tor’s daily performance. The CORs
also performed audits and submitted
reports to DCMA quality assurance
representatives (QARs).
Ensuring Compliance
Although CORs were appointed by
the contracting officer, their daily interactions were typically with QARs.
The QARs mentored and guided
CORs to help ensure contractor compliance with the PWS and applicable
contract clauses. CORs also submitted
their reports to the DCMA QARs for
noncompliance matters.
The DCMA QARs then determined whether a corrective action request should be issued by them (level
I or II) or if they needed to elevate the
matter to the contracting officer (level
III or IV). A corrective action request
could be issued for contract noncompliance, deficiencies, or matters requiring immediate corrective action.
Together, the QAR and COR could
then monitor the contractor’s corrective action response, which included
determining the root cause of the noncompliance and a plan to prevent the
noncompliance from occurring again.
Preparing CORs for the Mission
Successfully administering a program of this magnitude requires trained
CORs who know what they are doing.
Although many CORs are functional
experts, they may not be thoroughly familiar with the requirements to provide
oversight of contracts and contractors.
CORs receive a lot of computer-based
training before deploying and then
local, contract-specific training when
they arrive in theater.
For the APS support contract, the
ACO took on the major task of ensuring the CORs had the tools needed
to succeed. The ACO teamed up with
the brigade contract management support office to offer biweekly training
to CORs. This training built upon the
required predeployment COR training
and focused on deficiencies identified
during daily interactions with CORs.
Tailored training provided lessons
learned and highlighted specific tools
to help CORs administer contracts.
Soldiers from the receiving unit conduct a joint basic issue item inventory with
personnel assigned to Army Pre-positioned Stocks 5. (Photo by Master Sgt.
Betheny Jones)
Additional ACO Requirements
The APS–5 ACO had many responsibilities not typical for DCMA
Contingency Contract Administration Services positions in Kuwait.
Since the APS–5 program was based
out of the ASC, the daily management
of this contract required constant
communication with the battalion,
brigade, ASC, and Army Contracting
Command–Rock Island.
The ACO attended multiple weekly meetings with the contractor, the
CORs, and the battalion commander
to assist in the flow of communication
between the on-the-ground user and
the contractor and to mitigate issues
on the spot. This eliminated delays and
problems that could have transpired
because of misinterpretation of PWS
language or inconsistencies in government communication.
When issues could not be resolved
immediately, the ACO communicated them back to the PCO or program
management team at ASC. Sometimes
unresolved questions required a formal
response or change to the PWS or the
contract. PCOs made the contract
modifications. However, the ACO’s
task was to assess the contract to determine if a contract modification was
warranted. If the correct wording was
already contained in the PWS and only
required clarification, a letter of techni-
cal direction (LOTD) was issued.
Because of the broad scope of the
APS–5 contracts, many actions required further definition during performance. This is where the LOTD
process assisted in effectively administering the contracts. Once the LOTD
was drafted, it was coordinated with
the PCO and program management
team for release. The clarification language from the LOTD was later included in a contract modification.
Working as the ACO for the
APS–5 contracts provided many lessons learned for future contracting
operations. Above all, large, technical
contracts especially need additional
expertise from sustainers to ensure
they are being administered correctly.
Maj. Robert J. Yates III is the chief of contract policy in the Office of the Secretary of the
Air Force and Chief of Staff of the Air Force
Executive Action Group. He is a Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act level III
certified contracting officer and a level II