Greening tour introduces contracting specialist to their customers

By Betsy Kozak, ACC-APGSeptember 26, 2012

Greening tour introduces contracting specialist to their customers
Contract Specialist William Mebane, Edgewood Division, peers through the window of a C-130 military transport aircraft during a recent customer site visit as part of the a new training program within the Army Contracting Command - Aberdeen Proving Gr... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md.- The Army Contracting Command -- Aberdeen Proving Ground here kicked-off a series of site visits with its customer organizations, a greening tour, as a learning tool for employees.

The first tour was to the Army Research Laboratory in May followed by a visit to the Edgewood Chemical Biological Center in July.

"The purpose of the greening tours is to give our employees a broad perspective of the customer's mission and this insight helps them to better understand each unique contracting requirement," said Jeff Ralls, ACC-APG professional development coordinator/counselor. "APG has a multitude of organizations with varying missions which allows for great learning opportunities for our contracting employees."

Forty employees participated in the APG tours. Gregory Faulcon, contracting specialist, ACC-APG Edgewood Division, participated in the ECBC tour.

"I signed up for the tour because I support this customer and I wanted a glimpse into their world," said Faulcon. "It helped me understand and appreciate the impact that contracting has on our customers."

The ECBC tour began with a welcome presentation explaining the mission highlighting the center's significant functions and tasks. Next, the group visited ECBC laboratory sites to include a visit to the Environmental Monitoring Lab, EML mobile labs, and the Advanced Chemistry Lab.

Faulcon recently graduated from the ACC contracting intern program and said that the tour strengthened his partnership with ECBC and helped him see the bigger picture.

"The presenters explained the importance of their interface with ACC-APG and how this collaboration enables their mission," Faulcon said. "Throughout the tour, ECBC representatives pointed out various functions made possible through contracting such as lab maintenance, specialized equipment purchases and research activities."

The ACC-APG Workforce Development Group is preparing for the next greening tour with the Communication-Electronics Research, Development and Engineering Center's Prototyping, Integration and Testing Division.

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