Courtesy Photo | Soldiers and Civilians from the 30th Armored Brigade Combat Team, North Carolina Army...... read more read more
ROCK ISLAND ARSENAL, ILL. – Readiness begins long before deployment. For U.S. Army Sustainment Command, it starts with disciplined, safety‑driven sustainment, a standard the 406th Army Field Support Brigade lives every day.
ASC’s global sustainment mission depends on consistent, deliberate processes to deliver materiel readiness to the Army, anywhere in the world at any time. The 406th AFSB has embraced this truth by building a culture where safety is not a checklist but a mindset, one that empowers leaders and employees at every level.
“Safety contributes to readiness by protecting our three critical pillars: personnel, equipment, and time,” said Col. Albert Davis, commander, 406th AFSB. “Leaders, supervisors and leads work hard to ensure our employees have safe and healthy workplaces and use the risk management process as an operational tool to identify, assess and suppress risk, whether it is operational or administrative. This has a direct effect on our ability to deliver materiel readiness to XVIII Airborne Corps and the global joint force.”
The brigade’s safety culture is best described as a high‑trust environment where empathy and accountability coexist. Leaders emphasize shared purpose, empower personnel at the lowest level and maintain the agility to adapt to change.
That philosophy is not abstract. It shapes how the brigade preserves combat power, protects its people, and sustains the Army’s ability to fight and win. Safety is not an accessory to sustainment; it is the backbone of it. Sustainment keeps the Army moving, and safety keeps sustainment from breaking under its own weight.
This disciplined approach to safety is what enables sustainable, enduring readiness across the force, ensuring units remain capable not just for the next mission, but for every mission that follows.
Headquartered at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, the 406th AFSB is a subordinate command of ASC. Its reach extends across the eastern United States, with battalions located at Fort Bragg; Fort Campbell, Kentucky; Fort Drum, New York; and Fort Stewart, Georgia. The brigade exercises mission command over 26 Logistics Readiness Centers, integrating acquisition, logistics, and technology at every echelon to deliver readiness to units across the eastern United States. LRCs are the Army’s installation-level sustainment hub. They provide day-to-day logistics services that keep Soldiers, units, and installations ready to train deploy and fight.
This broad footprint demands a safety culture that is both consistent and adaptable, one capable of withstanding the pressures of high‑tempo sustainment operations, diverse mission sets, and constantly changing environmental conditions.
Last year, that commitment was recognized across multiple formations. ASC awarded Army Safety Excellence Streamers to Army Field Support Battalions-Campbell, Drum and Stewart, as well as LRCs at Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia; Fort Belvoir, Virginia; and Fort Benning, Georgia; for achieving 12 months of mishap-free operations. These streamers are one of the Army’s clearest and most visible symbols that a unit has built a disciplined, proactive safety culture. The streamer hangs on the unit’s organizational colors alongside campaign streamers, Meritorious Unit commendations and other unit honors.
The brigade’s progress is deliberate.
“Our primary objective is to proactively minimize workplace mishaps by reducing risks,” said Scott Keister, safety officer for AFSBn-Drum. “A cornerstone of our approach is the universal authority for any employee, regardless of rank to correct safety standard violations.” Keister cited an example where a subordinate corrected the battalion commander for not wearing the proper personal protective equipment in the vehicle yard. “The commander later formally recognized the individual for their diligence, underscoring our commitment to this policy,” said Keister.
To reinforce positive actions and express appreciation for those who contribute to enhancing unit safety, AFSBn-Drum uses a range of recognition methods, including unit coins, on-the-spot-awards and Civilian Service Awards.
“From the outset of my command, safety has been established as a top and enduring priority,” said Lt. Col. Larry Jewett III, commander of AFSBn -Drum. “No mission is worth compromising safety, and we must be prepared to pause operations if necessary to address safety concerns and ensure the well-being of our personnel.
“We have made it a priority to routinely and publicly acknowledge the efforts of employees and leaders who, whether through consistent performance or a single impactful act, have made meaningful contributions that strengthen the unit’s safety culture,” said Jewett.
This commitment has fostered a culture where employees actively engage, take initiative, and voice concerns that leaders address quickly and transparently.
“The decision to select and implement a safety management system has been a catalyst to our performance,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Natalie Rodriguez, command sergeant major, 406th AFSB. “We are far from fully implemented, but our implementation is sustainable and progressive. It has enhanced exponentially our ability to see ourselves, and candidly acknowledge what processes work, which do not, and which could use some improvement. It also allows each member of the organization to assume an active role and be accountable for his or her safety performance.”
Even with a strong safety culture, the brigade faces real challenges. Personnel shortages, high operational tempo, and environmental extremes all place strain on the workforce.
“We overcame personnel shortages with some creativity on our part, but it does not nullify the additional strain that it puts on our existing population,” said Rodriguez. “Fatigue, coupled with operational stressors and environmental extremes, can at times be of high concern.”
These pressures reinforce why safety must remain integrated into every task, every day. For the 406th AFSB, safety is not a separate program, it is the foundation of readiness.
“Safety is inseparable from readiness, as safe operations ensure combat power is preserved,” Davis said. “The more integrated and operationalized safety is into day‑to‑day operations and at the lowest level of our formation, the more we foster active engagements and a positive attitude toward safety and occupational health programs amongst the formation. As sustainers we must be proactive, anticipatory and decisive.”
The 406th AFSB’s safety culture is not built on slogans or posters, it is built on trust, accountability, and shared purpose. It is carried out by leaders who empower, employees who take ownership, and civilians who sustain institutional knowledge.
Through disciplined sustainment, proactive risk management, and a culture that values people first, the 406th AFSB continues to deliver the readiness the Army depends on.
| Date Taken: | 02.23.2026 |
| Date Posted: | 02.23.2026 13:35 |
| Story ID: | 558608 |
| Location: | ROCK ISLAND ARSENAL, ILLINOIS, US |
| Web Views: | 32 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, 406th AFSB builds readiness through safety, by Corinna Baltos, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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