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COMMAND/ORGANIZATION: Project Lead Joint Services, Joint Program Executive Office for Armaments and Ammunition, U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command
TITLE: Product assurance engineer
YEARS OF SERVICE IN AAW WORKFORCE: 14
DAWIA CERTIFICATIONS: Practitioner in engineering and technical management
EDUCATION: M. Eng. in mechanical engineering, Stevens Institute of Technology; B.S. in mechanical engineering, Rutgers University, New Brunswick
DAVID CHIN
by Cheryl Marino
Embracing new experiences broadens one’s perspective, pushes one’s boundaries and makes life more rewarding. For David Chin, taking on new challenges and saying yes to new opportunities throughout his career didn’t just sharpen his skills and build confidence—it fueled job satisfaction, ignited passion in his daily work and helped him grow both personally and professionally.
“There are so many things to learn about what other people and sites are doing, how we operate and where our work fits in the larger picture,” he said of his willingness to try different opportunities. “The constant exposure to new experiences will make it easier to learn and grow in your career.”
As a project officer for Project Lead Joint Services (PL JS) under the Joint Program Executive Office for Armaments and Ammunition, Chin manages various modernization projects at the Radford Army Ammunition Plant (RFAAP), including sustainment efforts of the different process areas, new cybersecurity implementations throughout the plant and design efforts of new equipment.
“Since it was built in the 1940s, much of the plant is very outdated; however, it’s still operating as a crucial part of our Defense Industrial Base,” he said. “Therefore, these projects are necessary to maintain and upgrade the facility to keep it functioning to meet the munitions requirements of the DOD.”
And each project has its own interesting aspects, he noted. For example, cybersecurity is very different from other projects, given that it involves a whole digital effort on top of the more familiar construction efforts. “Most people can generally understand the idea of cybersecurity on certain devices, such as your computer or cell phone, but not necessarily how to implement it across a production facility,” he explained. In contrast, another one of his projects is focused more on construction efforts to increase the production capacities of the plant, which is no easy feat and garners a lot of attention from senior leaders due to recent world events.
Chin began his career in 2011 as a quality engineer for the Fire Controls Branch within the Quality Engineering and System Assurance (QESA) Directorate. One of the first platforms he supported was the fire control system and navigation unit on the Paladin (M109A6), a self-propelled howitzer.
“This program provided my first experiences in understanding how we qualify our weapon systems and components, testing against MIL-STD-810 and verifying the units are meeting requirements,” he said. “As I was right out of college and had no military background, it was also my first experience being exposed to military-grade equipment and the Army. I remember how thrilled I was during my first tour of the inside of a Paladin—and even rode in it on some navigational test runs at both Picatinny and Yuma Proving Ground.”
One of the most important points in his career was when he took a position at the Software Quality Assurance branch in 2016 to support, and eventually lead, a Science and Technology (S&T) project for a web-enabled DOD emergency management system. “It was contrary to my background in mechanical engineering and my experiences with hardware quality up to that point, but it piqued my interest in the software aspects of quality assurance,” Chin explained. “From that position, I was fortunate to work with one of the best team leads I’ve had in my career. He had both a strong technical understanding and the care to guide me in my new venture into software. I also had my first experience managing other team members on a project.”
Chin believes this position prepared him for his current role, along with a four-month (June through October 2018) rotation in the QESA XM (Executive Mentoring) Program, which provided his first insight into senior-level discussions and meetings and was a great opportunity to interact directly with senior leaders.
“This experience helped me realize the magnitude of all the work that happens outside of my projects on the working level, such as other S&T projects in the works, the way finances are handled for all projects and what other divisions were working on,” Chin explained. “I would definitely recommend it, but would caveat that, like many other things, it is what you make of it.”
He also pointed out the challenges of balancing focus when dividing time between current and rotation assignment project responsibilities. “You don’t want to find yourself losing out on opportunities and experiences with senior leaders due to your project needs. Although I had not held another role like this, perhaps other XM roles that are full-time would provide even better experiences,” he said.
Outside of work, Chin has found it challenging to pursue hobbies while raising two young children, but he still manages to live a fit and healthy lifestyle through snowboarding and running, including completing both a half marathon and his first full marathon over the last several months.
“Running is a very consistent and disciplined activity that can often feel difficult to put yourself through, especially when you know it’s a long run,” he said, while adding that there are plenty of parallels to time on the job. “There are many times at work that you may be faced with a daunting challenge, whether something happens on your project during testing or prepping for an important briefing to leadership or navigating tough conversations, but as long as you simply keep putting one foot in front of the other, you’ll get to where you need to be.”
When he isn’t running marathons, Chin enjoys traveling abroad with his family. Some of the countries he’s visited in recent years include Sweden, Denmark, Japan, Singapore and the Philippines. “I find it fascinating to explore the culture and environments of other countries, and each location provides its own unique experiences. For my children especially, I feel that travel gives them knowledge and exposure that you can never get by only being in the classroom.”
He added that this idea aligns well with his career advice to others, which is to always be open to learning about as many aspects of your work as possible, explaining, “As you broaden your knowledge base and your range of influence, you’ll find even more opportunities and have more control in the direction of your career.”
“Faces of the Force” highlights the success of the Army Acquisition Workforce through the power of individual stories. Profiles are produced by the Army AL&T magazine team, working closely with public affairs officers to feature Soldiers and civilians serving in various Army acquisition disciplines. For more information, or to nominate someone, go to https://asc.army.mil/web/submissions/.
| Date Taken: | 08.27.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 09.02.2025 08:27 |
| Story ID: | 546671 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 13 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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