REDSTONE ARSENAL, ALA. (Apr. 14, 2016) -- An Aviation and Missile Research, Development, and Engineering Center program manager was recognized as the Association of the U.S. Army Redstone-Huntsville Chapter Civilian of the Year winner on April 12.
W. Daniel Featherston, program manager of AMRDEC's Engineering Directorate, Prototype and Integration Facility also received the Technical/Technical Management Award.
"We have been hosting these awards for many years to recognize the outstanding contribution of our civilians," said John T. Wright, president of the Redstone-Huntsville Chapter. "This is a way for the community to show how they appreciate their fellow Department of the Army civilians who are often unsung heroes not in the public eye."
Featherston manages a government and industry team of more than 1,000 employees executing 200 plus active projects approximated at $500 million annually. These projects range in complexity from the design and fabrication of electromechanical devices to the UH-60V program.
The UH-60V program is the most challenging technical program Featherston's team has ever attempted. His group is the lead systems integrator charged with upgrading the UH-60L aircraft to a common Pilot Vehicle Interface with the UH-60M in order to address obsolescence issues and meet Global Air Traffic Management requirements.
"I am very proud to see Danny get this well-deserved recognition. It is a direct testimony to him as valued member of the Army team, leader within AMRDEC, and his organization's crucial role to enable current and future materiel solution capabilities for the Soldier," said James Lackey, AMRDEC director. "Danny's hands-on leadership has made all the difference in sustaining the successful reputation of the PIF across the user, industry, requirements, and Army Materiel Enterprise communities."
Featherston led the PIF in developing an aerospace composites design and manufacturing capability to include developing composite repair procedures, realizing more than $100 million in savings by repairing rather the replacing parts. The PIF has repaired and returned to service over 50 Army aviation composite structures and parts previously classified as "unrepairable" resulting in substantial savings versus overhauls.
Among his many accomplishments, the PIF has trained over 250 Soldiers and over 100 civilians in these repair processes as well as general advanced composite fundamentals, all applicable to most Army composite structures within the past two years.
"Featherston has managed the AMRDEC PIF for the past 12 years and is the primary reason the PIF has become one of the premier response and integrated hardware solutions organizations in the Army," said Michael Bieri, director of the Engineering Directorate. "Under Featherston's leadership, the PIF has twice received the Alabama Performance Excellence Award and the Army Aviation Association of America Materiel Readiness Award in 2014 for accelerating the Army's widespread adoption of composites."
According to Bieri, Featherston's team manages over 200 active projects across a diverse group of customers and platforms. Because of this diversity in platforms and technologies Featherston has implemented and honed a business model that relies first and foremost on organic government expertise to manage programs and provide engineering expertise, but also has the flexibility to pull in subject matter experts from across other government agencies, academia, and industry.
"I am grateful to my bosses for recognizing our performance and believing I was noteworthy enough to be nominated for this award," said Featherston. "It is very exciting to represent AMRDEC and the PIF with this award, but it takes a lot of people to make us successful. I am blessed to be a part of a wonderful government industry team who play an integral part to our success."
As the Redstone-Huntsville Chapter Civilian of the Year winner, Featherston will compete against other chapters' winners at the regional level during the AUSA annual meeting in Washington DC in October.
AUSA is a private, nonprofit, educational Association of individual, business and organization members dedicated to supporting and maintaining a strong national defense with emphasis on the role of the United States Army. AUSA supports the needs and interests of all components of the Total Army - Active Duty, Army Reserve, National Guard, Department of the Army civilians, retirees and family members.
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The U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Research, Development and Engineering Center leads the nation in advancement and sustainment of aviation systems, missile systems and related technologies.
AMRDEC's mission is to deliver technical capabilities for responsive and cost effective research, product development and life-cycle systems engineering solutions that equip the warfighter with the best technology today and tomorrow.
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