Laughlin and Keelser Airmen win 2013 AETC Cost Conscious Culture Award

by Capt. Ashley Walker
Air Education and Training Command Public Affairs

4/30/2014 - JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas  -- Air Education and Training Command officials announced winners of the 2013 AETC Cost Conscious Culture (C3) Annual Awards 22 April.

Tech. Sgt. Jeffery Randolph, 14th Operations Support Squadron, Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi, was awarded C3 Individual of the Year. The 47th Civil Engineering Squadron Energy Team, Laughlin AFB, Texas, was awarded C3 Team of the Year.

"These awards recognize the important contributions AETC members have made towards creating a culture of cost consciousness within the First Command. Their willingness to challenge established processes and identify ways to reduce costs and maintain mission effectiveness has positively shaped AETC's future," said Maj. Kurt Schmidbauer, AETC chief of budget integration. "Their actions provide us valuable examples of actions all AETC members can take to enable us to overcome some of the challenges associated with our current budget environment."

Randolph, an Aircrew Flight Equipment Airman, found ways to save money by assessing and changing processes in his office. He eliminated all paper technical orders by consolidating all documents into a digital library and identified duplicate inspection tracking practices. Randolph used his mechanical skills to refurbish an electric powered cart, saving the unit $7,000 for a replacement.

The 47th CES Energy Team was the first to use energy saving performance contracts (ESPCs), which requires no up-front costs for the Air Force since contractors recoup costs through future energy-savings. The team members include: 1st Lt. Garrett Karnowski, 1st Lt. Christian Ocasio, 2nd Lt. Christopher Logue, 2nd Lt. Charles Heim, Senior Airman Evens Perjuste, Airman 1st Class Mark Anthony Concepcion, Leslie Adams, and David Morin.

The Energy Team's efforts include base-wide xeriscaping, or a drought-tolerant landscaping, which reduces irrigation demand by 24 million gallons of water. Another project included a No Heat/No Cool program where heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems in 180 buildings were disabled or limited to conserve energy.

In 2012, Gen. Edward Rice Jr., the former AETC commander, created the C3 program to highlight the need for innovation to face the current and future budget constraints. A cost-conscious culture focuses on achieving savings by enabling all Airmen to make cost effective changes.

The annual C3 award program was developed for units to recognize individuals and teams who demonstrate key principles of developing a Cost Conscious Culture to achieve savings.