This is a gathering of stories and photos of the Watervliet Arsenal for August 2012.

1. S ALVO
“Service to the Line, On the Line, On Time”
Vol. 12, No. 8 U.S. Army Watervliet Arsenal, Watervliet, NY August 31, 2012
California Gold Rush Texas Oil Discovery Northeast Silicon Exploration
1848 1901 2012
A new Silicon Valley in the Northeast?
By John B. Snyder report on, as the discussion went from lively de-
bates about convergent-beam electron diffractions to
Not since the gold rush days of 1848 in California or pressure-induced phase transformations during fem-
Spindletop’s striking of black gold in Texas in 1901, tosecond-laser surface texturing of silicon. Never-
has there been a natural resource find that may be as theless, those who attended not only understood this
significant — until now. subject matter, they also had an uncanny enthusiasm
about something the human eye cannot see.
In just a few research labs in the Northeast, are a
handful of scientists with Ph.Ds and graduate stu- Just as visible light comes in many different colors,
dents who are working hard to bring this new re- infrared light also has a broad spectrum of “colors,”
source into the homes of every American, and the said Jeffrey Warrender, who has a Ph.D in applied
Army is right in the middle of this discovery. physics and is Benét’s leading black silicon re-
searcher. But most light passes right through ordi-
The Army’s Benét Laboratories, which is located at nary silicon imagers without being absorbed.
the Watervliet Arsenal in upstate New York, brought
together this month 30 of our nation’s experts to The black silicon community’s goal is to devise
share information about a little known resource techniques to modify silicon’s properties so that it
called “black silicon.” can absorb more of these infrared colors while still
This is not an easy field to understand, or even to Story continued on page 3, see Silicon

2. Page 2 Salvo August 31, 2012
labor requirements level in the out years, we are not
worried.
One theme that stands out in the Arsenal’s nearly
200-year history is that when times become tough,
Commander’s the workforce and their leaders rally together to
do whatever is necessary to preserve the long-term
Corner viability of the Arsenal. We have had great leaders
and workers who have either adapted our capabilities
to niche markets or better yet, who have created new
capabilities to find new markets.
Today is no different. We still have a great
What a great month this has been! We made workforce with the right leadership to chart the
great headway in improving our maintenance posture future direction of the Arsenal. Behind the scenes,
during the annual shutdown, completed three major we are aggressively attacking our future direct labor
force protection activities, hosted the new TACOM challenges by: seeking new target markets for our
LCMC commander, and have kept our production and products; supporting the professional development of
delivery on time. individuals and leaders; adopting LEAN practices that
Throughout our history, the ebb and flow of will make us more efficient; and changing our culture
workload that occurs prior to, during, and after to promote a spirit of collaboration between fellow
every conflict, from the War of 1812 to our current workers and the community.
combat operations in Afghanistan, have affected the If there is nothing else you get from my comments,
workforce. There is always a sense of excitement as please take away at least this … you have a vote
we ramp up to support and sustain the warfighter in in how future generations view today’s Watervliet
combat. Then, as we wind down military operations Arsenal. Fifty years from now, as future generations
and workload begins to slow, there is usually a sense read the Arsenal’s history, how do you want the
of concern about declining direct labor requirements chapter about your tenure to read?
and potential job losses. The initiatives that I have mentioned will only be
Given that combat operations in Iraq have ended as good as the people who support them. I need your
and troops are now being pulled out of Afghanistan, support as we help shape the Arsenal for the next
we are now at the right of the proverbial “Bell Curve” generation of warfighters and Arsenal workers.
in regards to our direct labor requirements. To the
neophyte Arsenal employee, your stress level may rise
as rumors may flow from office to production bay. To Mark F. Migaleddi
those who have been here awhile, you are a survivor Commanding
of this environment and therefore, your stress level Manufacturer 6
may not be as high.
But let me be clear, although the Arsenal
leadership is concerned about keeping our direct
Commander, Col. Mark F. Migaleddi The Arsenal Salvo is an authorized monthly publication for members of the Department
Public Affairs Officer, John B. Snyder of Defense. Contents of the Salvo are not necessarily the official views of, or an endorse-
Editor, John B. Snyder ment by the U.S. Government, the Department of Defense, the Department of the Army, or
Photographer: John B. Snyder
the Watervliet Arsenal.
Arsenal Facebook Page @ News may be submitted for publication by sending articles to Public Affairs Officer,
1 Buffington Street, Bldg. 10, Watervliet, NY 12189, or stop by office #102, Bldg. 10,
http://on.fb.me/sq3LEm Watervliet Arsenal. The editor may also be reached at (518) 266-5055 or by e-mail:
john.b.snyder.civ@mail.mil. The editor reserves the right to edit all information submitted
for publication.

3. Page 3 Salvo August 31, 2012
Silicon cont.
taking advantage of the manufacturing infrastructure that
produces inexpensive silicon-based imagers and devices
such as camera phones, Warrender said.
The Army’s involvement, via Benét Labs, is to leverage
this new technology to improve situational awareness for
our troops on the battlefield.
“Although there are numerous applications for black sili-
con technology that could affect and improve our daily
lives, our prime interest at Benét is to give the Soldier an Photo by John B. Snyder
improved weapon scope, enhanced night vision goggles, Jeffrey Warrender, who has a Ph.D in applied physics and is Benét’s
leading black silicon researcher, taking questions from the attendees.
better infrared-based targeting; and enhanced explosive de-
tection,” Warrender said.
In a previous Benét Black Silicon Symposium, Harvard
The presenters for this symposium came from such aca- Professor Eric Mazur said the discovery of black silicon at
demic institutions as Harvard, MIT, his university was by accident in the
and RPI. They provided the theory, late 1990s.
but theory is only so good unless
there is some sort of application. This “We (Harvard) were doing research
is where Martin Pralle comes in. on platinum surfaces for the Army Re-
search Laboratories and we knew that
Pralle, who has a Ph.D in materials after three years of research we had
science and is the vice president of to do something different or the Army
business development for a Mas- funding would dry up,” Mazur said.
sachusetts company called SiOnyx,
Inc., said that black silicon has a wide “From a dusty little bottle of sulfur
range of potential uses from com- hexafluoride that was laying around ―
mercial to industrial to medical to a gas used by the semiconductor in-
defense. dustry ― they decided to toy with the
sulfur gas using a laser on a silicon sur-
“My company takes the theory, such face, Mazur said. “What we found was
as was discussed in Benét’s sympo- that after the silicon wafer had been hit
sium, and turns it into devices,” Pralle with a laser the wafer turned black.”
said.
Photo by John B. Snyder
Dr. Martin Pralle, standing, is leading the Mazur said the absorption of visible
Pralle further explained that some discussion about the absorption and structure light of typical silicon wafers is about
of the products SiOnyx is working 60 percent, and is effectively zero for
of black silicon. Pralle is the vice president of
business development for a Massachusetts
on will not only improve consumer- most of the infrared spectrum. But
company called SiOnyx, Inc.
oriented products such as home se- when the sulfur is applied to the silicon
curity systems, but also could become the next generation wafer and then roughed up with a laser the wafer shows
of defense imagery devices that will dramatically improve dramatic infrared absorption.
daytime and nighttime surveillance and targeting.
The value of Benét’s Black Silicon Symposium this month
“The value of black silicon cannot be understated,” Pralle also cannot be understated.
said. “From a common resource called silicon, we can
apply a laser to it to give it properties that will greatly im- What Benét did was to bring together academia with those
prove performance of imagery devices and do so with a who will turn theory into devices, each motivating each
much lower price point.” other to do more in the field of black silicon,” Pralle said.

4. Page 4 Salvo August 31, 2012
Watervliet builds great cannons,
better relationships
By John B. Snyder “There is no other training aide that equals what New
York State has provided today,” Whipple said in regards
It is no secret that Watervliet builds the best cannons to the Aug. 9 training. “In addition to being a great train-
in the world, but what the Arsenal has been building with ing aid, this training was funded by New York’s Office of
the local community lately may be just as strong as the Fire Prevention and Control.”
steel used in gun tubes — it’s called relationships. Whipple said that training with foam is rare due to its
The month of August is traditionally a slow period cost, lack of skills that are required to apply the foam,
at the Arsenal because that is when a significant number and the environmental considerations required prior to
of workers take leave during the annual shutdown of using foam. And so, when this rare opportunity for a re-
manufacturing operations. But for the Arsenal’s emer- alistic training aide to be provided with all costs associat-
gency service teams, ed with running the
who provide 24-hour, device paid for, it
seven-day-a-week was a definite win-
protection to the Arse- win situation for the
nal, there was no such Arsenal and for the
thing as a shutdown. local community.
In a series of The City of
back-to-back training Watervliet Fire
events this month, Chief Scott Skin-
the Arsenal firefight- ner agreed that this
ers, with the support type of training is
of the Arsenal’s law very expensive and
enforcement team, therefore, his fire-
reached out to local fighters don’t get
first responders, as the opportunity to
well as to New York train with foam as
State’s Office of Fire much as they would
Prevention and Con- like to.
trol, to conduct realis- But more im-
tic, tough training. Photo by John B. Snyder portant than simply
Through a round-robin type of training, each community firefighting team had an op-
The first exercise portunity to apply foam to a simulated ethanol fire. training his team on
was conducted August how to respond to a
9 and involved the use of a training aide that is so unique fuel fire, Skinner said the value of working as a team with
that there are only eight in the world said Dan Baker, the the Arsenal and other local emergency response teams
program director of New York’s Office of Fire Prevention cannot be measured or underestimated.
and Control. “Responding to a major fuel fire is a real threat to
“Given all the fuel trucks on the road today, respond- the City of Watervliet and one that we would need the
ing to an emergency involving a spill from a truck car- support of the Arsenal and other community response
rying ethanol is a very real-world scenario and one that teams,” Skinner said. “And so, the building of relation-
could impact every community in New York,” Baker ships is critical to ensure that a rapid and complete re-
said. “Therefore, New York State’s Division of Home- sponse effort saves lives and property.”
land Security and Emergency Services made a major The training for the fuel spill fire included such train-
investment in purchasing a fuel truck training aid to assist ing areas as foam calculation, predicting downwind
community first responder teams in the use of foam to put hazard areas, foam application, and immediate actions to
out a hazardous material fire.” solve problems.
Arsenal’s Fire Chief, John Whipple, said that first re- Whereas the Aug. 9 exercise was conducted via a
sponders from the communities of Albany, West Albany,
Troy, Watervliet, Selkirk, and Schuyler Heights joined Story continues on page 5, see Fire
the Arsenal in this one-of-a-kind training.

5. Page 5 Salvo August 31, 2012
Fire cont.
round-robin process, where fire
fighting teams rotated through
various training stations, the
exercise con-
ducted Aug. 14
was scenario-
based and one
that included
activating the
Arsenal’s alert
system.
The exer-
cise tested and
evaluated the
Arsenal’s ca-
pability to re-
spond to a sim-
ulated hazardous material incident
caused by a disgruntled worker
at the Arsenal’s waste treatment
plant. As part of this exercise, a
role player was medically treated
due to his simulated injuries, as
well as a complete decontamina- Photos by John B. Snyder
tion of all first responders who Right: The Arsenal’s firefighting team extinguishing a simulated ethanol fire.
worked in the hot zone.
According to Whipple, the Top Left: NEWS10 TV (ABC) caughtworker and secure the area. He was all smiles he helped
apprehend a simulated disgruntled
up with Arsenal Officer Stephen Huneau after
until the
force protection exercise enabled interview.
the command to exercise Arsenal
emergency response units, from Center Left: Arsenal law enforcement officer Pete Northup is all smilesfew minutes of being fully
lated disgruntled worker, Sean Plaske. Smiles soon ended after just a
prior to securing simu-
firefighters to law enforcement, in suited up on an 85-degree day.
a real-time scenario. The exercise
Bottom Left: The Arsenal’s Assistant Fire Chief, Stephen Bogart, ran the operation on Aug. 14.
also involved a number of first
responders and equipment from the municipalities of
Albany, Watervliet, West Albany, Elsmere, and from back in their stations, there was still a sense of unfin-
the Town of Colonie. ished business in the air.
How valuable was this training? “Despite the great training and new relationships
“We don’t have an organic capability to respond developed this month, our work is not done,” Whipple
to a hazardous material incident, such as what we said. “Protecting the Arsenal workforce and the com-
exercised here today,” Skinner said. “Nevertheless, munity requires that we train every day, as well as
we still need to know what capability resides at the to work hard to expand our relationships with local
Arsenal and at other communities, as well as the tech- community and New York State emergency response
niques and procedures they apply when responding to teams.”
a hazardous material incident, so that we can use those The Watervliet Arsenal has a Memorandum of
capabilities effectively in the City.” Agreement with a number of local communities to
So, after the fire hoses were rolled up, chemical provide and receive mutual emergency service sup-
training suits stowed, media departed, and firefighters port.

6. Page 6 Salvo August 31, 2012
Who knew???
The Arsenal was in the
space race
By Mark Koziol
How could 16-inch Naval Gun tubes made in the early 20th
century be useful during the space race in the early 1960s?
Some did and we can thank the Cold War for it.
In the early 1960s, government officials sought a better
and more cost effective way to launch payloads into the atmo- Photo provided by the Arsenal Museum
sphere other than using multi-staged rockets. Canadian scien- Early 1963, a modified 16-inch gun made for Project HARP depicts
modifications that include an elongated tube from 60 to 100 feet and
tist Gerald Bull proposed the use of large guns for launching
trunnions and breach removed. Arsenal people in the photo, from
projectiles and he successfully lobbied the Canadian govern-
left to right, Anthony Camprone (under the tube near the muzzle),
ment for funding. Jim Nagle and Marge Moran.
Project HARP (High Altitude Research Program) was a
cooperative venture between the Canadian and U.S. govern- ics potted in a mix of epoxy and sand…the electronics sur-
ment. Canada’s McGill University supplied the ideas and vived the launch acceleration of 2000 g.”
expertise and the U.S. Department of The first generation Martlets stood four-
Defense supplied the money to fund the feet tall and were liquid propelled, later they
project, as well as experience. changed to the more efficient solid rocket fuel.
Bull was appointed the project direc- They were equipped with a high speed camera
tor because of his successful experiences to record the behavior of the payload in flight.
in creating low-cost, efficient testing The first launch occurred on Jan. 21, 1963,
methods for anti-ballistic missiles and and according to the website Astronautix.
intercontinental ballistic missiles. He com, once launched, the Martlet I was to hold
theorized that using older 16-inch gun colored chemicals for release during flight to
tubes would allow scientists to effective- produce a visible trail. This allowed observers
ly and cheaply launch payloads into the to track altitude conditions affecting the pro-
atmosphere. This is where Watervliet jectile. The nose (cone) was designed to hold
Arsenal entered the picture. a small one-watt radio transmitter and other
The U.S. Army’s Ballistic Research electronic instruments.
Lab assigned Watervliet Arsenal the In early 1965, The Wall Street Journal
contract to modify several 16-inch guns praised the early success of the program: “…
because of the Arsenal’s experience in in 75 shots, the 16-inch gun sent one type of
manufacturing and maintaining such a rocket-assisted package 40 miles up and an-
large guns. Between 1961 and 1963, the other payload, Martlet 2A, 125 miles.”
tubes were modernized by removing the There were many advantages using a large
Photo provided by the Astronautix.com
rifled grooves in the barrel tube and by
Project HARP Big gun firing its payload, gun to launch payloads into space rather than
extending the original length of the gun early 1960s test firing. multi- staged rockets:
from 60 to 100 feet.
Arsenal project managers were Foreman Howard French • The fast initial velocity of a gun launched payload
and his assistant Thomas Connolly. According to the January meant they were less vulnerable to wind currents
1965 issue of the SALVO, the first 16-inch gun came from a (than rockets) causing an errant missile flight path.
World War I Naval vessel, the USS Washington, with the sec-
ond gun coming from the USS Indiana. • Cost differentials were significant: a payload
A launch site in Barbados was chosen because a water- fired from the Big Guns cost $3,000 per launch as
borne reentry was deemed safest. The first gun was installed compared to a multi-staged rocket launch costing
in January 1963 and the 100-foot long gun could be hydrauli- $30,000.
cally elevated from a horizontal to vertical position in less
than two minutes. By 1966, after spending $10 million on Project HARP, the
Construction of the payload occurred simultaneously as project was cancelled due to the rising costs of the Vietnam
the modified 16-inch guns. The Martlet series of projectiles War and increased diplomatic tensions between the U.S. and
carried “instruments made from discrete solid-state electron- Canada.

7. Page 7 Salvo August 31, 2012
Watervliet: When shutting down creates an
environment for long-term success
By John B. Snyder as run new power cables for outdoor contracting, and shipping to have all
lighting, clean storm drains, replace August delivery requirements ready for
Was it a falsehood, deception, or water piping, install eye wash stations, a 100-percent on-time ship rate for this
simply an inappropriate use of words and get caught up on outdoor trimming month.
when Arsenal leadership said the and painting in addition to our Maybe one of the bigger, non-
manufacturing center was shutting scheduled maintenance requirements.” maintenance tasks was the movement
down operations July 30 to Aug. 3? Scheduled maintenance included of a box packaging operation from
Each year, the Arsenal leadership such tasks as electrical sub-station one building to another. This major
sets aside a one-week period when maintenance, elevator maintenance, move will position a critical shipping
manufacturing stops or slows down to boiler plant maintenance, and air function closer to the production lines,
accommodate summer vacation plans. conditioning maintenance. which may result in the reduction
This is so the Arsenal does not have a This shutdown period was also a of hundreds of manufacturing hours
surge of vacationers at an inopportune boon for the Chief of the Arsenal’s during the next year.
time during the summer months. But Manufacturing Support Division. In all, nearly 150 Arsenal employees
it is also a time when critical, focused “This was the first time in more were directly tied to improving the
maintenance can be conducted without than four years that we have been maintenance posture of the Arsenal
impeding manufacturing delivery able to completely shut down our during this year’s shutdown.
schedules. production lines, which has allowed us “This truly was an exceptional effort
Thomas Herold, the Arsenal’s unmitigated access to every production by everyone to work as a team making
Maintenance and Operations area,” said Tim Allard. “In fact, we the Arsenal safer and more productive,”
supervisor, said that the annual have not only been able to achieve Herold said.
shutdown period is actually one of the every maintenance task on our plan, we Although the Arsenal leadership has
busiest times of the year for his team also have been able to do some extra always called this annual maintenance
and a challenge his team looks forward work such as the calibration of some of event a “shutdown,” maybe for next
to each year. our machines.” year a better use of words could
“For this week, I have been able Allard explained the reason why be used. After all, the Arsenal has
to augment my 33-member team with the Arsenal was able to completely operated continuously since 1813
19 employees from manufacturing,” shut down its production lines this and therefore, the word “shutdown”
Herold said. “Because of this team year was because of the extraordinary shouldn’t even be in the Arsenal’s
effort, we will be able to do such tasks effort by everyone in production, vocabulary.

8. Page 8 Salvo August 31, 2012
TACOM CG’s 200-year journey
By John B. Snyder After all, the Arsenal has changed its production lines hun-
dreds of times since its humble beginning during the War of
1812.
Maj. Gen. Michael J. Terry visited the Watervliet Arse- So, what will be different during Terry’s tenure, versus,
nal Aug. 21 and in a space of about eight hours, he learned Maj. Gen. Kurt J. Stein’s time as the TACOM commander?
about the Arsenal’s nearly 200-year role in providing con- Stein transferred command of TACOM LCMC to Terry last
tinuous support to our uniformed men and women. June.
As the new TACOM Life Cycle Management Com- “We know that for us to be DOD’s manufacturer of
mand’s commander, this was Terry’s first visit to the choice, we must stabilize our rates and become more ef-
Arsenal and as can be expected, there was something of ficient,” Migaleddi said. “This involves changing the Ar-
the standardized tour that senal’s culture to not only
other TACOM subordinate adopt LEAN processes
commands have already that will create efficiencies
conducted for him. in all that we do, we also
Conduct an Office call must get our workforce to
with the Arsenal com- truly believe in LEAN to
mander…Check. ensure our long-term vi-
Receive a command ability.”
overview brief…Check. Terry said that al-
Visit production though he had heard of the
lines…Check. Watervliet Arsenal many
Hand out awards… years ago, he truly did not
Check. know what to expect. But
Attend a working as Terry moved through
lunch…Check. the Arsenal, taking time to
And so forth — mis- Photo by John B. Snyder
talk and praise the work-
Arsenal Deputy Commander Ed McCarthy, left, answers a question about
sion complete. Right? the rotary forge from Maj. Gen. Michael Terry, while Greg Marcklinger force, he had a common
Well, not so fast. listens in. theme.
There is nothing stan- “What a great history,” Terry said. “You have such an
dard about today’s economic environment or the future amazing, unique capability that we must do all that we can
state of defense dollars. As part of the Department of De- to use strategic communications to tell your story.”
fense’s Industrial Base, the Watervliet Arsenal cannot take Many could anticipate what Terry would get out of this
a visit by a senior Army leader lightly … and it didn’t. visit, but what about the troops or in this case, the Depart-
Watervliet is not your grandparents’ arsenal and for that ment of the Army Civilians who work in the Arsenal’s re-
matter, not even your parents’ arsenal. It hasn’t made the search labs, manufacturing bays, and in the tool rooms?
big 16-inch guns for naval warships for some time now. Christopher Humiston, a mechanical engineer with
And, what may have been unconceivable just a few years Benét Laboratories who often briefs visitors about a flow-
ago, cannon manufacturing no longer makes up the bulk of form process using extreme cold versus heat to form mortar
production. barrels, said there seemed to be a new sense of importance
“We have seen a rapid shift in core manufacturing from to briefing Terry than for other visitors.
cannons to mortars in just the last couple of years,” said “We had more preparation, such as rehearsals, move-
Watervliet Commander Col. Mark F. Migaleddi to Terry. ment of displays, as well as more senior leader involvement
“Production of 60mm, 81mm, and 120mm mortars, as well than we typically have had for other visitors,” Humiston
as mortar sustainment parts, now makes up more than 50 said. “And it paid off.”
percent of today’s production.” Humiston explained that Terry asked a lot of questions
Migaleddi’s words might be viewed by some Arsenal about the mechanics of the flow-form process that no one
retirees as heresy, but shifting production priorities is only
a piece to providing unparalleled support to the warfighter. Story continues on page 9, see CG

9. Page 9 Salvo August 31, 2012
CG cont. who briefed Terry on gun tube rifling, said he knew just how
important it was to not only give a great first impression, but
also to showcase the Arsenal’s capabilities to Terry.
else had ever asked. “I did a lot of additional research on gun rifling just to
“At the end of the day, it was a make sure I had my ducks in a row,
great visit and I really appreciate and I’m glad I did,” Van Vranken
General Terry taking a personal inter- said. “General Terry asked some
est in my background and for thank- very intelligent questions about gun
ing me for what I do to support the rifling that no other visitors have
warfighter,” Humiston said. asked me.”
Greg Marcklinger who supervises Van Vranken, like Humiston and
the operation of one of the most fa- Marcklinger, praised Terry for his
vored parts of any Arsenal tour —the personal interest in who they are and
rotary forge — also said that prepar- how they got to where they are.
ing for Terry’s visit was different. So, if first impressions are any
“I usually don’t brief visiting dig- measure of the success of Terry’s
nitaries, but the commander thought visit to Watervliet, then this trip
it would be a nice touch if I stepped exceeded expectations.
up and briefed General Terry,” The troops were very pleased and
Marcklinger said. truly felt good about being able to
“General Terry asked some great showcase their skills and capabilities
questions about the type of training Photo by John B. Snyder to their new commanding general.
forge operators go through, as well Benét Labs’ Chris Humiston, right, explaining the Terry also seemed to leave Watervliet
mortar flow-form process to Maj. Gen. Michael Terry.
as the type of material we used,” with a good gut feeling, too.
Marcklinger added. “But what I Terry’s note to the workforce after
really liked about General Terry’s visit is that he seemed his tour was complete said that this was a great visit and he
down-to-earth, which made me feel at ease.” is very impressed with the Arsenal team. “Good things are
Terry Van Vranken, an arsenal machinist and tool maker happening.”
Arsenal History
SALVO: August 1985
Bldg. 135 to be named for
Frank A. Miller
In keeping with the Arsenal tradition of
memorializing its major buildings, Bldg. 135
will next month be named for Frank A. Miller,
the installation’s outstanding superintendent
of production throughout World War II and
the Korean War.
Permanent plaques will be attached to the
building to tell the story of Miller’s rise from a
machinist in 1917 to his retirement in 1953.

10. Page 10 Salvo August 31, 2012
Life at the Arsenal when one
career ends, another begins
eyesight. The novel’s protagonist, Philip, is likewise
Stephen Vincent Benét declined on medical grounds. However, a successful
Circa 1921 operation clears him and he is promptly delivered to
a training camp in the American South. He becomes a
By Kenneth G. Botsford
member of a gun crew in a mobile light artillery brigade.
Committing to and participating in something larger than
A plaque on the Arsenal grounds near Quarters One himself brings Philip toward the wisdom that he had
notes that the author Stephen Vincent Benét (1898-1943) sought. He appreciates the unique personality–in this
lived there during the summer of 1920, while revising the instance, named ‘Benny’–of his mass-produced gun:
manuscript of his first novel, The Beginning of Wisdom.
His father, Col. James “From the soft chock of the
Walker Benét (1857-1928), breech-block that smacked
was serving as the Arsenal’s home like a closing metal
commander, a post he had mouth to the dot of a flag from
assumed in March 1919. The the signal pit showing that
family, though, was not new Benny had plumped square on
to Watervliet. From 1899 to his target again and the burnt
1904, Col. Benét had been chemical whiff of smokeless
stationed at the Arsenal to powder in his nose and on
direct its ordnance production. top of his tongue, Philip
The return to Watervliet was acquainted himself with every
to be Col. Benét’s final Army trick and idiosyncrasy of the
assignment, as he was nearing play.”
retirement age. Photos provided by the Arsenal Museum
The modern reader who Quarters One, circa 1918, the year before Col. James W. Benét Silently, the novel’s words
plunges into The Beginning of returned with his family to the Arsenal to serve as Commander. pay tribute to his father, who
Wisdom anticipating specific had served as commander
references to the Arsenal will be disappointed, as there of the Ordnance Training Corps at Camp Hancock, in
are none. Yet, the return to Watervliet allowed the Benét Augusta, Ga., during the war.
family to reflect on the past and to construe its meaning. The unique environment of the Arsenal allowed one
The colonel, fond of history, gave it lasting form by naming career to conclude and another to begin. The decade
the Arsenal’s thoroughfares after preceding commanders; unfolded with a mixture of sadness and achievement. In
in addition, he directed that a history of the facility be 1921, Col. Benét retired after forty-one years of service.
compiled. He died in 1928, after a brief illness. The following year,
Stephen looked similarly to the past and fixed it, with a Stephen received the Pulitzer Prize for poetry. Ninety-two
dash of poetic license. He had been rejected from enlisting summers ago these outcomes were unknowable. Today,
in the Army during the First World War owing to poor though, a sole plaque may suggest them.
The Safety Bee has a name...Buzzy
Carl Fruscio & Sgt. Maj. Garett Savard came up with the winning
name and the two runner-up names are Stinger (anonymous) &
Gunner (Laurie Moffre).

11. Page 11 Salvo August 31, 2012
Upcoming Arsenal Family Day
Saturday, Sept. 22
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
KID-ZONE
- Bouncy Bounce
- Crafts
- Face Painting
- 3-legged race and more...
TOURS
-Manufacturing bays
-Benét Stereolithography and Tank Turret Labs
-Museum
-Fire House
SPORTING EVENTS
-Sumo Wrestling (Ages 9+)
-Olympic games (long jump, hurdles, etc.)
-Tug-a-war
-Water balloon toss
PICNIC (nominal charge for food)
-Chicken BBQ, hot dogs and more...
-Cotton candy, popcorn, and snow cone
-Wrist Band sales begin in September
MUSIC: USO's Liberty Bells and a DJ
Need Volunteers to help with...
The Kid Zone, OD Tour, and food service
For more information or if you can help out on
22 Sept., please call Dawn Whelan at 266-5473.

12. Page 12 Salvo August 31, 2012
9-11 Commemoration
&
Retreat Ceremonies
WHAT: Special 9-11 commemoration
ceremony to mark the anniversary of
the terrorists’ attacks to the Pentagon,
World Trade Center, and the downing
of United Airlines Flight 93. The post
will also conduct a retreat ceremony,
which is the traditional lowering of the
National Flag at the end of the day.
WHEN: Thursday, Sept. 13, 3:45 p.m.
WHERE: Post Flag
WHO: All installation employees. Ar-
senal employees are authorized admin-
istrative time to attend, but first check
with your supervisor. Post residents
and tenant organizations are also in-
vited.
CPAC Corner
Delegated Examining Unit (DEU) / External Vacancy Announcements
Did you know if you are selected for a position via an external/DEU announcement, you are required to serve
a one-year probationary period? Every time an employee applies and is selected through delegated examining
procedures, he/she must serve a new probationary period, regardless of how many times they may have already
completed one. If an employee is selected via a DEU certificate and occupies tenure group 1 (Career), he/she will
be in changed to tenure group II (Career Conditional) until he/she completes the one-year probationary period;
then the employee will be changed back to tenure group I (Career).
Questions regarding Status of Application/Resume
Did you know if you have a question regarding the status of a position or why you were not referred for a position
you applied for via USA Jobs, you can inquire via USA Jobs? To submit an applicant inquiry, please follow the
steps below:
(1) Sign into your USA Jobs account;
(2) Select "Application Status" from home page;
(3) Under the Job Summary column, select the position you are inquiring about;
(4) On the right hand side of the announcement, you will see the heading "Questions About This Job.” Send an
inquiry to the email address listed under this section and you should receive a response to your inquiry within
seven days.
For announcements/positions located at Watervliet, the email address is: applicanthelp@conus.army.mil
If you have any questions or need assistance, please contact the CPAC office (extensions 4058, 4053, 5400, or
4054).