ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. - The U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command hosted its inaugural C5ISR Readiness Summit at the Myer Auditorium here Sept. 13 and 14, 2022.
C5ISR stands for Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Cyber, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance.
This two-day summit hosted military and civilians at the colonel/GS-15 level or equivalent from throughout the Army. The target audiences were unit chiefs of staff as well as program executive offices and program managers.
Hector Rodriguez, deputy CECOM G3/5 Chief Operations Division, said the purpose of the event was to synchronize the way CECOM helps other units maintain readiness.
“It’s an opportunity to bring in the stakeholders, get proximity to their concerns and really listen and involve them,” Rodriguez said. “They gain a better understanding of how we can support readiness and support them. We want to find solutions to their challenges.”
Rodriguez said that team CECOM learned a lot from this first summit and hopes to “make it even better next time.”
Maj. Gen. Robert Edmonson II, CECOM commanding general and APG senior commander, highlighted the importance of having conversations about sustainment and its challenges.
“Hold me accountable,” he said. “There are options for resolving problems. Hold us accountable so that we can deliver on what we’ve discussed.”
Chris Wilson, acquisition life cycle division branch chief for CECOM’s G3/5, said the sustainment of weapons and readiness leads to getting the warfighters what they need.
“This summit is not the end of our discussion,” Wilson said. “These discussions give us an opportunity to identify readiness challenges and mitigation strategies for priority C5ISR and medical systems.”
Presentations were given at the Myer Auditorium at the C5ISR campus on the first day of the summit by CECOM’s G3/5, Integrated Logistics Support Center, Software Engineering Center and Tobyhanna Army Depot.
The second day had breakout sessions focused on C5 equipment and ISR equipment separately. The breakout sessions were more casual and discussion-based, giving guests the opportunity to ask specific questions and learn about resources available to solve their problems.
Reception
Rodriguez said the feedback from participants has been enthusiastic so far.
“I hope folks that heard about [the summit] will spread the word for next year,” Rodriguez said. “This is an opportunity to be involved and understand how to support readiness for the warfighter.”
He wants people to understand that by coming together, CECOM can better understand everyone’s problems and missions.
“It’s an opportunity for CECOM to listen and understand how our processes shape sustainability and readiness,” he said.
Robert Lantka, deputy commander for Tobyhanna Army Depot, not only helped his commander, Col. Daniel Horn, with their presentation but also attended as a participant.
“I had a couple of goals [in coming to the summit],” Lantka said. “One is to connect what we do here at CECOM to the tactical units to enable their readiness. The second, from a depot perspective, is informing capabilities to other parts of the [Army]. Tobyhanna works with different parts of CECOM and we can support in many ways.”
He hoped to learn more from other guests in the breakout sessions and have meaningful conversations. Lantka said he looked forward to speaking about the similarities and differences amongst C5ISR systems.
Some participants came to gain insight on certain problems, such as parts obsolescence. Col. Dexter Nunnally, a division chief for the U.S. Army Forces Command, hoped to find out how to get better support.
“The [breakout sessions] will be a great way to talk with people and maybe get some ways-ahead on things that are impacting FORSCOM,” Nunnally said.
Edmonson asked that guests not undervalue the importance of the discussions that were held over both days.
“These talks give us an opportunity to identify readiness challenges and mitigation strategies for priority C5ISR and medical systems,” he said. “Together, with all these tools and ideas, I am confident that we will foster the best C5ISR-M sustainment and maintenance environment possible.”
The U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command, CECOM, a subordinate of the U.S. Army Materiel Command and headquartered at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, delivers integrated C5ISR weapon systems, business systems, and medical sustainment to enable full spectrum combat operations at the point of need.
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