LOGLINES

DLA EUROPE & AFRICA:

TWO CONTINENTS,

ONE MISSION

MAY – JUNE 2015 DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY
Lt. Gen. Andy Busch, USAF

Director, Defense Logistics Agency

issue, we’ve provided an overview of how 

this changes DLA’s mission in the region. 

The expansion puts emphasis on the 

European Infrastructure Consolidation, 

which in turn increases DLA 

Distribution’s mission. It also pumps up 

DLA Energy support as NATO extends 

its training base throughout Europe and 

the U.S. military is involved in many 

training exercises.

With all this support to the 

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Installation Support Europe & Africa is 

expanding its mission throughout the 

entire area of operations. Finally, this 

copy of Loglines provides an insider 

look at DLA Disposition Services. Their 

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a property transfer to Heidelberg for 

Syrian refugees who’ve taken asylum 

I

n the short time I’ve been here, I’ve 

noticed a consistent theme from our 

service and combatant command 

customers. Everywhere I go, they are 

extremely complimentary about the work 

DLA provides. They like us, and they want 

more of us.

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mid-1990s, we had little of the support 

we have now with the COCOMs. 

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at a moment’s notice anywhere in the 

world. That “let’s get it done” attitude is 

what drives so much business our way. 

It’s an amazing capability, and customers 

are very pleased with the excellent 

support we’re providing.

Recently our work in Europe and 

Africa has been highlighted with 

headlining missions. From the Ebola 

outbreak in Liberia to operations in 

Ukraine, DLA members have been on the 

ground making sure a wide range of folks 

have what they need to be successful. 

In this edition of Loglines, you’ll 

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contract support in Africa, including 

local procurement and support to 

United States Agency for International 

Development and Operation United 

Assistance. As we are now reducing our 

footprint for OUA, we’ll also look back at 

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support to our service customers to 

combat Ebola. 

Additionally, DLA is keeping watch 

as NATO expands in Europe. In this 

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critical time.

This is just one example of the 

great team and great relationship DLA 

is building with the services and the 

COCOMs. We will continue to align our 

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and sharpen our focus on continuing 

to build that relationship. They are 

interested in things we can do together, 

and as DLA Europe & Africa will show 

you, not much is out of reach. 

DLA Director

Air Force Lt. Gen. Andy Busch

DLA Vice Director

Ted Case 

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Renee L. Roman

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Joseph M. Yoswa

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Patrick H. Mackin

/RJOLQHV is the authorized publication for the 

Defense Logistics Agency’s workforce of federal 

civilians, active-duty military and Joint Reserve 

Force augmentees at agency activities worldwide 

and industry customers of DLA. Contents of this 

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endorsed by, the U.S. government, the Department 

of Defense or the Defense Logistics Agency. 

LOGLINES

Official Flagship Publication

of the Defense Logistics Agency

LOGLINES STAFF

Managing Editor: Phil Prater

Editor: Jacob Boyer

Acting Editor: Sara Moore

:ULWHUV Beth Reece

 Amanda Neumann

 1DY\3HWW\2̇FHUVW&ODVV'DQLHO*DUDV

/D\RXW'HVLJQ Paul Henry Crank

Headquarters, Defense Logistics Agency, Office of Public Affairs 

8725 John J. Kingman Road, Suite 2545, Fort Belvoir, VA 22060-6221

Phone: 703-767-62 E-mail: loglines@dla.mil

/RJOLQHV 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:

DIRECTOR

from the
Loglines O May - June 2015 1

A Conversation with ... 20

Air Force Lt. Gen. Andy Busch

History Highlights 24

Supporting the Bosnia Peace Mission

I am DLA Back Cover

DEPARTMENTS

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

DLA ON www.dla.mil www.facebook.com/dla.mil www.twitter.com/dlamil www.youtube.com/GRGORJLVWLFVDJHQF\

THE WEB

DLA EUROPE & AFRICA:

TWO CONTINENTS,

ONE MISSION

Old World, New Mission 2

As the U.S. works with NATO allies to support security 

and stability in Eastern Europe, the Defense Logistics 

Agency has expanded its logistical support in the region 

like never before. 

Energy Expansion 5

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forces in Eastern Europe as the U.S. aims to reassure allies of 

its commitment to the region through training and exercises. 

Update, Upgrade 8

DLA Installation Support Europe & Africa personnel are 

working with the military services, U.S. Africa Command 

and U.S. European Command to upgrade, implement, 

modernize or secure facilities throughout the region. 

Bridging the Gap 12

DLA is working with U.S. Africa Command and other 

combatant commands to consolidate multiple items into 

fewer contracts and avoid duplication using a tool called 

operational contract support. 

Refugee Assistance 15

To help improve the living conditions of Syrian refugees 

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Services Europe & Africa is donating excess military 

furniture to temporary shelters. 

Fighting Ebola 17

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combat the Ebola virus in West Africa, providing building 

materials, personal protective equipment, maps, tents, cots, 

water, food and fuel. 

Readiness Response 22

DLA had its own version of March Madness, with four 

simultaneous exercises held in mid-March that evaluated 

the agency’s capabilities to provide timely support to various 

combatant commands. 

CONTENTS

MAY - JUNE 2015
2 www.dla.mil

s actions in and around Ukraine 

challenge the stability in 

Eastern Europe, NATO has been 

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maximize its military capabilities 

and help strengthen European partnerships, and the Defense Logistics Agency 

is seeing its mission expand in support of 

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Large-scale operations like Operation 

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bolster the security and capacity of NATO 

members that border Russia through 

training and military support, are creating 

new demands for logistics in an area of 

responsibility once thought to be quiet.

“It sounds like a cliché, but it’s not our 

mom and dad’s [area of responsibility] 

anymore,” said Air Force Lt. Col. Paul 

6PLWKWKH'/$OLDLVRQṘFHUWR86

European Command.

Part of the new European security 

environment is reassuring NATO that 

USEUCOM still honors its military 

commitments. Helping USEUCOM meet 

those commitments is DLA. 

Whether it’s creating dedicated 

truck routes to support NATO in the 

Baltics or improving the distribution and 

warehousing of supplies through creation 

of a central distribution center at the 

Army’s Germersheim Depot in Germany, 

DLA has been expanding its logistical 

support in Europe like never before.

Smith, who was present during the 

collapse of the Soviet Union, said at the 

Story by Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Daniel Garas

A time, USEUCOM was a force-on-force 

combatant command. Since then, he said, 

it has shifted its focus toward theater 

security cooperation engagements, and 

exercises like OAR have created new 

logistical challenges and opportunities for 

logistics providers.

“DLA provides support, supplies and 

services to American forces operating 

in the European Command area of 

responsibility,” said Army Lt. Col. 

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Distribution Europe. “We have seen 

increased support to USEUCOM because 

of Operation Atlantic Resolve.”

Addressing these demands requires 

a smarter approach that is creating a 

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what is called the European Infrastructure 

Consolidation process.

Under the EIC, a two-year study was 

used to determine what infrastructure 

within the theater was essential.

“DLA was asked to look at logistics 

infrastructure within the European 

theater,” said George Kingsley, a program 

support supervisor for DLA Logistics 

2SHUDWLRQV37KHIRFXVRIWKHH̆RUWZDVWR

reduce the footprint while providing the 

same level of mission support.”

The results of the review included 

the return of 15 military sites to their 

host nations, saving the U.S. government 

about $500 million annually. 

“Bottom line, it’s not advertised to 

be a reduction of capabilities,” Smith 

OLD WORLD, 

NEW MISSION

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of where capabilities are based in Europe 

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a reduction of capabilities on behalf of 

the USEUCOM commander.”

The task of rearranging storage and 

distribution capabilities while still meeting 

USEUCOM’s logistical needs is the work of 

DLA Distribution Europe.

“DLA is the lead DoD agency for that 

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Distribution is responsible for the receipt, 

storage, issue, packing, preservation and 
Loglines O May - June 2015 3

transportation of items.”

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through the two distribution depots 

in the USEUCOM area of operations, 

in Germersheim, Germany, and 

Sigonella, Italy.

While the depot in Sigonella supports 

mainly Navy activities, the highlights of the 

EIC are the existing logistics facilities in 

Germersheim, which have been rebranded 

as a “distribution center of excellence.”

Although the title is new, 

Germersheim has been a major logistics 

base for years, said David Harris, DLA 

Distribution’s contingency plans chief.

The facility, home to DLA 

Distribution Europe, is responsible for 

the storage and distribution of 40,000 

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items. Additionally, it’s responsible for 

regular mail delivery to contingency 

locations in Kosovo and Romania, and 

may pick up responsibilities for the 

Baltic states in the near future.

The installation, which already 

supports USEUCOM logistical operations, 

is set to embody the concept behind the 

EIC when it consolidates several entities.

The Army and Air Force Exchange 

Service is scheduled to close its facilities 

in Giessen by 2016 and move to 

Germersheim to be co-located with DLA 

Distribution and the dry storage location 

for the Defense Commissary Agency.

“The DCE concept is for these three 

organizations to partner with each other to 

U.S. and Lithuanian troops engage a simulated 

enemy during Operation Atlantic Resolve, 

in Pabrade training area, Lithuania. Truck 

routes to the Baltic States allow USEUCOM 

to continue active participation and support 

to exercises like these. 

— Photo by Army Staff Sgt. Pablo N. Piedra
4 www.dla.mil

streamline operations, consolidate support 

where possible, and save U.S. taxpayer 

dollars while sustaining or improving 

current customer support,” Harris said.

DLA is also expanding its footprint in 

Europe by providing weekly truck routes 

out of Germersheim to support U.S. 

troops participating in OAR. 

“DLA Distribution expanded its truck 

routes to the Baltic states to support U.S. 

rotational forces that began operations 

in those areas last year,” Harris said. “As 

long as U.S. forces operate in the Baltic 

states, DLA Distribution Europe will 

support them.”

John Gallagher, transportation chief 

for DLA Distribution Europe, said that 

Eastern Europe, particularly Poland, the 

Baltic states, Romania and Bulgaria, has 

seen an increase of U.S. troops training in 

the area, including a mix of light, heavy 

and Stryker units.

“U.S. Army Europe is leading OAR 

to ensure multinational interoperability, 

strengthen relationships among allied 

militaries, contribute to regional stability 

and demonstrate U.S. commitment to 

NATO,” he said.

Supplying troops and DLA customers 

participating in OAR North is dependent 

on the weekly truck routes that ship to 

four receiving centers in Poland, Latvia, 

Estonia and Lithuania. Units ordering 

materials can have supplies shipped to 

the DoD activity address code assigned to 

each central receiving point.

“To date, we’ve delivered in excess of 

800 pallets on 45 truck missions to OAR 

North,” Gallagher said. “As a key strategic 

logistics enabler, we’re proactive in the 

route planning, and we stay closely tied 

in with the planners at USEUCOM, U.S. 

Army Europe, and the distribution management center within the 21st Theater 

Sustainment Command.”

Deliveries to more than 41 locations 

throughout Europe take place weekly, 

carrying anything from medical supplies 

to repair parts, but DLA has the ability to 

deliver rapid logistics when necessary. 

In addition to supporting OAR North 

in the Baltic states, DLA also supports 

OAR South, with truck routes once a week 

to Bulgaria and twice a week to Romania.

3:HKDYHWKHÀH[LELOLW\WRFDOOIRU

trucks to be brought forward and delivered 

the same day to support any location we 

deliver to in Europe,” Gallagher said. “If 

parts are needed on an emergency basis, 

it may be airlifted into theater and from 

there, DLA Distribution Europe can truck 

it out to where it’s needed.”

USEUCOM provides management 

oversight for commercial trucks that are 

used for deliveries to the 41 locations 

that DLA Distribution Europe supports 

throughout the European continent.

Gallagher credits these successes 

to close teamwork between U.S. Army 

Europe, USEUCOM and the 21st TSC, 

noting that working together as partners 

makes them stronger. 

+R̆PDQVDLGWKDWVLQFHWKHVH2$5

routes have been operating successfully, 

DLA Distribution is only getting busier.

“We’re increasing our truck routes 

and distribution networks throughout 

Europe,” she said. “And we’re getting 

more customers and requests to ship 

along more routes.”

In addition to shipping from the 

distribution center of excellence in 

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is using USEUCOM as a test bed for its 

deployable depots, which will enable it 

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Teams from DLA Distribution are 

being tasked to participate in exercises 

to test the viability of employing small, 

mobile, rapidly deployable logistics 

depots, she said.

“It’s basically an expeditionary package 

that comes with a certain package of 

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temporarily set up warehousing operations 

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logistical agencies have tried to meet 

the standards provided by DLA, but fall 

short. U.S. Army Europe leaders have 

said that DLA meets their needs and they 

currently have no intention to change 

providers, she said.

“We are the sole distribution solution 

for OAR and all those troops in the Baltic,” 

she said. “There’s no other logistics entity 

that’s running distribution networks up 

there the way we are.” 

+R̆PDQDGPLWWHGWKDWORJLVWLFDOVXSport of this size is challenging, but also tremendously rewarding for her employees to 

support this mission, where they support 

not just the U.S., but also NATO allies. 

“These are the same troops that 

fought with us in our own engagements 

in Iraq and Afghanistan,” she said. “To be 

able to give back to them is rewarding.” 

DLA Distribution is responsible for the receipt, storage, issue, packing, preservation and transportation of items across Europe. This is accomplished 

through distribution depots, the two largest being in Germersheim, Germany (displayed), and Sigonella, Italy.

Courtesy Photo

Editor’s Note:'/$'LVWULEXWLRQ3XEOLF$̆DLUV

FRQWULEXWHGWRWKLVDUWLFOH
Loglines O May - June 2015 5

An Air Force Thunderbolt II aircraft participates in 

a theater security package at RAF Lakenheath, 

England. Theater security packages are Air 

Force deployments of aircraft and personnel 

in support of Operation Atlantic Resolve. A 

challenge DLA Energy faces in Eastern Europe is 

finding sources of military-specification jet fuel.

— Photo by Air Force Airman 1st Class Trevor T. McBride

ENERGY 

EXPANSION

Story by Sara Moore

ven as Defense Logistics Agency 

Energy participated in the 

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Ebola in Africa, it supported 

a vital training and exercise 

expansion in Europe aimed at increasing 

regional stability. 

DLA Energy has been using its years 

of experience supporting U.S. forces 

in Europe to participate in Operation 

Atlantic Resolve, a series of exercises that 

began in April 2014 and is expanding to 

various sites in Eastern Europe and the 

Baltic States. The exercise is part of the 

European Reassurance Initiative, which 

started in March 2014 and is aimed at 

reassuring allies of the U.S. commitment 

to security and stability in the region.

“This shift to Eastern Europe is 

essentially the cutting edge focus of 

what we’re doing right now,” said Daniel 

Schmidt, director of operations for DLA 

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the combatant command’s priority.”

DLA Energy has supported Operation 

Atlantic Resolve since the beginning, but 

the activity began expanding its support 

in September 2014 as the exercise moved 

E
6 www.dla.mil

north into Poland and the Baltic States 

of Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia, said 

Army Maj. Stefan Bandas, director of 

the customer operations center for DLA 

Energy Europe & Africa. DLA Energy 

supported four fuel sites until March, 

when it added another site in Latvia. Later 

that month, additional sites were stood up 

in Romania and Bulgaria to provide fuel 

support to forces there, he added. 

At all these sites, DLA Energy 

provides fuel through a variety of 

mechanisms, Bandas said. In some 

locations, DLA Energy uses host-nation 

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forecasts product volumes and the host 

nation provides the product, helping to 

build partnerships, he said. Other options 

are direct-delivery contracts or simply 

transporting DLA-owned fuel from one 

location to another location where a 

training event is occurring. 

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a way to bridge the gap based on their 

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can accomplish their mission.”

Although they represent only a 

fraction of the $1.75 billion of fuel 

contracts DLA Energy Europe & Africa 

issues each year, the direct-delivery 

contracts that support these exercises 

represent some of DLA Energy’s most 

vital and challenging work, Schmidt 

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smaller amounts of fuel than Energy 

routinely provides to the major operating 

bases in the region, he noted, but it must 

be delivered to countries that often don’t 

have the infrastructure or resources to 

support delivery and storage. In Eastern 

Europe in particular, DLA does not have 

an established defense fuel supply point to 

draw from, and the sources for militaryVSHFL¿FDWLRQIXHORU-3DUHOLPLWHG

To overcome these challenges, DLA 

Energy often works with the host nations 

to keep U.S. and host forces supplied, 

Schmidt said. In some countries, like 

Poland and Lithuania, the host nations are 

able to help support U.S. forces in addition 

to their own, he said. In other cases, 

international fuel-exchange agreements 

allow the U.S. and host nations to trade 

fuel back and forth as the need arises. The 

exchanges under these agreements usually 

balance out by the end of the year, he said, 

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forces supplied during an exercise.

An Army Stryker armored vehicle moves to an objective during a combined live-fire exercise with members of the Latvian Land Forces at the Ańdaži 

Training Area in Latvia as part of Operation Atlantic Resolve. DLA Energy Europe & Africa is supporting Europe-based U.S. Army units that were 

deployed to Poland, Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia to conduct bilateral military exercises and reinforce NATO security commitments to the host nations. 

Army Staff Sgt. Pablo N. Piedra
Loglines O May - June 2015 7

“It’s just a method that we don’t have 

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source within a country when there’s 

already a host-nation support structure 

there for us,” he said. 

A recent development in contractor 

availability could soon help DLA Energy 

overcome the challenge of providing 

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in Eastern Europe, Schmidt said. The 

agency is working with a new contractor 

who is able to take commercial jet fuel, 

which is readily available in the region, 

and inject the necessary additives to 

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and deliver it on a destination basis 

throughout Eastern Europe. 

“We’re getting that contractor stood 

up right now, and we’re extremely hopeful 

that this will be a major turning point in 

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virtually on demand,” Schmidt said. 

In addition to supporting the exercises under Operation Atlantic Resolve, 

which are part of the 50-70 exercises DLA 

Energy supports in the region each year, 

Energy Europe & Africa supports four 

major combatant commands, manages 59 

defense fuel supply points, is embedded 

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long-established one and includes not 

only cooperation on the ground during 

exercises, but also policy and administraWLRQVXSSRUWDW1$72KHDGTXDUWHUV

Hank Tomlin, the DLA Energy liaison 

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works closely with the organization’s 

petroleum committee on petroleumproduct policies. He is also part of the 

contingent that represents the U.S. to the 

Central European Pipeline System, the 

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VHUYHV¿YHQDWLRQVDQG86IDFLOLWLHVLQ

Germany. The U.S. is the largest military 

customer of CEPS, using it to move fuel to 

its major installations in Germany, and also 

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running, Tomlin said. Using the CEPS 

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through Europe without major disruption 

A Soldier checks the engine of a Stryker 

armored vehicle while conducting preventive 

maintenance checks and services during 

Operation Atlantic Resolve in Mihail 

Kogalniceanu, Romania. DLA Energy Europe 

& Africa is supporting U.S. forces participating 

in OAR.

to transportation infrastructure, so it’s 

important for the U.S. and DLA Energy 

to have representation on the various 

committees that manage its maintenance, 

infrastructure, engineering and business, 

he said. 

“Without the CEPS, DLA Energy 

would have to contract for tanker trucks, 

and it would probably be impossible to 

move these volumes of fuel via trucks or 

EDUJHVZLWKRXWFDXVLQJPDVVLYHWUḊF

jams,” Tomlin said. “The impact on the 

local communities, the environmental 

issues with moving fuel in trucks like that 

would make it very unpopular in Europe. 

The viability of DLA Energy supporting 

the U.S. military mission in Europe relies 

on using the CEPS.”

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in many other ways, including through 

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Tomlin said. In all these interactions, he 

said, collaboration and understanding 

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Schmidt echoed Tomlin’s sentiment, 

noting that working with each nation can 

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the foreign services, so DLA is committed 

to keeping those partnerships strong.

“They learn to operate together and 

when they exercise together, they learn 

each others’ ways, and the U.S. forces 

learn how to function with their respective 

army, air force and navy,” Schmidt said. 

As the European Reassurance 

Initiative and Operation Atlantic Resolve 

continue, Schmidt said he anticipates 

maintaining and even expanding DLA 

Energy’s support in the region. And 

with international partnerships that 

grow stronger with each exercise and a 

potential new contractor for militaryVSHFL¿FDWLRQIXHOWKHIXWXUHORRNVEULJKW

for DLA Energy in Europe, he said.

“I’ve dealt with exercises in Eastern 

Europe for well over 10 years now, and 

they’ve always been challenging, but we’re 

very hopeful with this new contract that 

we have ... it’s going to be a huge step 

forward for us,” he said. 

Army Sgt. William A. Tanner
8 www.dla.mil

ith the Defense Department’s 

biggest rooftop solar farm in 

Germany scheduled to be up 

and running in a year, Ryan 

Taylor will soon have bragging 

rights. Taylor, an energy resource 

manager for Defense Logistics Agency 

Installation Support Europe & Africa in 

Kaiserslautern, Germany, is in the midst 

of identifying several energy-related 

projects that will help reduce the agency’s 

energy footprint in Europe.

From multimillion dollar energy 

conservation projects to new hazardous 

materials legislation, DLA Installation 

Support Europe & Africa personnel are 

working with the military services, U.S. 

Africa Command and U.S. European 

Command to upgrade, update, implement, 

modernize or secure facilities throughout 

the region that DLA personnel occupy.

In addition to the 620-kilowatt project 

Story by Amanda Neumann

UPDATE, W

UPGRADE
Loglines O May - June 2015 9

A 620-kilowatt solar project, scheduled to be up and 

running in a year at the Germersheim Army Depot in 

Germany, is one of three major projects aimed at helping 

the DLA reduce its energy footprint in Europe. When 

completed, the rooftop solar farm will be the Defense 

Department’sbiggest in Germany.

— Photo by Ryan Taylor

at the Germersheim Army Depot, Taylor 

is working on a venture with the Navy 

for a 1-megawatt, $3.7 million solar farm 

in Rota, Spain, and a 345-kilowatt, $1.2 

million solar farm in Sigonella, Italy. 

“When you heat a warehouse up to 

80 degrees and then you open up the 

bay doors, we’re really spending a lot of 

money just reheating it over and over 

again, so I’m trying to come up with 

smarter projects that can keep the mission 

status quo and save energy at the same 

time,” he said. “With the solar projects, 

since we’re metered, we would realize the 

savings as our utility meter spins slower 

or even backward.”

The Sigonella solar panels, placed 

on the roofs of several DLA Distribution 

warehouses, are expected to yield more 

than $2.3 million in savings over their 

25-year lifecycle, Taylor said.

Besides conserving energy, 

maintaining DLA Energy’s large 

capitalized fuel infrastructure is DLA 

Installation Support Europe & Africa’s 

biggest role, said Gerald Rivas, director of 

DLA Installation Support Europe & Africa.

“When customers go to a government 

gas station, and they can get fuel out of 

that pump, it’s because of the work that 

DLA Installation Support does behind the 

scenes,” he said. “Although we don’t have 

a big interaction with the customer, we 

make sure that the facility is operational 

by working with the military services to 

ensure their requirements are met, not 

only at government gas stations, but at all 

capitalized fuel infrastructure sites.”

With a fuel infrastructure that is 

spread out over 54 facilities in Europe 

and Africa, there are usually half a dozen 

construction projects in various phases 

in the region at any time, said August 

Carrillo, head of a multidisciplinary 

engineering team in DLA Installation 

Support Europe & Africa.

MILCONs, the largest of these 

military construction projects, require 

congressional approval and are usually 

SODQQHGRXWWKUHHWR¿YH\HDUVDKHDGRI

time, Carrillo said. Because DLA doesn’t 

have the authority to do construction, 

Carrillo and his team often provide input 

to the military services’ engineering teams 

during the construction process.

“Since my employees have had eyes 

on all of these places, we know what they 

need to operate properly,” he said.

A $40 million bulk storage tank 

system in Djibouti, Africa, a $17 million 

aircraft refueling hydrant system in 

Incirlik, Turkey, and a $5 million piping 

connection project in Spangdahlem, 

Germany, are among the MILCON fuel-
10 www.dla.mil

related projects scheduled for the next few 

¿VFDO\HDUV

MILCON projects in Europe 

can be related to the movement of 

military personnel due to the European 

Infrastructure Consolidation process, 

but sustainment, restoration and 

modernization projects are used for 

upkeep on the military services’ existing 

fuel infrastructure, Carrillo said. There 

are about 350 SRM projects either in 

planning, design or construction in the 

region. With much of the infrastructure 

more than 30 years old, and some even 

more than 50 years old, keeping it all 

in good working condition can be quite 

challenging, he said.

“The bulk of our work 

is of the SRM variety, 

because it’s very costly 

to keep up with this 

infrastructure,” he said. 

“We add a surcharge to 

the fuel that the services 

use, somewhere between 

5 or 10 cents a gallon, and 

that money gets stored 

up in the SRM program, 

which accounts for several 

hundred million dollars 

worldwide per year. The 

repair work of a fuel tank, 

which is over 2 million 

gallons, can easily go over 

a million dollars. In fact, 

they generally run between 

$1-3 million, and that’s 

why the budget for the 

SRM program is as big as 

it is.”

Unlike MILCON projects, SRM 

projects are approved internally through 

DLA, because the projects are paid from 

DLA’s defense working capital fund, 

Carrillo said. Potential projects are 

LGHQWL¿HGLQWZRZD\VE\VLWHYLVLWVRUE\

yearly studies that the military services 

FRQGXFW2QFHLGHQWL¿HGDVDGH¿FLHQF\

the project is tracked through DLA’s 

Enterprise Business System.

32QFHZH¿QGVRPHWKLQJWKDW

is in need of repair, then a scope of 

work is developed to address the 

problem,” Carrillo said. “Once a solution 

is approved and agreed to by the 

stakeholders, it becomes a project. Since 

DLA is not an executing agent, we send 

the money to the services, who will solicit 

for a construction contractor to come out 

and do whatever work needs to get done 

WRUHFWLI\WKLVGH¿FLHQF\ ́

The European Infrastructure 

Consolidation process can also blur the 

lines where SRM projects get their funding, said Nader Wehbe, a general engineer 

who serves as the program manager for 

DLA Installation Support Vertical, which 

manages SRM projects for buildings and 

site infrastructure. Wehbe works predominantly on DLA Disposition Services sites in 

Europe, such as the recently funded $1.4 

million paving project at Germersheim, but 

also supports DLA Distribution and other 

DLA activities as needed. 

“Annual maintenance 

agreements spell out what 

the base will do for tenants, 

OLNH¿[\RXUDLUFRQGLWLRQLQJ

but when things need to be 

¿[HGEH\RQGWKHPDLQWHQDQFH

agreement, like replacing 

a roof, pavement repair, 

safety, security, health, life, 

operations upgrades, etc., 

this is when SRM comes 

into play,” he said. “It’s hard 

enough to sustain or maintain 

a facility when everything is 

¿[HGEXWWKLQJVLQ(XURSHDUH

not static. Now that there is a 

lot of movement, we have to 

get into the master planning, 

the logistics and coordination, 

ZLWKWKHEDVHVWR¿QGRXWZKR

pays for it depending on the 

type of work.”

“Regardless of how 

Paid from the Defense Logistics Agency’s defense working capital funds, sustainment, restoration and modernization projects are used for upkeep 

on the military services’ existing infrastructures. A recent project at a DLA Disposition Services facility in Incirlik, Turkey, included a floor renovation 

and the installation of new racking and energy-efficient lighting.

NATO SECURITY TRAINING

As chief of security operations for DLA Installation Support Europe & Africa, Richard Ellis’s job is to ensure DLA employees and family members abroad 

are kept informed on security threats. But the former military intelligence officer 

often asks himself, “Would DLA know what to do if Europe was threatened with a 

crisis? And how would the agency protect its workforce?”

“I know how [the U.S and the U.S. military] manages crisis management, but 

what if something happened here and NATO got involved?” he said. “We’d have 

to be part of the reporting structure and know what to do and how to do it, when 

to do it, and how we can synchronize our operations with theirs. It’s better to be 

informed and trained than to learn during a crisis.”

Since all of the European countries that DLA Europe & Africa operates in are 

NATO members, Ellis also sends his employees to NATO training to not only train, 

but also to network with the allied forces. The courses, which run between one and 

two weeks, are taught by an international body, he said.

“In the NATO courses, we’re learning what their regulations are, how do 

they look at security, what is their view of force protection and so forth,” he said. 

“I just came back from a NATO crisis management course, and they have their 

own ways of doing things. We need to know how the Germans, the French, etc., 

operate. We have to share information on certain things for cultural awareness 

and to expand our horizons, because it’s easy to get caught up in your everyday 

little area and not see the bigger picture.”

— Amanda Neumann

Nader Wehbe

BEFORE AFTER
Loglines O May - June 2015 11

we get there, our primary mission is to 

assure the facilities receive the attention 

and upgrades as needed to maintain 

ḢFLHQWRSHUDWLRQVDQGSURYLGHD

safe and healthy work 

environment,” he added.

But to make a change 

to any facility, DLA has 

WR¿UVWHQVXUHWKHDVVHW

LVFRUUHFWO\LGHQWL¿HGLQ

EBS, otherwise funds 

can’t be applied, said 

Michael Merkel, a real 

property specialist.

“The primary focus 

right now in the realty 

realm deals with audit 

readiness, making 

sure that all of the facilities that DLA is 

UHVSRQVLEOHIRUDUHSURSHUO\LGHQWL¿HGDQG

WKDWDOOWKH¿QDQFLDOVWKDWDUHWLHGWRWKRVH

facilities are captured,” he said. “From 

the real property standpoint, facility 

validation is an integral focus. Making 

sure that what we have represented within 

our system is actually in place or no longer 

in place is vitally important to ensuring 

DLA records are accurate and auditable.”

Making sure that the information in 

EBS matches what the services have, in 

addition to identifying who is accountable 

for each facility and structure, can be a 

huge challenge, Merkel said.

32IWHQZH¿QGZKHQWKHVHUYLFHQR

longer needs a facility, they’ll put in a 

request to have it demolished and may 

not notify DLA when disposal actions 

are complete,” he said. “We need to 

be sure once demolition has occurred 

that we purge those records from our 

system. Also, we must build records 

for new construction so that we can 

track any additional work in the future 

that will be put toward those particular 

facilities. We’ve found site visits and joint 

inventories alongside the services to be 

the most accurate way to ensure that 

the information in our system and the 

information in their system is correct.”

(YHQEHIRUHWKH¿UVWVKRYHOLVSODFHG

in the ground for any of these projects, 

Anne Delp’s job is to help ensure DLA is in 

compliance with the various environmental management regulations throughout 

Europe and Africa. As a regional environmental engineer, Delp helps write DoD’s 

HQYLURQPHQWDO¿QDOJRYHUQLQJVWDQGDUGVD

hybrid of U.S. and host nation regulations 

that are unique to each country.

“I work with all 

RIWKH>'/$¿HOG

activities], especially 

DLA Energy, and with 

DLA Headquarters 

to ensure compliance 

with applicable 

international, host and 

U.S. regulations,” she 

said. “This involves all 

media areas including 

fuel, hazardous materials 

and hazardous waste 

regulatory issues. The 

regulatory landscape here can be super 

complicated. In addition, DLA is always 

a tenant in this region, and the services, 

even within the same country, may have 

GL̆HUHQWLQVWUXFWLRQVDQGJXLGDQFH

documents. So I have to work closely with 

the services at the regional and base levels, 

because no two bases have the same set of 

requirements.” 

For Delp, a critical issue for DLA 

at the moment involves REACH, the 

Registration, Evaluation, Authorization 

and Restriction of Chemicals. The 

complicated European Union legislation 

is being implemented in phases and could 

VLJQL¿FDQWO\LPSDFW'R'¶VPRYHPHQWDQG

use of hazardous materials in Europe. 

3,W¶VDVLJQL¿FDQWLVVXHIRUWKH'R'

right now, as we assess how to comply 

with the regulation, what portion applies 

and how we can meet compliance without 

DGYHUVHO\H̆HFWLQJPLVVLRQV ́'HOSVDLG

“[The Deputy Undersecretary of Defense 

for Installations & Environment] has 

overall responsibility for developing a 

REACH compliance strategy and has 

formed a DoD-wide working group, in 

which I actively participate and chair a 

committee. Because of our international 

agreements, REACH may not apply to 

DoD, or only in certain circumstances, but 

we do not fully know yet.”

Despite the uncertainties of the AOR’s 

changing landscape, Rivas’ number one 

priority will always be to ensure that DLA 

employees are taken care of.

“Overall, the quality of the facilities that 

we have in Europe where DLA employees 

work are outstanding,” Rivas said. “That’s 

one of the things that DLA does is it takes 

good care of its workforce. And we’re 

working on getting the rest of the DLA 

infrastructure here, the fuel infrastructure, 

up to standards to make sure that that 

meets mission requirements as well. So 

as the AOR continues to transform, as 

bases close, for me ensuring that DLA 

personnel have a safe and secure working 

environment is important, no matter 

where they go.” 

Defense Logistics Agency Installation Support 

Europe & Africa employee August Carrillo 

inspects a fuel pier in Lajes, Portugal, in August 

2014. Carillo oversees a disciplinary engineering 

team that tracks military construction projects 

for DLA Energy’s fuel infrastructure in Europe 

and Africa.

“Making sure that what we 

have represented within our 

system is actually in place 

or no longer in place is 

vitally important to ensuring 

DLA records are accurate 

and auditable.”

— Michael Merkel Davie Targett
12 www.dla.mil

Story by Beth Reece

BRIDGING

THE GAP

ilitary services operating in the same 

area share many of the same needs. 

Those in Africa all need bottled water, for 

example. And during Operation United 

Assistance, engineers spread throughout 

Liberia needed construction items to build not just 

one Ebola treatment unit, but 10. 

The Defense Logistics Agency is working with 

U.S. Africa Command and other combatant commands to consolidate multiple items into fewer 

contracts and avoid duplication by using a tool called 

operational contract support. 

“OCS gives us a better overview of requirements, 

so if the Army and Air Force are looking to buy the 

same things, they aren’t competing against each 

other to do it. It’s important because the amount of 

money we have to spend is shrinking,” said Air Force 

Col. Chris Barker, director of plans and policy for 

'/$¶V-RLQW&RQWLQJHQF\$FTXLVLWLRQ6XSSRUW2̇FH

OCS has three parts: contract support integration, contractor management and contracting support. Contract support integration includes validating and prioritizing troop requirements to eliminate 

multiple requisitions of the same material through 

a Joint Requirements Review Board. Contractor 

management involves overseeing contractors’ performance as well as contracting rules and regulations. 

$QGXQGHUFRQWUDFWLQJVXSSRUWṘFLDOVORRNDWWKH

various ways to acquire supplies and decide which is 

best time- and money-wise. 

“It’s not actually about writing contracts, although 

we can do that, but looking at the requirements and 

M

Service members supporting Operation United Assistance 

board a plane at Roberts International Airport, outside 

of Monrovia, Liberia. Supplies such as water and 

construction material were provided with the help of DLA 

contingency contracting officers on the ground.

— Photo by Army Spc. Caitlyn Byrne
Loglines O May - June 2015 13
14 www.dla.mil

determining the best avenue of contracting,” Barker said.

During Operation United Assistance, 

members of JCASO’s mission support 

team deployed to help DLA planners 

already embedded with USAFRICOM 

set up an OCS integration cell at every 

echelon, from USAFRICOM Headquarters 

to U.S. Army Africa and the task force on 

the ground in Liberia. 

2QHRIWKH¿UVWSODQVWKHJURXSPDGH

was to combine acquisitions for material 

needed to build all Ebola treatment units 

into a single contract. 

“We knew the ETUs would have a 

cookie-cutter approach using the same 

material for each one, and that it would be 

less expensive to order them all together 

rather than one-by-one as they were 

built,” Barker said. 

DLA began building its OCS capability 

after Hurricane Sandy but hadn’t used 

it in real-time operations until troops 

deployed to Liberia to help contain the 

spread of the Ebola virus, said Charmaine 

Camper, JCASO’s director of contingency 

contracting and local procurement director. 

“We already had a robust contracting 

capability in DLA, but that’s doing mainly 

garrison and peacetime contracting, 

which is done through the supply chains. 

What we didn’t have before this was a 

contingency contracting ability where 

we could actually deploy, see what’s 

happening on the ground and provide 

immediate support,” she added.

The same “buy local” goal that generated 

better prices and faster delivery of 

goods and services to troops in 

Afghanistan will soon benefit those serving 

across the continent of Africa. 

Defense Logistics Agency Europe & 

Africa officials and members of DLA’s Joint 

Contingency Acquisition Support Office are 

looking for local business owners in Nigeria 

and other African countries that can provide 

commodities ranging from bottled water to 

construction material. 

In June 2014, a local procurement 

initiative team traveled to Nigeria to meet 

with local government leaders and potential 

vendors. Despite widespread poverty and 

subpar infrastructure, the team found several 

businesses eager to support U.S. forces. Two 

months later, they returned to host businessdevelopment events designed to prepare local 

vendors for working with the U.S. government. 

DLA’s emphasis on local procurement 

began in south and central Asia with NATO’s 

Afghan First Policy, which was created to 

support economic development and the Afghan 

private sector. The agency helped facilitate 

about $4.5 billion worth of local procurement in 

the region, said JCASO Deputy Director David 

Koch. 

“We’re not going to get near that in Africa, 

because we just don’t have the troop base to 

support it. But smaller amounts of money can 

have a large impact on the local community, 

-&$62¶V0LFKDHOOD2OVRQZDVWKH¿UVW

FRQWLQJHQF\FRQWUDFWLQJṘFHUWRDUULYH

in Liberia, where she helped integrate 

contract support among military and 

federal customers. In addition to helping 

the Army’s 414th Contracting Support 

Brigade contract for goods and services 

when it experienced funding delays, she 

also made sure engineers had the heavy 

machinery and gravel they needed to prep 

sites for Ebola treatment units.

DLA’s OCS experts have proven 

they’re vital to bridging the gaps between 

various contracting entities, said JCASO 

Deputy Director David Koch. 

“We have found they are quite the enabler at the onset of an operation,” he said.

Camper’s team is working to train 

military customers on the value and 

steps of operational contracting support. 

In early March, she instructed Marines 

at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, on 

how to conduct a Joint Requirements 

Review Board when they deployed for the 

Judicious Response exercise in Africa. 

It’s so important that DLA work with 

combatant commands to ensure they 

know how to set up an OCS integration 

cell that JCASO has also developed 

several mock scenarios to test troops’ 

skills during major training exercises, 

Barker added.

“The focus on OCS is going to be 

enhanced from here on out. Anytime 

there’s an operation, it’s going to be 

written into the plan to stand up an 

OCS integration cell,” he said. “Once it’s 

ingrained in everybody’s way of doing 

business, we’ll have better accountability 

of contractors and we’ll be able to do a lot 

more in a joint environment.” 

DLA’s “Buy Local” Goals

because local vendors want to be involved, and 

it helps us build partnerships,” he said. 

In February, lawmakers passed Djibouti 

First legislation that requires Defense 

Department contracting officers to either limit 

competition to Djibouti businesses or provide 

preference to Djibouti-sourced products and 

services before considering other sourcing 

options. DLA Troop Support and JCASO 

officials are currently reviewing guidance and 

existing contracts to see what changes can be 

made to future acquisitions.

Ensuring local businesses are capable of 

doing work with the U.S. government requires 

several steps.

“Just because they say they’re capable 

doesn’t mean they really are. We visit 

the vendor to see their facility, see how 

much capacity they have and look at their 

manufacturing processes,” said Charmaine 

Camper, JCASO’s director of contingency 

contracting and local procurement. Experts 

also have to ensure the vendor can produce 

items according to U.S. standards, she added. 

DLA’s work toward local procurement 

in Africa has already made some progress. 

Material such as gravel was bought from local businesses to support the building of 

Ebola treatment units during Operation United 

Assistance. Future deals may include the purchase of locally produced Coca-Cola products. 

— Beth Reece

“It’s not actually about writing contracts, although we can do that, but looking 

at the requirements and determining the best avenue of contracting.” 

— Air Force Col. Chris Barker
Loglines O May - June 2015 15

our years of civil war has killed 

more than 200,000 Syrians, and 

9 million citizens have abandoned 

homes there. The United Nations 

says a majority of those displaced 

E\WKHVDYDJHFRQÀLFWUHPDLQVWXFNLQ

Syria or neighboring countries. Many 

languish in camps while applying for 

asylum; others attempt dangerous escapes 

via the Mediterranean Sea. Some of the 

luckier ones, perhaps as few as 150,000, 

have successfully resettled in nearby 

European Union member states.

To help improve the living conditions 

of these refugees, DLA Disposition Services 

Europe & Africa personnel applied their 

expertise and a lot of hard work to use 

excess furniture to make them more 

comfortable in their temporary shelters.

DLA Disposition Services Europe & 

$IULFD'HSXW\'LUHFWRU&OL̆6HUZHKHDUG

a December news segment suggesting 

Germany would house Syrian refugees 

in an old U.S. military gymnasium in 

Heidelberg. Germany has provided the 

most EU asylum opportunities for Syrians, 

with commitments to accept about 

30,000 refugees since 2013. But high 

UHIXJHHLQÀX[FDQSRVHORJLVWLFDOEXUGHQV

Story by Jacob Joy, 

DLA Disposition Services Public Affairs

F

on German villages, which often rely on 

Fluechtlingsaufnahmestelles – municipal 

town hall or community center-type buildings – to serve as refugee reception points 

during resettlement. Refugees can arrive 

with next to nothing. Language barriers 

slow the process, as can the search for 

good employment options and long-term 

quarters. Supplies, food and furniture are 

all needed during the transition.

Serwe said he heard the report and 

envisioned an opportunity for DLA 

Disposition Services to help meet the 

basic needs of these Syrian refugees 

ZKLOHUHGXFLQJODQG¿OOEXONVKHGGLQJ

disposal costs and “reinforcing the great 

relationship the German and American 

governments share.” 

REFUGEE 

ASSISTANCE

With hundreds of military sites 

shuttered or consolidated since the 

end of the Cold War, DLA’s disposition 

personnel in Europe maintain a fairly 

VWHDG\EX̆HWRIIXUQLWXUHIRUWKRVH

units that remain on the continent, but 

they also exercise ample latitude to 

donate unwanted or obsolete items to 

KXPDQLWDULDQH̆RUWVLQOLHXRISD\LQJWR

shred, burn or bury them. 

The region’s disposition team, 

headquartered in Kaiserslautern, began 

pursuing refugee donations in December. 

Suitcases belonging to Syrian refugees sit 

outside the Tal Shehab Reception Center 

near Ash Shajarah in northern Jordan. DLA 

Disposition Services Europe & Africa has 

transferred more than $400,000 worth of excess 

furniture to improve the refugees’ quality of life. 

Air Force Master Sgt. Cheresa D. Theiral
16 www.dla.mil

By mid-March, they had cleared the legal 

and administrative hurdles, and donation 

VKLSPHQWVNLFNHGR̆ZLWKDWUDQVIHURI

350 excess U.S. military furniture items 

like beds, chairs, bookcases and desks 

to the community of Bad Hersfeld for 

VXSSRUWH̆RUWVWKHUH

“It’s hard to tell how long this will go 

RQEXWZH¶UHSRLVHGWRVXSSRUWLQGH¿-

nitely,” said Russ Sittenauer, a disposal 

service representative. 

6LWWHQDXHUVDLGWKH¿UVWWKUHHVFKHGuled shipments to Bad Hersfeld, Kassel 

and Rosbach von der Hohhe included 

more than $400,000 in used furniture 

that DLA would have otherwise most 

likely paid to scrap. 

“We see this as a win-win for our 

turn-in customers, the U.S. taxpayer and 

our German hosts,” he said. “We expect 

demand to grow as the word gets out.”

When researching the viability of 

donating excess furniture, Sittenauer 

found a paragraph in DLA’s disposition 

guidance authorizing transfer of used 

and excess goods by the U.S. Consulate 

General’s excess property unit to the 

German government. But the most 

recent property transfer had taken place 

eight years prior, and the unit had been 

disbanded, according to the embassy’s 

ORJLVWLFVṘFHU

“It became obvious a new legal 

process would need to be established,” 

Sittenauer said.

Serwe contacted Ann Oglesby, DLA’s 

customer support representative at the 

embassy in Frankfurt. She said he asked 

if the State Department 

would reach out to the 

Germans to gauge their 

interest in furniture receipt. 

6KHKHOSHGHPEDVV\VWD̆

set up a new framework for 

the project, ensured all the 

orders and paperwork were 

correct, and helped link 

UHIXJHHFHQWHUVWD̆GLUHFWO\

WRWKH.DLVHUVODXWHUQGLVSRVLWLRQ¿HOGVLWH

and its project leader Linda Wagner to 

discuss real-time needs.

3>2JOHVE\@LQYHVWHGDORWRIH̆RUW

WRJHWLWR̆WKHJURXQGDWWKHHPEDVV\ ́

Sittenauer said, noting that orienting State 

Department personnel to DLA’s business 

systems required additional training and 

guidance. “She’s been really invested in 

FRQYLQFLQJ6WDWHWKDWWKHH̆RUWH[SHQGHG

is worth the results.” 

As word spreads, Sittenauer still 

expects a bump or two. After all, working 

with DLA for excess U.S. military property 

is relatively uncharted territory for current 

FRQVXODWHVWD̆*HUPDQPXQLFLSDOLWLHVDQG

volunteer refugee assistance personnel. 

But, Sittenauer said, from DLA’s perspective, the process is working well so far, 

thanks to DLA Disposition Services at 

Kaiserslautern’s expertise and extensive 

excess property network.

“Considering this was an idea just 

a few short months ago, we are now 

‘doing,’ and that says a lot about how 

well all involved are working together,” 

Sittenauer said. 

“It’s refreshing to know that our very 

own DLA Disposition Services Europe 

& Africa team members are taking all 

DFWLRQVQHFHVVDU\WR¿QGLQQRYDWLYH

solutions to reutilize any and all excess 

furniture,” said Ben Waller, who directs 

DLA’s disposition operations across the 

two continents. 

Waller said he recently visited the 

Army installations in Bamberg and 

Schweinfurt shortly before their closure, 

where disposition personnel were helping 

clear out facilities. While in Bamberg, the 

installation commander told him that 

base would also soon be 

reused by the Germans as a 

Syrian refugee entry center.

 “I am proud of the 

team for being so keenly 

aware of world and local 

events so they could 

support the German 

government with the 

donation of excess 

furniture,” Waller said. “This is a true 

example of the strategic capabilities 

and partnership between [DLA 

Disposition Services] Europe & Africa 

and our host nation.” 

“It’s hard to tell how 

long this will go on, but 

we’re poised to support 

indefinitely.”

 — Russ Sittenauer

Syrian refugees like Ahmad Khawam, his 

wife Najwa and children Abdullah and Ruah 

are benefitting from the efforts of DLA 

Disposition Services Europe & Africa, which 

has transferred 350 excess military furniture 

items to refugee centers.

(c) UNHCR / Gordon Wellters
Loglines O May - June 2015 17

anny Collums had been in Liberia 

less than a week when he saw her. 

She laid helpless at a bus stop 

half a mile from his temporary 

quarters, where he was lucky if he 

JRW¿YHKRXUVRIVOHHSEHIRUHUHVXPLQJ

the search for fuel direly needed by those 

¿JKWLQJWKHGHDGO\(ERODYLUXVLQ:HVW

$IULFD)LYHGD\VODWHUVKHZDVVWLOOWKHUH

3:HGULYHE\HYHU\GD\DQGKRSH

that there is a change but not so far. 

$SSUR[LPDWHO\EHGVEHFRPHDYDLODEOH

HYHU\GD\DWWKH(ERODWUHDWPHQWXQLWV

here, but there are 150 to 200 people 

outside the fence needing a bed. It will get 

worse before it gets better,” he wrote in a 

Sept. 30 Facebook post updating friends 

and family on the Defense Logistics 

Agency’s push to get critical supplies into 

the country.

Story by Beth Reece

L On the 10th day, the woman’s 

OLIHOHVVERG\ZDVUHPRYHGDQGWKHEXV

stop decontaminated. For Collums, it 

underscored the urgency of Operation 

United Assistance, the Defense 

Department operation supporting the U.S. 

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OHGH̆RUWWRHQGDYLUXVWKDWKDGDOUHDG\

killed thousands.

'/$¶VPLVVLRQZDVWRSUHSRVLWLRQ

material so troops could start building 

(ERODWUHDWPHQWXQLWVDVVRRQDVWKH\

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$UP\$IULFD&RPPDQGṘFLDOVDQG

federal partners like USAID with such 

speed and scale that initial supplies were 

RQWKHJURXQGE\HDUO\2FWREHU2YHUDOO

WKHDJHQF\SURYLGHGEXLOGLQJPDWHULDOV

such as plumbing and electrical gear, 

lumber and fencing, as well as personal 

FIGHTING EBOLA

SURWHFWLYHHTXLSPHQWPDSVWHQWVFRWV

water, food and fuel. 

Collums, who has been a quality 

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LQ(XURSHDQG$IULFDVLQFHVDLG

supporting OUA was “one of the hardest 

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do a miracle in a short timeframe,” he 

said. “Once you came up with a solution 

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SHRSOHZDLWLQJWRGURSHYHQPRUHQHHGV

RQ\RX:HMXVWQHYHUVWRSSHG ́

'/$(XURSH	$IULFD&RPPDQGHU

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ZDVWKH¿UVWDJHQF\UHSUHVHQWDWLYHRQ

The Gbediah Ebola treatment unit was the last 

ETU to be built by Joint Forces Command–

United Assistance. DLA began prepositioning 

material in September so troops could build 

treatment units as soon as they arrived.

Army Staff Sgt. Terrance D. Rhodes
18 www.dla.mil

the ground. She was already on a plane 

heading to Liberia with USAFRICOM 

ṘFLDOVZKHQ3UHVLGHQW%DUDFN2EDPD

announced the plan to send 3,000 

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employees were just days behind her.

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she said.

Randy Scharberg, a logistics planner 

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Rota, Spain, deployed to ensure building 

materials coming into country were 

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He compared the units to makeshift 

camping areas with six to eight buildings 

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treatment to showering. 

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completed, the designs called for more 

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were wrong. 

“Army engineers who were actually 

doing the building were beating us up 

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wrong dimensions or getting parts that 

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time a patient was cured in one of the 

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in the original plan,” Scharberg said.

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Support contractors quickly found the 

right parts in Dubai or the United States 

and had the shipments expedited.

Getting food and water to numerous 

locations in Liberia from Senegal, where 

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Liberia is too small to accommodate those 

aircraft, so shipping containers had to be 

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Scharberg said.

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harder.

“Looking at a map, you’d expect it to 

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container from one location to another, 

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a.m., he might not get there until the next 

day. Most of the roads in Liberia are made 

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road would wash away,” he added.

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knowing the mission would be unlike 

others he’d supported, because 

Airmen assigned to the 633rd Medical Group begin construction on the Monrovia Medical Unit site in Monrovia, Liberia. DLA provided building 

materials such as plumbing and electrical gear, lumber and fencing. 

Army PFC. Craig Philbrick

Photo Courtesy U.S. Army 
Loglines O May - June 2015 19

contingency plans hadn’t been completed 

by the time DoD personnel began 

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in high demand because with no working 

power grid in the country, it would be 

needed to feed hundreds of generators 

that kept treatment facilities and military 

operation centers running. 

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what the infrastructure in the country 

was, what we were going to be needing 

and how we were going to get around the 

constraints that were there,” he said. 

Contracts bringing fuel into the 

country were established within days, 

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communities for storage containers. 

Although the camps where soldiers 

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of storing fuel to power them.

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them, but those could hold only enough 

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half or three days before they needed to 

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bring any trucks or soldiers to do that,” 

Collums said.

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were shipped to Liberia aboard the MV 

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of supplies to the area.

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members get rid of excess equipment 

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and oil. Air Force Master Sgt. Jessica 

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up disposal operations and for letting 

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who helped create contracts with local 

companies that could properly dispose 

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as a bridge between units with excess 

equipment and those who needed it. 

“For example, the 101st Airborne 

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200 cots they wanted to get rid of. After 

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contaminated, I had another unit come to 

me because they were in need of cots, so I 

put them in touch with each other,” he said. 

28$EHJDQZLWKRXWDQHQGGDWH

but the response from international 

aid workers was so great the number 

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that nearly all DoD personnel would be 

home by the end of April. On March 5, 

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been discharged. 

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has shrunk, but her employees will 

continue to support missions throughout 

the continent. 

“Africa is a critical place in the 

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a strategic mission there far into the 

future,” she said. 

An Air Force Mobile command and control 

technician from Joint Task Force-Port Opening 

conducts a preventive maintenance inspection 

on an antenna during Operation United 

Assistance. DLA relied heavily on aircraft such 

as C-130s to get equipment from the tarmac in 

Senegal to service members’ locations in Libera.

Service members and civilians deployed 

to Liberia to support Operation United 

Assistance enter a tent that was delivered 

to the country by DLA. 

Air Force Staff Sgt. Sara Keller
20 www.dla.mil

A Conversation with . . .

This is your third tour with DLA. 

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advantages as you approach your 

leadership role?

I’m very fortunate that I was able 

to start with a broad understanding 

of the diversity of DLA missions, 

but there’s still a lot to learn here. 

So I’m not sure how much of a 

VSHFL¿FDGYDQWDJH,KDYHLQP\QHZ

role. I am grateful and fortunate 

to return to some long-standing 

personal relationships with so many 

of the DLA civilian leaders. I am 

Air Force Lt. Gen.

Andy Busch

DLA Director Air Force Lt. Gen. Andy Busch at a recent Town Hall.

The Defense Logistics Agency’s Director discusses his priorities upon assuming command.

humbled for the opportunity to lead 

this organization. It is something I 

sought out, and as your new leader, I 

won’t let you or the services down.

You’re coming from a tour as vice 

commander of Air Force Materiel 

Command. What lessons are you 

bringing from that tour that will 

apply to your time at DLA?

,WZDVYHU\EHQH¿FLDOIRUPH

to serve as a major command 

vice commander for a couple of 

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WKHRSSRUWXQLW\DIWHUWKUHH¿HOG

assignments to focus on corporate processes at the Air Force 

level, which has been very useful 

to me as DLA director. Second, 

I started my tour at AFMC as 

we reorganized from 12 major 

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had to adjust to new reporting 

relationships, revise many of our 

essential processes, and re-focus 

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This experience in change 

management will be very useful 

in my time at DLA.

Teodora Mocanu
DLA Public Affairs

Loglines O May - June 2015 21

In addition to your previous 

tours with DLA, you have spent 

VLJQL¿FDQWWLPHDVDFXVWRPHURI

DLA, notably at the Ogden Air 

Logistics Center in Utah and at the 

Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center. 

What were your impressions of 

DLA as a customer and what was 

the overall reputation of the agency 

LQWKH¿HOG"

The same as they were when 

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Everywhere I went, the services 

and combatant commanders were 

extremely complimentary. They 

like DLA and they want more of 

what we provide. DLA puts its 

best foot forward when we are 

out front and engaged with the 

customer in their environment. I’ve 

seen how the Air Force and DLA 

have enjoyed great success when 

we collaborate and understand 

one another’s needs. I’ve seen the 

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and know that will continue well 

beyond my time.

What are your key areas of 

interest as you develop your 

strategic guidance for DLA?

My bosses have been clear 

in stating that our support to 

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forces engaged is of paramount 

importance. One particular area 

of interest is how we support 

nuclear deterrence operations in 

U.S. Strategic Command. There 

are tremendous opportunities to 

improve our engagement with 

nuclear deterrent forces in the Air 

Force and Navy. We have already 

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that are many initiatives we must 

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communicate what we are doing 

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continuous process improvement. 

Every success I’ve had as a senior 

leader has its roots in CPI. I 

believe every process we have 

needs to be as strong as it can be. 

In addition, we are on track to be 

audit ready this year, and I think 

that is outstanding. I’m interested 

in ensuring that we sustain that 

readiness. It’s one thing to be audit 

ready one time, but quite another 

to be audit ready all the time.

You’ve said that you’re eager to 

improve upon DLA’s success. Are 

there any immediate areas for 

LPSURYHPHQW\RXKDYHLGHQWL¿HG"

DLA has deservedly earned 

a reputation for being action 

orientated when we are presented 

with a challenge, we jump on it and 

deliver. My sense is that this ability 

to act quickly as logisticians is a 

competitive advantage for us and 

we need to protect it and improve 

on it.

In this time of continued budget constraints for the entire Department of 

Defense, what is your perspective on 

the way forward for DLA? Do you 

have any concerns about how the 

agency is postured?

I have 35 years commissioned 

service and 20 years of association 

with DLA as a team member or 

customer. Over all these years, I’ve 

seen budgets go up and go down; 

it’s just a fact of life. The key to 

our success is to stay adaptable 

and resilient, stay aligned with our 

customers who are facing the 

same budget environment, and 

give clear directions to our people 

at DLA. We’re in a unique time 

and place. After years and years 

of sustained combat operations 

and now facing the end of both 

ZDUVZH¶UHORRNLQJDWDGL̆HUHQW

future. I’m interested in where 

we need to focus going forward 

and am having those discussions 

with senior leaders now.

Is there anything else you’d like 

to discuss?

My commitment is to help 

each member of our DLA team 

become as resilient in his or her 

professional and personal life 

as I can. I know the uncertainty 

of the future produces anxiety, 

the furlough and sequestration 

KDGDVLJQL¿FDQWLPSDFWRQRXU

workforce. My promise is that 

I will communicate with you as 

often and as openly as I can when 

things like this come up. You 

are the agency’s most valuable 

resource. I want to develop 

programs that sustain you and 

create an active and vibrant work 

environment. That vibrant work 

environment includes a strategic 

plan to sharpen our focus and 

guide our actions as a defense 

logistics agency. I encourage 

you to read it and ask questions 

through your chain of command. 

Finally, I’d like to reiterate how 

delighted I am to be the new 

director. It’s staggering the 

amount of work you do every 

day and how well you do it. DLA 

is a wonderful place because of 

its people, and I look forward to 

working with each of you. 
22 www.dla.mil

ust like college basketball, the 

Defense Logistics Agency has its 

own version of March Madness. 

Four simultaneous exercises, 

held in mid-March, evaluated 

the agency’s capabilities to provide 

timely support to various functional and 

geographic combatant commands.

The exercises, Turbo Challenge 15, 

Austere Challenge 15, Judicious Response 

15 and Global Lightning 15, gave DLA an 

opportunity to plan and train to support 

VXVWDLQPHQWRSHUDWLRQVGXULQJ¿FWLRQDO

scenarios, said Ralph Romine, the DLA 

Headquarters lead planner for the “March 

Madness” exercises in DLA’s Joint 

Logistics Operations Center.

37KH>H[HUFLVHV@DOOKDYHGL̆HUHQW

purposes; one is kinetic war, one is cyber, 

one is response to contingencies in Africa 

and one is movement of sustainment,” 

he said. “Our primary focus is on Austere 

Challenge, which tests [U.S. European 

&RPPDQG¶V@UHVSRQVHWRDFULVLVD̆HFWLQJ

their area of responsibility and Judicious 

Response, which tests [U.S. Africa 

J

Story by Amanda Neumann

Command’s] operational capability.”

As support requests came into DLA 

Europe & Africa during the exercises, 

personnel developed solutions for the 

customers and were evaluated on their 

responses and processes to meet those 

customers’ requirements, Romine said. 

Because the exercises were computer 

simulations, requests which could range 

from food and water to fuel or medical 

supplies were simulated up to the point of 

placing the order.

“All of this is in support of a 

contingency plan,” he said. “So 

USEUCOM will stand up and say, ‘I 

need x, y and z,’ and the same happens 

with USAFRICOM. Although an exercise 

is typically limited, our response is 

measured in terms of processes. Do we 

have fuel in the right place? Do we have 

enough fuel? Where do we get food in an 

emergency? How will we get it there? And 

how do we even get their requirements 

into the DLA system?”

As a DLA planner, Romine was 

involved in setting up the scenarios and 

READINESS 

RESPONSE

planning key events in the exercises to 

give the agency opportunities to partner 

with U.S. Transportation Command and 

U.S. Strategic Command. 

“In each exercise, there’s a scenario, 

a response and an observation,” Romine 

said. “We have a twofold purpose for 

this. One is to train with the [various 

commands] as the premier logistics 

agency for support in a time of war. And 

then two, how do we take that opportunity 

to also train DLA’s entities, like the 

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regional commands, on their response?”

Since a response could be needed 

anywhere within an AOR, part of the 

training is seeing how DLA’s processes 

adjust to meet not only DLA’s objectives, 

A U.S. soldier looks out over the Liberian jungle 

from the ramp of a Chinook helicopter after 

transporting Ebola treatment unit supplies to 

Ganta, Liberia, in support of Operation United 

Assistance. Four simultaneous joint exercises, 

held in mid-March, provided an opportunity for 

DLA to evaluate real-life lessons learned from 

the Agency’s OUA efforts. 

— Photo by Army Sgt. Jose Ramirez
Loglines O May - June 2015 23

“Any corrective action that we find goes back into the 

exercise cycle to make sure that we’re always ready.”

— James White

Air Force Staff Sgt. Austen Adriaens

but also a combatant command’s 

objectives, Romine said.

“If they ask for construction and 

barrier material in Poland, how does 

DLA respond to it, and how do we get 

WKDWLGHQWL¿HG" ́KHVDLG3,I'/$7URRS

Support doesn’t have it in Europe, then 

we have to be prepared to come back 

to the United States to get the product. 

And we’d have to be in contact with 

USTRANSCOM, because now we’d have 

a transportation issue. So it’s not just 

us. Our training objectives have to meet 

theirs as well.”

The exercises also provided an 

opportunity for DLA to evaluate and 

address some real-life lessons learned 

from last year’s Operation United 

$VVLVWDQFHH̆RUWVVDLG$UP\/W&RO

Miguel Martinez, a DLA Europe & Africa 

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USAFRICOM in Germany.

With material transits taking 15 to 21 

days by ship to reach the African coast, and 

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inland, the continent’s infrastructure 

presented challenges, Martinez said.

“We needed to know what the 

customers needed ASAP,” he said. “So 

it proved worthwhile for us to have 

local capabilities and local sources to 

provide some of the material, because 

it helped with time and cost. And we 

learned that we needed more people [in 

DLA Europe & Africa’s JLOC]; that just 

WZR>OLDLVRQṘFHUV@FRXOGQ¶WGRWKLV

job. So although we leaned forward and 

made it happen, did we do it the way 

we were supposed to? Or were there 

better ways? And that’s what exercise 

planning is all about.”

Using hindsight from the OUA 

H̆RUWVVHYHUDO'/$SHUVRQQHOGHSOR\HG

WR(XURSHWRKHOSDXJPHQWVWḊQJDQG

support customer requests for these 

exercises, said James White, a DLA 

Europe & Africa planner for Europe.

“We had some people come out of 

DLA Distribution in New Cumberland, 

Pennsylvania, so we could put a DLA 

Distribution [subject matter expert] at 

both the USAFRICOM and USEUCOM 

operation centers,” he said. “In addition, 

two other DLA Distribution folks worked 

out of our JLOC to give us transit visibility, 

because all the customers basically want to 

NQRZLVμ:KHUH¶VP\VWX̆"¶ ́

Because all the scenarios put stress on 

USTRANSCOM to prioritize movements 

in support of those combatant commands, 

everyone competes for spots in a crisis, 

White said.

“It becomes a question of adjudicating priorities between USTRANSCOM, 

USEUCOM and USAFRICOM of who 

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might have to wait,” he said. “And our 

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space whether it’s in boats or planes, so 

do you want your [meals, ready to eat] 

and your bandages, or do you want to 

move troops? And those aren’t decisions 

for us to make per se, but they certainly 

have an impact on how the operations 

unfold, so we see the DLA Distribution 

piece as an important player in all this.”

For DLA, exercises like these give 

the agency an opportunity to evaluate 

its day-to-day operations and maintain 

its readiness anytime, anywhere, 

Romine said.

“The reason that we participate is 

because we see a value in training,” he 

said. “Although the majority of [these 

exercises] are testing processes we 

already do, we want to do them in contingency crisis mode and see if what we 

do in peacetime tracks with what we’d do 

in a contingency. The tie back is that any 

FRUUHFWLYHDFWLRQWKDWZH¿QGJRHVEDFN

into the exercise cycle to make sure that 

we’re always ready.”

The exercises, which encompassed 

more than 200 personnel at bases across 

the U.S., Italy and Germany, ended with 

Global Lightning March 27. 

Airmen unload construction materials off 

a truck at an elementary school in Ogulin, 

Croatia. Construction materials were among 

the major commodities that DLA was asked 

to provide during four simultaneous joint 

exercises in mid-March.
24 www.dla.mil

he Defense Logistics Agency 

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to Bosnia-Herzegovina for 

Operation Joint Endeavor. U.S. forces 

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of-area peace enforcement mission in 

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North sector.

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The site chosen as the intermediate 

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air transport converge,” and perhaps 

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HISTORY HIGHLIGHTS

Story by Dr. Harold Raugh, DLA Historian

Supporting the

BOSNIA PEACE MISSION

U.S. Army soldiers unload a railroad car at 

Taszar Air Base near Kaposvar, Hungary, during 

Operation Joint Endeavor. The equipment 

would go to support the NATO Implementation 

Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Army Spc. Alejandro Cabello
Loglines O May - June 2015 25

DLA HISTORY PROGRAM

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Donald Reed, a worker at Defense Depot San Joaquin, Calif., 

places hot sauce in tray packs that he prepares for shipment 

to Bosnia.

More than 1 million 

cases of semi-perishable 

subsistence and 65,000 

cases of perishable 

subsistence provided Class 

I support directly from the 

depot to the foxhole and 

was a first for Defense 

Distribution Depot Europe.

Courtesy Photo
I AM

My name is: 

Stewart Clarke

I am: 

Acting Director of Customer Operations at DLA Energy Pacific. 

Describe your job in a sentence: 

Provide fuel to civilians and warfighters for exercises, contingencies and 

daily operations across the entire Pacific region. 

How long have you worked for DLA? 

Eight years, both as a Navy Reservist with DLA Disposition Services and 

DLA Energy Pacific at Guam for three years and here at DLA Energy Pacific 

as a civilian.

What is your favorite thing about working for DLA? 

The tremendous opportunities available to grow as an individual and a 

leader, as well as to support the warfighters.

What is your best memory of working here? 

Establishing two operations for DLA Energy Pacific, which involved 

serving as DLA Energy Pacific for Guam’s first commander and later the 

action officer to transfer the bulk fuel mission from the U.S. Army’s 505th 

Quartermaster Battalion to the newly 

established DLA Energy Pacific at 

Okinawa. This is the first defense fuel 

support point under the operational 

control of DLA Energy.

,ŽǁĚŽLJŽƵŵĂŬĞĂĚŝīĞƌĞŶĐĞ͍

I build, empower, manage, 

synchronize and take care of our team 

members who, in turn, take care of our 

customers and warfighters.

Stewart Clarke