SALVOU.S. Army Watervliet Arsenal

May 2016

S to r y on Pa ge 3

It's alive ...After 17 years ...Modernization!!!

Page 2 Salvo May 31, 2016

The Arsenal Salvo is an authorized monthly publication for members of the Department of Defense. Contents of the Salvo are not necessarily the official views of, or an endorsement by the U.S. Government, the Depart-ment of Defense, the Department of the Army, or the Watervliet Arsenal. News may be submitted for publication by sending articles to Public Affairs Officer, 1 Buffington Street, Bldg. 10, Watervliet, NY 12189, or stop by office #102, Bldg. 10, Watervliet Arsenal. The editor may also be reached at (518) 266-5055 or by e-mail: john.b.snyder.civ@mail.mil. The editor reserves the right to edit all information submitted for publication.

Commander, Col. Lee H. Schiller Jr.Public Affairs Officer, John B. SnyderEditor, John B. SnyderPhotographer: John B. Snyder Arsenal Facebook Page @https://www.facebook.com/WatervlietArsenal?ref=hlPage 3 photos: By EJ Hersom & Steve Lipofsky

ColonelLee H. Schiller Jr.

CommandingManufacturer 6

Commander’s Corner

Even if we don’t plan for it, the calendar will force us to make certain decisions and to make things happen. Wheth-er it is to participate in a Memorial Day Parade or to ship our products by the end of the month, the fact that there is a mark on the calendar drives our daily lives. Certain calendar events are prescribed to us, such as holidays and tasking suspenses, and there is little that we can do to effect change. And so, what I want to talk to you about his month is more about taking charge of the calen-dar, as proactive participants, whether or not we had any input to marking up the calendar. There is an undeniable fact that every year there will be federal holidays, annual shutdown, and delivery schedules to meet. Long before we hit the new calendar, let’s say fis-cal year 2017 that starts on 1 October, we should have visu-alized what those marks on the calendar may mean to us in our operations and in our daily lives. When you overlay work requirements, such as delivery schedules, over the calendar that is populated with annual occurrences and added events, you may find that there may be turbulent times ahead as those events converge. When we visualize any potential shortfalls, we must actively shape our future environment as soon as possible to miti-gate any negative effects down the road. For example, our annual shutdown this year is from 8 – 12 August. How many of our team will be on leave dur-ing that time and how will those leaves effect our ability to continue operations and delivery schedules? Will you have retained the right mix of skills and capabilities to meet the mission? Have you also thought about who will be TDY or

the possibility of last minute requests for time off due to such reasons as sickness or family emergencies? If not, you may find yourself challenged in August to meet our obligations. On July 28, there will be a change of command ceremony. Yes, another mark on the calendar but one that has been known for some time. How much time will be required to plan, coordinate, and execute this event? How will this event effect your operations? In essence, will it divert public works personnel from their planned mainte-nance to support the construction of the site? Will it effect our manufacturing operations as hundreds may attend the change of command and its reception? Again, these are calendar events that should not surprise us when they occur. Speaking of the calendar, where were you this Memorial Day? At the beach, at an amusement park, or with us when we paid proper respect to those servicemen and women who have given the ultimate sacrifice? If you can carve out just about 90 minutes next year to honor our nation’s fallen heroes, please join us as we march in the City of Watervliet’s Memorial Day Parade.

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Story continues on page 4, “LMP”

By John B. Snyder

The Arsenal began working on integrating the Army's Logistics Modernization Program in 1999. A lot has changed since then with the excep-tion being the patience and determination by a select few here to make LMP happen.

Photo by John B. Snyder

A

The year the Arsenal first started investing in an Army enterprise initiative called the Logistics Mod-ernization Program, basketball great Michael Jordan announced his retirement and Hip-Hop artist Eminem released his first major record album “The Slim Shady LP." Despite great fanfare and excitement then, it would take another 17 years before the Arsenal would ‘go live’ with the LMP process that will finally automate the manufacturing center. On May 23, the Arsenal went ‘live’ with LMP In-crement 2, said Scott Shadle, the Arsenal’s chief of the Business Transformation team that has the responsibil-ity for bringing LMP on line. “We knew it would be difficult to replace a 40-year-old system,” Shadle said. “And the difficulty would not lie so much with trying to change the cul-

ture of several generations of Arsenal workers.” What Shadle’s predecessors may not have realized years ago is that creating, testing, and then fielding a system that essentially took 11 independent manufac-turing platforms and migrated them into one central-ized logistics program is a challenge that transcends the changing of workers’ mindsets. In fact, it was quite the opposite said Dale King, a machinist supervisor who is the key liaison between the Business Transformation team and the Arsenals’ manufacturing center. “We thought there was going to be a lot of frowns by those on the production floors as we tried to intro-

In the same era of ...Michael Jordan and Slim Shady, Logistics Modernization Program was conceived ... today, a reality

Welding photo by Billy Martin, photo manipulated with Wikipedia photos

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LMP Cont.

Photo by John B. Snyder

Story continues on page 5, “LMP”

The Watervliet Arsenal went "live" with the second increment of the Logistics Modernization Program on May 23. During the first 30 days of the imple-mentation of LMP 2, the Business Transformation Office will flood produc-tion operations with its staff to assist the migration. Here, Machinist Supervi-sor Dale King, left, Business Transfor-mation Chief Scott Shadle, center, and Machinist Clint Brock discuss how LMP will affect machining operations prior to going "live."

duce a new manufacturing process, but what we actu-ally found is that there was widespread acceptance for the new LMP increment,” King said. “Manufacturing personnel have been undergoing a significant amount of training in LMP these last four months and my im-pression is that those attending have been very posi-tive and accepting of the change.” Shadle confirmed the high acceptance rate touted by King by referring to Arsenal surveys that claim that more than 93 percent of those who recently received LMP Increment 2 training said that they rated the training as neutral to excellent. Leaving only seven percent saying that they were not in favor of the LMP training. “By studying the positive and negative learning points of a fellow arsenal who has ‘gone live,’ allowed us to integrate those lessons learned into our training,” Shadle said. Shadle added that he is very confident the Arsenal will migrate into the new process very well. After all, just in the last year Shadle and his team have invested several thousand hours learning from the implemen-tation of LMP Increment 2 at a sister Army arsenal called Rock Island and, the Arsenal commander re-cently validated to his higher headquarters, the Army Materiel Command, that Watervliet was ready to ‘go live.’ But it is one thing to be part of the implementation team that must tout and promote LMP 2 and another thing to be one of the end users on the production

floor. Therefore, it is critical to capture and explain feedback from the production floor machinists and supervisors who will be implementing the new incre-ment of LMP. The Arsenal’s acting Chief of Manufacturing, An-thony Polsinelli, said he is cautiously optimistic about the rollout of LMP 2. “I believe that everyone on the production floors had a great attitude and were very engaged during their LMP 2 training that they recently completed,” Polsinelli said. “Most workers will pick up the new process very quickly and they, in turn, will help out those who need assistance.” Machinist Supervisor John Zayhowski echoed Pol-sinelli’s comments. “Those in production have always stepped up to a challenge and they will attack the implementation of LMP 2 just like any other challenge … they will make it work,” Zayhowski said. Zayhowski explained that preparing manufactur-ing workers for LMP Increment 2 went beyond the 12 hours of mandatory training offered by the Business Transformation team. After Rock Island Arsenal went ‘live,’ the manufacturing center sent a significant num-ber of production personnel, from foremen to machin-ists, to Rock Island to see firsthand how to implement LMP 2.

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LMP Cont.

Lt. Gen. Thomas W. Spoehr, left, the director of the Army's Office of Business Transformation who visited the Arsenal on Feb. 10, 2016, said Spoehr that he had been approached by several Army leaders, to include Maj. Gen. Gwen Bingham, the former commander of the TACOM Life Cycle Management Command, about the great work the Arsenal is doing in the manufacturing of large caliber weap-ons and especially, in its continuous improvement program and the Logis-tics Modernization Program.

Photo by John B. Snyder

Jeremy Brackett, a machinist who graduated from his apprentice program on May 12, said he sees great potential in LMP 2, but as with any new software pro-gram, it will take some time to learn. At the end of the day, Brackett said that LMP 2 will only make the Arsenal better. Fellow machinist, William Sheldon, said that he likes new technology but is concerned that he and some of his coworkers may not have retained all of the key aspects of the 12 hours of training he received about a month ago. “I know that in the long run, LMP 2 will make us more efficient,” Sheldon said. “But the new LMP in-crement may initially take time away from production as we learn the new system.” To belay Sheldon’s and other manufacturing em-ployees’ concerns about ‘going live,’ Shadle said he is deploying his entire team into the manufacturing center for the first 30 days to respond to any issues the workforce may have. The first increment of LMP, which was imple-mented here about five years ago, helped shape the en-vironment at Watervliet for Increment 2. It essentially revolutionized the current logistics chain process by providing real-time visibility on resource requirements and support.

With LMP Increment 2, everything from managing special tooling for production to tracking the mainte-nance status of machines to identifying shortfalls in raw material inventory will be tied into one logistics system._____________LMP Background:

According to the Army LMP website, a total of 17 sites and 14,000 users began to use Increment 2 functionality on May 23, which will build upon and expand existing LMP capabilities, namely bringing shop floor automation to the AMC Organic Indus-trial Base. When full fielding is complete, approximately 30,000 users will use the overall LMP system, which is one of the world’s largest, fully integrated supply chain, maintenance, repair and overhaul, planning, execution, and financial management sys-tems, delivering materiel and equipment to Soldiers where and when they need it. The LMP is one of the world’s largest, fully inte-grated supply chain, maintenance, repair and over-haul, planning, execution, and financial manage-ment systems. It is an SAP-based commercial-off-the-shelf solution that manages and tracks orders and delivery of materiel from the Army Materiel Command (AMC) to Soldiers where and when they need it.

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Maj. Gen. Gwen Bingham during one of her tours of the Watervliet Arsenal.

By John B. Snyder

Story continues on page 7, “Bingham”

Long before Maj. Gen. Gwen Bingham’s final visit to the historic Army arsenal in upstate New York on April 19, there was a lifetime of military experiences that would make this trip so memorable for her and especially for the Watervliet Arsenal workforce. When senior military leaders visit installations such as the Watervliet Arsenal, those visits are often ripe with military PowerPoint briefings and tours of selected, well-groomed areas. These visits can tend to be sterile and impersonal as senior leaders briefly walk along designated tour routes, bypassing workers who go about their business as if nothing more than a wisp of air had passed them by. But for nearly the last two years, and especially for this final visit before she changed command on May 2, Bing-ham’s visits here have been anything but standard. Bing-ham is the former commander of the TACOM Life Cycle Management Command.

Far be it for anyone at the Arsenal to comment on Bing-ham’s personal traits as a leader, but it would be hard for anyone here not to appreciate the type of leadership style she has exhibited during her several visits here. Always positive. Always the coach. Always the mentor. But maybe more importantly, always appreciative for what the workforce does to support the nation’s troops. At no less than 15 stops during Bingham’s seven-hour visit, she praised the great work the Arsenal workforce has been doing since the War of 1812. Although Bingham “coined” many in the civilian workforce for their contribu-tions to the Arsenal, community, and to the nation, it was her words that flowed through the arsenal, touching every employee. “The work that you (arsenal workforce) do directly ef-fects the lives of Soldiers around the world,” Bingham said to each group and individual she met. “And I am hopeful,

Senior Army leader takes a

moment to praise, inspire 203 years of service to the

NationMaj. Gen. Gwen Bingham, former

TACOM LCMC commander, made her final visit to Watervliet on April 19 to

thank the workforce for what it is doing today and throughout history.

Photo by John B. Snyder

Page 7 Salvo May 31, 2016

Bingham Cont.

that your products that you are making today will one day save the lives of our Soldiers.” Bingham also praised the Arsenal’s reputation that she said is well-touted throughout the Army. “When I or Gen. Via (Commander of the Army Ma-teriel Command) talk about Watervliet, we tell everyone that this is a crown jewel,” Bingham said. “And due to your great reputation, you (Arsenal) have visibility and trust throughout the Army.” Bingham also talked about one of the greatest qual-ity marks in the Army. “That stamp (Watervliet Arsenal) you put on your products has meant some-thing powerful for 203 years,” Bingham said. “No one questions your prod-ucts, because your quality is that good.” It may be that Bingham learned from the best in regards to how to take care of the troops, or in the Arse-nal’s case, take care of the civilian workforce. After all, years before she would ever pin on a lieutenant’s bar she was a military child whose father served more than 20 years in the Army, retiring as a first sergeant. Anyone who has ever served a day in the Army knows just how power-ful a first sergeant is to a unit’s Soldiers and to their families. No one in a company-sized unit may be as personally responsible and accountable for the health and welfare of the troops as the first sergeant. And so, with the background of having lived in the household of a noncommissioned of-ficer, it is understandable why she is the officer she is today. Taking care of the troops, or in the Arsenal’s case, taking care of the workforce is what she has always known. And that is what the Arsenal workforce has always known of her. Photos by John B. Snyder

Page 8 Salvo May 31, 2016

Photos by John B. Snyderand

Billy Martin

Story continues on page 9, “Hazmat”

Arsenal's HAZMAT exercise flowed well, into river

By Arsenal Public Affairs

With the support of nearly 15 community and New York state emergency response teams, bringing with them more than 75 first responders, the Watervliet Arsenal conducted a hazardous material exercise here, April 20. The Arsenal was the host for this exercise that had more than 75 first responders from Albany, Rensselaer, Saratoga, and Schenectady counties, as well as from the New York state Department of Environmental Conservation and Office of Homeland Security, in support to this annual requirement. According to John Whipple, the Arsenal’s fire chief, the exercise trained arsenal and community response teams to react to a simulated 6,500 gallon, oil-tanker truck leak that may have the potential to

cause significant environmental concerns on and off post. “On post, first responders from the Arsenal and from the regional response teams had to seal and contain the leakage,” Whipple said. “Off post, first response teams from the Albany and Troy fire departments, working with the Department of Environmental Conservation, had to contain and remove a simulated oil contamination of the Hudson River.” Raymond Davis, the Rensselaer County HAZMAT coordinator, added that this scenario exercised a situation that happens in the country every day. And therefore, there was a tremendous benefit to the community and to the state by conducting this great

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Hazmat Cont.

Photos by John B. Snyder

training event at the Watervliet Arsenal. Arsenal public affairs officer, John Snyder, added that there is not one community that can stand alone in its ability to adequately respond to a real-world, large-scale incident involving intentional or unintentional emergency situations. “The time to develop relationships and an understanding of how to synchronize and integrate the robust capability available in New York’s Capital District is not during an emergency, Snyder said. “At the close of this exercise, not only were the local response teams better trained, they are also more aware of the unique capabilities that are readily available in the community from which to draw support from.” Until about five years ago, the Arsenal conducted these types of emergency response drills without integrating emergency response teams from the community. The Arsenal has since grown its exercise in each of the last five years in the number of community participants, as well in the scope of the scenarios. This was the first time that the Arsenal’s scenario took the HAZMAT response outside of the arsenal’s fence line.

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Four years and 8,000 hours are the foundations of becoming

an Arsenal machinist Out of more than 450 applications for a machinist apprenticeship in 2012, the Arsenal started with 15 and ended this month with 12 machinist apprentices to have completed a rigorous four-year Advance Manufacturing program at Hudson Valley Community College that also required 8,000 hours of hands-on training at the Arsenal. If someone asked any of the 12 former apprentices as to why they signed up for such a demanding program that required them to work full time while going to college, they might give a different story. Then, again, they might not. There seems to be a common thread through this apprentice cohort … they had all reached a point in their lives where they wanted to aim for something that would give them more than just a steady income, apprenticeship would also give them a purpose in life.

Story continues on page 11, “Capstone”

Fourth-year apprentice Colin McCarthy, left, briefing former Arsenal Director of Operations Fred Clas, to McCarthy's immediate left, just prior to the apprentices' graduation at Hudson Valley Community College. College president, Andrew Matonak, presented Clas with a Certificate of Recognition for his more than 45 years of manufacturing expertise.

Photo by John B. Snyder

By John B. Snyder

Page 11 Salvo May 31, 2016

Capstone Cont.

This statement could not be sounded any louder, except by a spouse, who proudly sacrificed four years of family time to support her husband. “He was aiming for something, there was a goal in the end, and it wasn’t just time away from the family for income,” said Sherry Luther after her husband, Steve, graduated from his apprentice training. “It was more about him getting this done and then the doors will open up. He was just aiming to better himself and us, in a long run.” Former apprentices Joshua Feldman and Anthony DiNova echoed Sherry’s comments. Feldman, who plans to get married later this year, said that after serving four years in the Army National Guard as a medic and then, working as a bartender in Florida, he was yearning for something more permanent in his life. “I compare the four-years of apprentice training to Army basic training,” said Feldman. “It was the best times of my life, but I don’t want to do it again.” Although Feldman said he did not know all the requirements of becoming an Arsenal apprentice before he joined the program, what he did know was that if he worked hard and sacrificed a lot of his free time over four years that at the end of the training he would have earned a lifestyle that would be predictable and honorable. DiNova, also an Army veteran and who had a deployment to Iraq as an engineer, said that his father is a tool and die maker and so, machining was in his DNA. Nevertheless, like so many young men his age, he too attempted many job careers before settling on the Arsenal. “I had three kids when I started the program and knew I needed more than a steady income,” DiNova said. “I needed, and really need today now that I have four children, is consistency in my life where I can put down roots to plan a future for my family.” Now that this four-year program is all but complete — just need a formal ceremony at the Arsenal in August — trying to fill the gap of what was once filled with night and summer school, won’t be a problem. “My wife has saved up a lot of projects for me,” said Colin McCarthy, a former apprentice. “The last year of the apprentice program was very hard due to the final project and so, I’m looking forward to working on those projects, as well as doing some house hunting with my wife.” The Arsenal is now left with just one apprentice class of eight who are now completing their first year of training. One of the many things they will have learned this past year from their senior class is that the training will not get any easier, but the rewards will be just as great.

Photos from the left: The senior-class project called "Capstone" required the apprentices to spend nearly 1,000 hours to produce two World War II era tanks. Graduation ceremony at the Hudson Valley Community College on May 12, 2016.

Photos by John B. Snyder

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Pair of Dimes?You have heard the word “paradigm” tossed around. But what is a paradigm?

A paradigm is a set of rules and assumptions commonly accepted by participants in a given situation. It is a collection of shared experiences, beliefs and values that affect the way we perceive reality and make decisions. Humans need paradigms to process information – they are part of the way our brains work. We all rely on them to filter what is important from all the noisy information that is available.

Still a little fuzzy? Here’s an example.

By the 1970’s, Switzerland owned 80% of the watch market. Their watch manufacturing paradigm was all about tiny gears made with extreme precision and beautiful little springs that allowed perfectly repeatable oscillations as long as they were kept wound up. When faced with a new paradigm, an electronic watch mechanism controlled by quartz, they failed to recognize the significance. But a small Japanese watchmaker did - Seiko. The paradigm shifted. By the 1980’s, Switzerland only had 15% of the watch market. Who invented the quartz watch mechanism? The Swiss.

We have paradigms in large bore cannon manufacturing, too. Like heat-treated steel is the best material for cannon barrels. Or, for indirect fire weapons, rifling is critical to ensure a round is delivered on target. Or you save time by manufacturing in batches.

Paradigms are very useful to humans. Except when they keep us from seeing a new idea that is going to turn our comfortable, existing paradigm on its head. One fact of being human: we easily accept information that agrees with our paradigms but not the information that contradicts them.

Another fact: new paradigms are developed by people on the fringes of the existing paradigm. Put these two facts together and you find a long history of “crackpots” whose ideas eventually led to a fundamental change in a paradigm – a paradigm shift. Crackpots like Copernicus who said the Earth revolved around our Sun, not the other way around.

So. Don’t get too comfortable with your existing paradigms. Keep an open mind when listening to “crackpot” ideas. Early adopters could gain a huge competitive advantage. Be ready to set aside the rules of the paradigm when solving problems. And if you are on the fringe with an idea that nobody wants to hear, take heart and be persistent; great people have walked those steps before you.

LEAN Corner...By Mark Ripley

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Arsenal Appreciation Night with the ValleyCatsSaturday, 27 August

at 7 p.m.

• The arsenal has coordinated with the Tri-City ValleyCats baseball organization for the 8th Annual Arsenal Appreciation Night.• Game is on Saturday, 27 August, at 7 p.m. • Department of the Army Civilians and arsenal family members may purchase a "Reserved Box" ticket for only $5.50 (42% discount). These are great seats in Section 250. • All Military Veterans will still receive a free ticket.• You may also purchase a reduced meal voucher for only $3.50 This voucher is good for one hot dog, small soda, and a bag of chips.

Save-the-Date

Tickets will soon be available

Page 14 Salvo May 31, 2016

Around the community this monthNYS Senate Veterans Hall of Fame

Cohoes Middle School Career Day

Photos by John B. Snyder