delays in manufacturing. Our team also developed 

a questionnaire for contractors, to ensure they review all data 

before submitting bids. This reminds them of the complexity of 

item requirements and helps them produce accurate quotes. 

How do you make a difference?

I serve the warfighter by making sure the critical requirements 

of these items are met. The warfighter depends on me and my 

whole team to deliver. I’m sincerely proud to be part of it. 

Rhonda Blum

I AM DLA