AMC’s 2007 Civil Engineer award winners announced Published Feb. 22, 2008 By 2nd Lt. Chris Hoyler 43rd Airlift Wing Public Affairs POPE AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. -- Air Mobility Command has announced the winners of the 2007 Civil Engineer Awards and four of the winners are from Pope. The 43rd Civil Engineer Squadron winners: Air Force Association's Outstanding Civilian Employee of the Year Award (Senior Program Manager category) Jury Brown Mr. Brown led the 43rd CES Environmental Flight to No. 1 in AMC for environmental restoration and cultural resources management. He was an innovator in designing the wireless control system for the ramp, producing a savings in excess of $230,000 for Pope. "This award would not have been possible without a great staff," Mr. Brown said. "Civil engineering has more than 300 outstanding military and civilian employees who do a great job of keeping everything running smoothly. Our squadron's challenge at Pope is to maintain the base in top shape until the day that we turn the keys over to Fort Bragg. We work with the Base Realignment and Closure office on a day-to-day basis to keep in synch with facilities and initiatives." Mr. Brown joined the Air Force through the ROTC program in college and was stationed on the west coast as part of a civil engineer squadron. After a brief stint in the civilian industry, he re-entered the Air Force as a civilian and made a career of it. He said he and his wife accomplished a major personal goal recently by sending their two children through college, and the next challenge is visiting them periodically as they are now working in jobs in which they are spread out throughout the U.S. AMC Civilian Project Manager of the Year Brian Diggins Mr. Diggins is a civil engineer who managed all base military construction program projects and supervised $28 million in construction to include the Taxiway Alpha replacement and the new Combat Control School located near the Manchester Road entry point. "With all the engineering design and construction Mr. Diggins oversees, he was very deserving of this award," Lt. Col. Aaron Benson, 43rd CES Commander, said. Mr. Diggins also led the design oversight of $133 million in projects that include six airfield repair projects. He entered civil service to the Air Force in order to finish his working career as part of the government, and he wants to improve the airfield at Pope before the Base Realignment and Closure actions are completed. "I feel it was a great honor and recognition for my efforts while working here," Mr. Diggins said. "My goal has been to provide profession and sound technical advice, the best management of construction projects and professional management of our tax dollar expenditures for the government." AMC National Society of Professional Engineers Federal Engineer of the Year Award Anton Klein Mr. Klein, according to Colonel Benson, was the mastermind of the wireless ramp light control system that saves up to $159,000 annually by conserving energy on 41 airfield ramp light poles. He also kept four electrical projects worth $3.8 million on or ahead of schedule and within budget. "As a brilliant electrical engineer, Mr. Klein was an obvious choice for this award," Colonel Benson said. The following environmental awards were unit awards for all of 43rd CES: Environmental Restoration Award The 43rd CES received this award in recognition of their cleanup or remediation efforts at contaminated sites on Pope. Three contaminated sites were completely remediated and all high-risk sites had achieved "Remedy in Place" within the award period. "This award reflects the tremendous strides we made to remediate many sites which primarily consisted of fuel spills or landfill debris," Colonel Benson said. For fiscal year 2008, there are seven contaminated sites that 43rd CES are looking to achieve "Remedy in Place" status on. There have received $2.6 million to complete this. Cultural Resources Management Award The 43rd CES close compliance with the National Historic Preservation Act and other historic preservation directives allowed them to win this award. "Through careful oversight of a Maynard Street historical housing renovation project, problems were quickly resolved resulting in no delays and $33,000 saved," Colonel Benson said. "Additionally, diligent review of more than 300 work orders led to preserving Pope's historical facilities while avoiding costly violations to historic preservation directives and construction delays."