21st Theater Support Command units win Army award

***image1***Two 21st Theater Support Command units recently won the Army’s Award for Maintenance Excellence.
Maintenance Activity Kaiser-slautern took the army’s top prize for the large garrison unit category for fiscal year 2003 in the Army for the Award, and Maintenance Activity Pirmasens was a runner up in the medium garrison unit category of the U.S. Army’s Award for Maintenance Excellence.
“For the past three years, Maintenance Activity Kaiser-slautern has won the (Army Excellence) award at the U.S. Army Europe level,” said MAK Deputy Director Tony Smith.
The unit repairs track and wheel vehicles, fuel pumps, engines, flat beds, basically everything except damaged armored exteriors, like bullet holes.
The work force is entirely local national civilians representing 17 different nationalities.
“There’s 396 employees, and each employee has an average of 14 to 17 years experience working in this shop right here,” Mr. Smith said.
“There’s thousands of years of experience working for our army right here,” he said.
The next step is an all-services competition called the Phoenix Award; the winner will be announced this summer.
Each year Maintenance Activity Pirma-sens, competes in the medium category of the U.S. Army’s Award for Maintenance Excellence. For the past three years, MAP has brought home the 21st TSC’s trophy, but this year the MAP also won top spot for its category of AAME for USAREUR and took runner up at the Army level award.
The MAP’s primary mission is communication electronics repair, but its mission branched out to include automotive component and various shelter systems repairs. The crew is entirely local national civilians, and it’s their hard work that wins the trophies.
“They’ve done a super job for many, many, years,” said Chief Warrant Officer 4 Joseph Hayes, Commander of MAP. “I think this is one way to recognize them for the outstanding work they’ve done in the past.”
The 21st TSC unit winners were acknowledged at an April 30th ceremony. The USAREUR winners will be recognized at a ceremony May 27.