KETTERING, Ohio — Headquarters, 155th Chemical Battalion earned an on-site evaluation Jan. 17 at the unit armory as a semifinalist for the Army Award for Maintenance Excellence.
The Department of the Army evaluation team only visits units that are judged the best of the best after annual state, regional, and National Guard Bureau competitions.
"This is a Department of the Army program, and this unit is now a semifinalist, which is a huge accomplishment," said Chief Warrant Officer 4 William Lyles, Army National Guard senior warrant officer adviser at the Ordnance Corps and School in Fort Lee, Va.
The competition was established in 1982 to recognize units for exceptional maintenance accomplishments and initiatives. There are categories for all sizes and components of units; Headquarters, 155th Chemical Battalion is competing in the medium National Guard unit category this year.
"You have to have a good program, you have to have good documentation, and you have to do innovative training to capture the attention of the person who is reading the packet, and it all needs to be quantifiable," Lyles said.
The unit has experience with the process from an attempt last year, but Soldiers said they are better prepared this year, and will be more competitive.
"You have to prove what you put in the packet," said Staff. Sgt. George Barnett, supply noncommissioned officer for Headquarters, 155th Chemical Battalion. "This is why we think we're this great, now we're going to show you why we think we're this great."
The assessment requires units to demonstrate readiness across several areas, to include maintenance management, training, leadership, innovative execution and property book verification.
"By having these inspections, it forces you to get things done promptly instead of letting things slide," said Chief Warrant Officer Brady Price 2, property book officer for Headquarters, 155th Chemical Battalion. "Now I have more time to get those other little things done that you never seem to get around to. That in itself is a huge plus for readiness."
"This says a lot about how hard we worked. When you take an inspection on paper, you hit all these points, but no one sees what we put into it behind the scenes," Barnett said. "There are a lot of different things that have to come together to get the end result."
Being one of four Army National Guard units competing represents a great amount of unit teamwork and diligence.
"It takes a group effort for a unit to do very well in this program and to be recognized," Lyles said.
Many echoed that a lot of personnel up and down the unit's chain of command contributed to the success. Leaders cast a vision from their previous experiences with the competition and the junior enlisted did a lot of hands-on work to make it all happen. Spc. Vincent Echevarria, a chemical specialist with the Headquarters, 155th Chemical Battalion, was one of those Soldiers who embodied the team spirit and helped the unit prepare. "I think the preparations went smoother this year because the full-timers were able to delegate down," Echevarria said.
Despite their current successes, the unit is taking notes on how to improve their programs in the future. This is one of the benefits of the competition, because the process of the competition itself is a teaching tool and creates momentum.
"We show them the regulation parameters so they know when they're done and when they have work left to accomplish," Lyles said.
Added Barnett: "I think it's positive that at the end of the day you get experts coming down here saying, 'That's great, but did you ever think of doing it this way to make it even better?'" Barnett said.
Echevarria, who aspires to be a supply sergeant someday, said he sees how participating in the competition gives him valuable experience. "I'm trying to learn as much as I can," he said. "It's definitely a learning experience for me."
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