Corps establishes new community of practice  

Dec. 27, 2007

By now most people have heard of the Military Construction (MILCON) Transformation program within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.  The Corps is responsible for constructing the buildings and facilities the Army needs as it redistributes units, Soldiers and their Families to various Army posts throughout the United States. 

But how do these facilities and installations develop from ideas into real projects?  What happens to the new facilities and installations once the MILCON program is completed?  These facets and many more are part of the Installation Support Community of Practice (ISCoP).

The ISCoP is the "organizational glue" that is responsible for laying the groundwork for all installation matters, supporting the Assistant Chief of Staff for Installation Management (ACSIM), the Installation Management Command (IMCOM), and the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations and Environment in the life-cycle management of all Army facilities.

The ISCoP went through a major realignment in October, creating two branches (Installation Support Branch and Programs Branch) with 20 Corps employees.  This realignment was approved by Maj. Gen. Merdith W. "Bo" Temple to help USACE tackle both increasing missions in the installation support arena and to better balance/leverage the resulting workload and functions.

The Installation Support Branch provides program management and oversight for Army Sustainment, Restoration and Modernization and Facilities Engineering programs, and the USACE Installation Support Programs. The branch focuses on external and internal communications, financial management, and liaisons with IMCOM at both its headquarters and six respective regions), and Project Manager-Forwards at select Army installations.  The branch also serves as the Army Staff element representative responsible for developing and disseminating Department of the Army policy on the Army Commercial Utilities Program. It coordinates and integrates USACE-wide support and execution of various utilities and energy initiatives, including the Energy Policy Act of 2005.  It serves as managing editor of the IMCOM Public Works Digest and oversees the installation support training curriculum offered through the USACE Learning Center.

The Programs Branch supports Army MILCON planning, programming, budgeting, budget execution and reporting processes.  This branch provides and manages contracts for the Programming Administration and Execution System information technology tool/system, as well as serves as the systems engineer and system manager for the Construction Appropriations Programming Control and Execution System.  It also serves as the Armys technical lead for Real Property Master Planning, providing leadership, professional planning assistance, policy development, professional practice and program management to USACE, ACSIM IMCOM and the Department of Defense.  It augments the ACSIM staff and provides a Program Coordinator for Readiness and Modernization Support for both ACSIM and HQUSACE, serving as the proponent for assessing the implications and/or facilities impact of Army Force Management process and strategic concepts including Force Development, Force Modernization, and Force Feasibility reviews.  As the Defense Sector Lead Agency for the Public Works Defense Sector, the branch supports the DOD Critical Infrastructure Program to meet the intent of its objectives. 

The new ISCoP mission statement reads, "Enhance national-level relationships with USACE, ASA (I&E), OACSIM, and IMCOM, to be a valued member of the Army Installation Management Team; develop and maintain USACE Installation Support policy and doctrine; provide specialized/dedicated installation support (IS) services to our customers/stakeholders throughout USACE, the Army and other agencies; foster and promote a capable USACE workforce for IS mission; promote organizational communication; and enhance organizational education and learning throughout the Army Installation community."

Working closely with the ISCoP folks at Corps Headquarters is the Installation Support Center of Expertise (ISCX) in Huntsville, Ala.  The ISCX links business practices and innovative processes/programs in support of installations.

With the increase and merger of staff, coupled with the shedding of non-core functions, the new ISCoP organization is better primed to focus "like a laser beam" on  improving and optimizing the delivery of USACE-wide installation support services to the Army.

Editor's note:  Information for this article was provided by Edmond Gauvreau and Gregory Tsukalas, both of the Installation Support Community of Practice.