ZUTENDAAL, Belgium –
Working at an Army Prepositioned Stocks worksite can be one of the most dangerous professions in the Army. That’s why the team at the Zutendaal Army Prepositioned Stocks-2 worksite in Belgium takes safety seriously.
The Zutendaal APS-2 worksite conducted a safety standdown day recently to help maintain readiness and ensure the workforce there remains 100 percent safe. Led by Zutendaal Site Director Claudia Reblora Chandler, and the site safety officer, Guy Vossen, the safety standdown training reinforced some of what the workforce there already knows and brought to their attention some they may not.
Comprised of mostly Belgian host nation employees, the Zutendaal workforce discussed multiple safety tactics, techniques and procedures during the standdown day training. The operations officer at Zutendaal, Cpt. Brett Adams, said the standdown was a great refresher for the workforce and a good way to kick off the new year.
“With all the heavy equipment we have at the worksite, safety is extremely paramount, here.” Adams said. “Our workforce is our number asset. Their safety must be our first and last thought, every day – 24/7/365.”
Adams is assigned to Army Field Support Battalion-Benelux, one of four battalions under the mission command of the 405th Army Field Support Brigade. He said a safe workforce and a safe workplace helps ensure mission success, both at Zutendaal and across the Army.
“Continuous operations and mission success – that’s what it’s all about,” said Adams, who was assigned to AFSBn-Benelux and the Zutendaal APS-2 worksite about six months ago. “We have an excellent team here at Zutendaal. They are some of the hardest working people I’ve seen in my career. They are also very friendly and welcoming to new employees and visitors. We have a caring and highly trained community of professionals here.”
It’s all about risk management, Adams said. According to the U.S. Army Combat Readiness Center, risk management is a decision-making process used to mitigate risks associated with hazards that have the potential to injure or kill personnel, damage or destroy equipment, or otherwise impact mission effectiveness. It is the Army's primary decision-making process for identifying hazards and controlling risks across a full spectrum of Army missions, functions, operations and activities.
Also according to the U.S. Army Combat Readiness Center, maintenance is one of the Army's top five injury producing activities. Considering that maintenance and storage are the primary functions of an APS-2 worksite, it’s understandable the team at Zutendaal takes safety seriously.
The Zutendaal APS-2 worksite maintains equipment designated for a sustainment brigade and separate reporting units, plus three operational projects, and encompasses 80,000 square meters of warehouse space in 28 warehouses as well as 500,000 square meters of outdoor storage.
AFSBn-Benelux has mission command of the Zutendaal APS-2 worksite in Belgium and the Eygelshoven APS-2 worksite in the Netherlands. Battalion Benelux is charged with providing and coordinating receipt, transfer, storage and maintenance of APS-2 at the two sites.
The 405th AFSB’s APS-2 program enhances U.S. Army Europe and Africa’s readiness and capability to support the warfighter while simultaneously promoting stability and security in the region. By providing turn-key power projection APS-2 packages ready to deploy at a moment’s notice, the APS-2 program is a key component of U.S. Army Europe and Africa’s power projection and warfighting readiness missions.
The 405th AFSB is assigned to U.S. Army Sustainment Command and headquartered in Kaiserslautern, Germany. The brigade provides materiel enterprise support to U.S. forces throughout Europe and Africa – providing theater sustainment logistics; synchronizing acquisition, logistics and technology; and leveraging the U.S. Army Materiel Command materiel enterprise to support joint forces. For more information on the 405th AFSB, visit the official website at www.afsbeurope.army.mil and the official Facebook site at www.facebook.com/405thAFSB.