Transition of Engineering Leadership

As many of you have heard, I recently made the difficult decision to retire from the U.S. Army after 35 years of service. I will remain the Chief of Engineers and the Commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) until my successor is named and we have a change of command. At the encouragement of the former presidents of SAME and the Executive Director, I plan to complete my term as SAME President, which culminates at the annual Joint Engineer Education and Training Conference & Expo in Philadelphia, May 1-4, 2007. Until that time, consider me “Present for Duty” as your President. Successful transitions of leadership are one of the strengths of SAME, our military institutions and our government. I am sure SAME members will do their best to assist in making these transitions of leadership transparent.

Speaking of transitions, we are delighted to welcome new Engineering Service Chiefs in the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS), U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy. SAME provides unique opportunities for the Engineering Service Chiefs to work together and build professional relationships that greatly benefit our “joint” goals and objectives.

Rear Adm. Richard F. Barror, Ph.D., P.E., became the Chief Engineer, USPHS, on Nov. 1, 2005. Adm. Barror does not currently command an engineering organization such as USACE or Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC), but rather has the role of Chief Engineer with oversight of the Commissioned Corps and civilian engineers in the Department of Health and Human Services, a role similar to other Engineering Service Chiefs. He is making excellent contributions to SAME as a National Vice President and co-chair of the Readiness Task Force that is re-evaluating SAME’s role in support of the National Response Plan.

We welcome Maj. Gen. Delwyn R. Eulberg, P.E., F.SAME, USAF, who became the Air Force Civil Engineer in late June with the retirement of Maj. Gen. L. Dean Fox. Gen. Eulberg’s position is also designated as the A7C, a concept he discusses in his “Leader Profile” that will appear in the November/December issue of The Military Engineer. Gen. Eulberg is 1st Vice President of SAME—we welcome his leadership as the Chair of our Executive Team, which includes the Chairs of the seven SAME Mission Committees and the Service Liaison Officers.

Finally, we look forward to welcoming Rear Adm. Greg Shear, P.E., who takes over as the Chief of Civil Engineers and Commander, NAVFAC, from Rear Adm. Michael K. Loose, P.E., F.SAME, CEC, on Oct. 27, 2006. We thank Adm. Loose for his leadership in SAME and congratulate him on his promotion to Vice Admiral. We know that we will see more of him in the future.

As we head into the fall season of SAME regional conferences, I am reminded of the member survey last year in which “networking” and “developing personal and professional relationships” ranked highest in reasons why people and companies belong to SAME. We have wonderful opportunities to achieve these goals, as well as to obtain some excellent training and education. I’d like to highlight our upcoming conferences and suggest that you take maximum advantage of them in planning your schedules for October and November.

The 3rd Annual Joint Engineer Senior NCO Symposium is being held in conjunction with the Missouri River and Texoma Regional Conference Oct. 3-5, 2006, at Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. This is a great program that supports SAME’s goal to provide opportunities to discuss joint training and joint operations. Adm. Loose and I will attend, as will other senior leaders from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines.

In support of SAME’s partnership with the International Facility Management Association (IFMA), I am delighted to see the SAME Facility Management (FM) Committee sponsor a panel at IFMA’s annual conference on facility management of military installations during the week of Oct. 8, 2006, in San Diego, Calif. The uniform services have a great story to tell in how we manage installations, but we can also learn from others in the private sector.

The Ohio Valley and Great Lakes Regional Conference, Oct. 10-12, 2006, in Cincinnati, Ohio, has three technical tracks focusing on many of the challenges for our design, construction and environmental industry. For those individuals and companies involved in Army civil works or military programs, this will be a great opportunity to learn from leaders in both the private and public sectors.

As we head to Mobile, Ala., Oct. 31-Nov. 2, 2006, the South Central and South Atlantic regions have teamed up for a conference that provides technical tracks focusing on management issues, such as building information modeling and performance-based management as well as business opportunities in the region.

Moving west to San Francisco, Calif., the Southwest and Rocky Mountain regions have teamed up to provide a great venue for a regional conference, as well as host the Senior Executive Group, Fellows Investiture and Fall Board meeting, Nov. 7-9, 2006. The Marines Memorial Hotel is a unique facility that will provide a perfect setting for these special events.

Finally, SAME is co-sponsoring the annual USACE Small Business Conference in St. Louis, Nov. 13-15, 2006. The co-sponsorship benefits USACE by bringing so many of our industry partners to the conference and allowing them to interface with our USACE civilian and military leadership. I applaud the partnership and appreciate the work of both the SAME HQ staff and the Small Business Council, which is developing and conducting a number of excellent technical sessions.

As the Global War on Terrorism continues to be fought at home and abroad, we must continue to meet the national security challenges, while always remembering and supporting the families that require our understanding and support. Supporting our families allows us to do our jobs in protecting this great nation. Keep up the fantastic work you are doing to support our national security through your jobs and through your involvement in SAME.

Lt. Gen. Carl A. Strock, P.E.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
SAME President