Army transitions to Sustainment Brigades

Photo By Sgt. Judith Dacosta | Group photo of Soldiers who work at the 4th Infantry Division Wrangler Clinic in Taji, Iraq, Nov. 9. The sustainment brigade gained several medical personnel as part of the transformation from DISCOM to the current setup.  

12.01.2005

Courtesy Story

207th Public Affairs Detachment

The U.S. Army is transforming to adapt to the modern battlefield.
Part of this transformation is the shift from division support commands to sustainment brigades.
Currently, there are only two in the Army, the 101st Sustainment Brigade and the 4th Sustainment Brigade, said Col. Gustave F. Perna, the commander of the 4th Sustainment Brigade. Eventually there are going to be 16 active duty sustainment brigades.
As now retired Maj. Gen. Terry E. Juskowiak explained in an article in the Sept. 2004 edition of the Army Logistician, the Army had stockpiles of materiel at each echelon of support. This "often delayed the Army's ability to transition quickly from deployment to employment of the force." Current Army doctrine separates deployment, employment and sustainment stages of operations. Juskowiak suggests that future doctrine needs to be designed to overcome these deficiencies. The shift from DISCOM to sustainment brigades is just one small step in the process.
The Soldiers of the 4th Sustainment Brigade are pioneers. The Army did not provide a detailed step by step instruction to Perna, when he received the word on the transformation.
"I got a PowerPoint chart, and they said, "here is the concept, now go make it work."" Maybe that is how he came up with the brigade motto, "Just get it done!"
"We all have good ideas, and how we think it ought to be. The Army came up with what I call the "80 percent solution," and now we are trying to not make it perfect, but make it work."
The DISCOM of the 4th Infantry Division was officially told about the change in January. They only received the final version of their modified table of organization and equipment on Sept. 16, three days before their main body deployed to Iraq. They are still in the process of making the change happen, said Maj. John H. Shepherd Jr., personnel officer of the 4th Sustainment Brigade.
The difference in a nutshell is the following: "DISCOM was responsible for all of the logistics inside of the division . . . The sustainment brigade is now responsible for all the logistics on the outside and the inside. In other words, I bring logistics in, and then from within I support," Perna said.
The numbers have also changed. A division's strength goes anywhere from 15,000 to 17 000, whereas the 4th Sustainment Brigade supports about 40,000 troops on the ground.
Members of the 4th Sustainment Brigade had to adapt to the change, and instead of just looking forward and supporting the division, now they have to look around 360 degrees and support everybody, Perna said.
As Juskowiak wrote, the sustainment brigade will become a multifunctional combat service support organization that combines the functions that formerly resided with the DISCOM and the corps support command. "Its primary mission will be to plan, coordinate, synchronize, monitor, and control CSS [combat service support] . . ."
"I think the biggest challenge is a paradigm shift on how logistics is done now, whereas before, I did direct support to the division commander, and that is it. Now the division commander has to understand that I do area support, and he is a customer in that area," Perna said.
Going from subordinate battalions under DISCOM to having no battalions that deployed with them, the staff also had to learn all the new battalions and their missions in theater, said Lt. Col. Seth L. Sherwood, the operations officer, of the 4th Sustainment Brigade.
The only battalion that arrived in theater with the 4th Sustainment Brigade is their special troops battalion, which supports the brigade's command, control, communications, computers and intelligence functions and also reinforces the personnel and administrative support services of the brigade headquarters. The forward support battalions once under DISCOM were all reassigned to the maneuver brigade commanders.
Some of the changes manifested themselves in the assignment of Soldiers with military occupational specialties which were unseen in DISCOM before. The brigade gained a small public affairs section, a battalion surgeon team and riggers, to mention a few.
As Shepherd noted, his staff in the personnel section probably had the busiest job during the transition. "We had to make sure we have the right MOSs coming through our brigade. We are still gaining personnel for our new MTOE."
Leaders of the 4th Sustainment Brigade are documenting the transformation, as they are making military history happen. Perna often exchanges notes with the commander of the 101st Sustainment Brigade and other DISCOM commanders who are soon to become sustainment brigade commanders.
"I think it is smart to go to brigade oriented unitsâ?¦. Even in Desert Storm and Desert Shield, that is how we fought, as task forces, not as a division," Sherwood said. "I think we will stay in a brigade type set like this for the near future at least."
Shepherd said he is one of those people who like challenges.
"It has been fun so far to watch this thing grow and now we are actually over here seeing it happen. So, I get goose bumps. Don't tell my Soldiers though."

• Date Taken: 12.01.2005
• Date Posted: 12.01.2005 05:32
• Story ID: 3910