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Though the Army-directed property accountability campaign spotlights the need for good supply discipline and property accountability, neither requirement is news for the 21st Theater Sustainment Command.
“Property accountability and good supply discipline are not new values in the Army or in this command. This campaign simply re-emphasizes existing programs and the need to re-establish and reinforce them,” said Lt. Col. Sur Stewart, the assistant chief of staff for supply and logistics at the 21st TSC.
When the Soldiers’ creed proclaims, “I will always maintain my arms, my equipment and myself,” it conveys an ongoing obligation, one that extends beyond the next reporting cycle, he said.
The campaign is a concentrated effort to combat the current lack of training and standards with regards to good supply discipline and property accountability. During the past nine war-focused years accounting for the whereabouts of all equipment and supplies has been extremely challenging.
Now, the economic downturn, coupled with worldwide deployments, makes it crucial that all government property is accounted for. Especially since it also impacts mission readiness, said Maj. Michael Brault, the assistant supply and logistics officer for the 21st TSC.
“This is about doing the right thing, about being good caretakers of our taxpayers’ money,” Colonel Stewart said.
It corresponds to the Army’s values of duty and integrity to fulfill your obligations and to do what is right, legally and morally. We need to know what we have and where it is at, Colonel Stewart said.
To achieve its goal of 100 percent accountability of all equipment and supplies, the 21st TSC employs a three-pronged approach.
“We need to establish a culture of property accountability at all levels and throughout the command,” Colonel Stewart said. “We need to have measures to evaluate and analyze our progress, and we need to establish training and mentorship programs that permeate all levels of command.”
“The government has entrusted us with a lot of great equipment, and we need to make a concentrated effort to account for it, to safeguard it and to get it to where it is needed most,” Major Brault said.
For the 21st TSC, it will be an enduring process, during which Soldiers at all levels must understand and appreciate the value of their assigned equipment and the need to care for and track it at all times.
