Courtesy Photo | Col. Sam Morgan III (left), the commander of the Blue Grass Army Depot in Kentucky,...... read more read more
ROCK ISLAND ARSENAL — The Joint Munitions Command, headquartered at the Rock Island Arsenal, recently wrapped up its first Innovation Challenge.
The purpose of the competition, which was launched in August 2024, was to identify implementable solutions to reduce costs, generate revenue, improve quality, increase production, streamline operations, or improve morale.
“Last year, we started our inaugural innovation competition, and we received some good ideas,” said Brig. Gen. Ronnie Anderson Jr., JMC’s commander. “In recognition of the absolute fact that no one individual or group of people owns a monopoly on good ideas, we wanted to crowdsource some of the people in and across JMC for their good ideas in technology, data, and analytics.”
Twenty-four written proposals were submitted by 17 employees throughout JMC’s enterprise. In the first round, all 24 proposals were scored for quality, implementation efficiency, impact level, level of influence, and return on investment. The top five with the highest total scores, as selected by a panel of their peers and JMC leaders, advanced to the second and final round to orally and visually present their proposals. All five individuals who did so received cash awards.
“The number of ideas we had from our workforce is pretty incredible. The dollar amount of the awards was based on positive impact, significance to current processes and procedures, and the level of influence across the command,” Anderson said. “We are eager to take the proposals to the next step and determine what, where, and when we can start to implement them.”
Katie Crotty, JMC’s deputy chief of staff for Resource Management, emphasized the budgetary decisions made to support the Innovation Challenge.
“The money for the Innovation Challenge awards was taken from the JMC awards budget,” Crotty said. “We made a conscious decision on how much we planned to spend and budgeted accordingly.”
Adam Trent, a maintenance mechanic at the Blue Grass Army Depot in Kentucky, won the challenge and $2,250 for his magnetic tape proposal. At BGAD, painter’s tape has been replaced with magnetic tape because it is reusable and quicker to apply and remove, which reduces labor and supply costs.
”We’ve been using painter’s tape for a couple of years, and that was the big slow part of the painting process – putting it on and taking the tape back off – and being able to paint two or three containers would take multiple people most of the day,” said Trent, who has worked at BGAD for 17 years and has held a variety of different roles. “I used magnetic tape at the house for a job I was personally doing and thought it would be a good idea to use at the depot.
“It’s worked great for us ever since we started using it,” Trent added.
Col. Sam Morgan III, BGAD’s commander, praised Trent for his proposal.
“Adam's inventive approach with magnetic tape has not only streamlined our painting process but has also brought significant cost savings to the depot. His ingenuity exemplifies the kind of forward-thinking and practical problem-solving that we value highly at BGAD,” Morgan said. “We encourage all our team members to think outside the box and bring innovative solutions to the table. Adam's success is a testament to what can be achieved when we harness creativity and innovation in our daily operations.”
Rick Dixon, a quality assurance specialist at the Letterkenny Munitions Center in Pennsylvania, was named the runner-up for the challenge and was awarded $1,125. Dixon proposed a mobile fixture for the Radiography of Army Tactical Missile System Rocket Motor. The fixture will increase efficiency and productivity, reduce cost, employee frustration, and the footprint of the test fixture.
Richard Anderson, an engineering technician at the Tooele Army Depot in Utah, proposed renovating the Stirling Thermal Solar Array by modifying the existing STSA PowerDishes. The objective is to generate clean and reliable electricity, thus repurposing expensive idle infrastructure. Anderson earned $750 for his innovative idea.
Chris Mohr, a logistics management specialist at JMC’s headquarters, received $375 for his proposal on integrating the Logistics Modernization Program's Long-Term Planning Capability within Supply Chain Planning. His proposal outlines how developing the existing enterprise software system has the potential to enhance analysis, reduce costs, and mitigate risk.
Michael Walker, a quality assurance specialist ammunition surveillance/transportation officer at the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant in Missouri, received $375 for his proposal on Modernizing Data Report Processing. His proposal suggests implementing the use of artificial intelligence to review contract data items and reports at the government-owned, contractor-operated installations, potentially saving time and money in the review process.
“Thank you to everyone who submitted a proposal,” Brig. Gen. Anderson said. “Just because your proposal may not be recognized does not mean it wasn’t a good idea. Maybe, it’s a good idea that needed a little more development to implement it or some good analysis to identify how we can gain efficiency or savings from it.”
| Date Taken: | 02.11.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 02.11.2025 09:45 |
| Story ID: | 490528 |
| Location: | ROCK ISLAND ARSENAL, ILLINOIS, US |
| Web Views: | 28 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, JMC announces its inaugural Innovation Challenge winners, by Matthew Wheaton, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
