Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Other DOD Officials to Address Defense Logistics Agency Industry Conference Attendees in Ohio

FORT BELVOIR, Va., June 13, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Defense Logistics Agency is pleased to announce that Dr. Ashton Carter, the Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics, and Marine Corps Gen. James Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will be two of the featured speakers at the DLA Industry Conference and Exhibition, June 27-30, at the Greater Columbus Convention Center in Columbus, Ohio.

The conference, formerly known as the Enterprise Supplier Conference and Exhibition, is the agency's second conference to feature all of its supply chains. DLA's eight supply chains include subsistence, medical, clothing and textile, construction and equipment, fuel/energy, and land, maritime and aviation systems. Potential and current federal government suppliers still have time to register.

This year's conference theme is "Sustaining Warfighter Support while Reducing Cost," highlighting the agency's role in providing worldwide logistics support while continuing to focus on Secretary of Defense Robert Gate's goal of reducing costs and creating efficiencies.

In addition to Carter and Cartwright, additional speakers include Navy Vice Adm. Alan S. Thompson, DLA's director; Shay Assad, new director of defense pricing and the former director of Defense Procurement, Acquisition Policy and Strategic Sourcing; Navy Vice Adm. William R. Burke, deputy chief of Naval Operations for Fleet Readiness and Logistics; Air Force Gen. Donald J. Hoffman, Air Force Materiel Command; and Teresa McKay, director of the Defense Financial and Accounting Service.

Participants will also hear remarks from Patrick Fitzgerald, director of the Defense Contract Audit Agency; Daniel I. Gordon, administrator of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy; and Robert F. Hale, Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller).

In addition to speakers from the Department of Defense, military services and DLA, the conference will feature informative breakout sessions and exhibits from DLA headquarters, its field activities and major suppliers. Breakout session topics include presentations on Performance Based Logistics, procurement integrity, alternative fuels, reverse auctioning, doing business with DLA and support to small businesses, along with sessions sponsored by each of DLA's supply chains.

During the conference, there will be large and small business panel discussions and a DLA acquisition executives' panel. There will be a networking room available in which suppliers can set up appointments to talk to DLA personnel from a specific supply chain. The DLA Business Alliance Awards will also take place during the conference. The awards recognize various businesses who have demonstrated outstanding efforts to partner with DLA and improve the agency's mission of providing supplies and services to America's warfighters.

For additional information about the conference, to register or to purchase exhibit space, go to the National Defense Industrial Association website at http://www.ndia.org/meetings/1780/Pages/default.aspx.

As a Department of Defense combat support agency, DLA provides the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, other federal agencies, and joint and allied forces with a variety of logistics, acquisition and technical services. The agency sources and provides nearly 100 percent of the consumable items America's military forces need to operate, from food, fuel and energy, to uniforms, medical supplies, and construction and barrier equipment. DLA also supplies more than 80 percent of the military's spare parts.

Headquartered at Fort Belvoir, Va., DLA has about 27,000 employees worldwide and supports about 1,900 weapon systems. For more information about DLA, go to www.dla.mil, www.facebook.com/dla.mil or http://twitter.com/dlamil.

SOURCE Defense Logistics Agency