Army installations epicenter of readiness

By Megan GullyOctober 21, 2019

REDSTONE ARSENAL, Ala. -- Army installations are readiness platforms, where Soldiers live, train, conduct the day-to-day business of the Army, and from where they deploy.

Today's operational environment is changing installation requirements. From on-post housing and training ranges to the airfields, railheads and motor pools used to move equipment and troops, installation readiness is focused on the facilities and infrastructure that keep the Army trained, ready and deployable.

Army Materiel Command Deputy Commanding General Lt. Gen. Ed Daly will co-lead a discussion with Jordan Gillis, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations, Energy and Environment on "Synchronizing Installation Readiness and Sustainment from the Strategic Support Area to the Tactical Point of Need" in a Contemporary Military Forum at the Association of the U.S. Army annual meeting and exposition Oct. 15 in Washington, D.C.

"Our installations are the Army's epicenter - from where our military capabilities are projected to meet worldwide requirements" said Daly. "The strength of our installations resides with our ability to create and project combat power to the tactical point of need."

Installations are part of the Strategic Support Area, where military might is generated, projected and sustained during the fight, and the Army must take deliberate action to prepare for sustained conflict in the future, said Gillis.

"Our installations require quality infrastructure to support operations, protect Soldiers and families, equipment and our network," said Gillis. "The Army must be able to mitigate threats generated from our adversaries whether from land, sea, air or cyberspace - and this contest begins with installation readiness."

This year brought many changes to Army Materiel Command, but none bigger than the addition of Installation Management Command as a major subordinate in March 2019.

"We can now integrate and synchronize all of the sustainment capabilities within the Strategic Support Area in order to generate, project, sustain and ensure operational reach and freedom of maneuver to forces throughout the battlespace during large scale combat operations and in a multi-domain environment," said Daly.

After nearly two decades of counterinsurgency warfare, the Army's materiel enterprise is focused on its critical role in the multi-domain operations concept, ensuring readiness in the Strategic Support Area and keeping pace with modernization'. This focus is driving the materiel enterprise to ensure the Army's installations have the infrastructure, facilities and equipment to meet future challenges.

"Installation sustainment is an Army issue. The threats are changing," Gillis said. "The National Defense Strategy tells us the homeland is no longer a sanctuary. Our installations must be resilient to challenges facing our infrastructure and services, and our policies and doctrine must be updated to match the role of installations in the Strategic Support Area."

Daly and Gillis will be joined on the panel by the following leaders: Jordan Gillis, principal deputy, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations, Energy and Environment; Lt. Gen. Duane Gamble, deputy chief of staff, Army Logistics (G-4); Alan Estevez, national security and logistics executive, Deloitte Consulting; and moderator retired Lt. Gen. David Halverson, chief executive officer, Cypress International.

"The Army's strategic advantage has always been in its ability to quickly mobilize, project the force, and sustain that force on the battlefield," said Daly.

To live stream this Contemporary Military Forum and AUSA 2019, visit www.dvidshub.net/feature/AUSA2019.