Life-Cycle Management - Army Logistics University - U.S. Army

Soldiers of the 502d Engineer Company, 565th Engineer Battalion, 130th
Engineer Brigade, from Hanau, Germany, position their bridge-erection
boats against the current as they remove a Mabey-Johnson float bridge
from the Euphrates River near Al Qaim, Iraq. The float bridge provided a
vital crossing point for the people in the area after bombing by insurgents
rendered the original bridge unusable for foot or vehicle traffic. Thirty-five
soldiers dismantled the two land spans and seven floating spans of the
bridge in November and moved them to Assydnia, which is near Forward
Operating Base Anaconda.
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because it can haul two containers at once and
eliminates the need for additional labor to remove
twist locks under the crane. Approximately 700
1960s-vintage 20-foot chassis will be replaced
with twenty-four 45-foot bomb cart port chassis.
Twelve bomb carts and yard tractors to pull each of
them have already been purchased.
Additional improvements include a refurbishment
of a container transfer crane and purchase of a new
$3 million rail-mounted transfer crane. The current
fleet of gas and electric forklifts is
being replaced with commercial
diesel forklifts better suited for
heavier ammunition containers,
and both MOTSU wharf cranes
have been refurbished.
By fiscal year 2006, the terminal’s
rail spurs will be upgraded to
accommodate current industry rail
fleets. Funds have been programmed
for fiscal year 2007 to
convert the breakbulk-capable
center wharf to a container-capable
wharf with three container cranes
to better accommodate commercial
container vessels.
THE ARMY’S ‘MR. LOGISTICS’
RETIRES AFTER 64 YEARS
OF SERVICE
The Army’s senior logistician,
Eric A. Orsini, retired from civilian
service at the end of January,
completing 64 years with the
Army and 52 years in logistics.
Orsini, 87, served 30 years as a
soldier, entering the Army in June
1941—5 months before the attack
on Pearl Harbor—and retiring in 1971 as a colonel.
A graduate of the Ordnance Officer Advanced
Course, he became Chief of the Maintenance Division
in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the
Army for Installations and Logistics in 1963.
In 1971, Orsini began 33 years of service as an
Army civilian, including 25 years as a member of the
Senior Executive Service. He served for many years
as Deputy for Logistics to the Assistant Secretary of
the Army for Installations and Logistics and ended
his career as Special Assistant to
the Deputy Chief of Staff, G–4.
A combat veteran of World
War II, Orsini received the
Silver Star, Bronze Star Medal,
and Purple Heart.
Eric Orsini's 64-year Army
career began before World
War II and included 30
years as a soldier and more
than 33 years as a civilian.
MARCH–APRIL 2005