[The following article appears in the February edition of the
_Public_Sector_Quality_Report_, page 5.]

               THREE DEFENSE AGENCIES WIN FQI'S QIP AWARD

     The U.S. Army, Navy, and Air Force were all present and
accounted for on January 27 as the Federal Quality Institute
(FQI) announced three winners of the 1994 Federal Quality
Improvement Prototype (QIP) Award.

     The QIP Award, part of the President's Quality Award
Program, is given annually to federal organizations that achieve
high standards of quality in the delivery of products and
services to customers.

     Award criteria are similar to those for the private sector's
Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. A second award under the
President's program, the Presidential Award for Quality, has yet
to be announced.

     Meanwhile, 1994 QIP winners include:

     ù U.S. Army Tank-Automotive Research, Development and
Engineering Center (TARDEC), Warren, MI.

     TARDEC is the U.S. government's testing lab for advanced
military automotive technology, employing more than 1,200 people
to design and develop armed forces vehicles. Among TARDEC's
successes were a doubling of fuel economy on some tactical
vehicles, an increase of cross-country tank speed by 30 percent
since 1988, a reduction in tank weight, a tripling of the
longevity of tanks, and reduced development time (by 4 years) and
cost (by $ 168 million) on the M1A2 Tank.
CONTACT: Michael Bailey, (313) 574-5063.

     ù U.S. Air Force Electronic Systems Center (ESC), Bedford,
MA.

     ESC manages research, development, acquisition, and
sustainment of more than 200 electronic guidance systems. ESC has
an annual budget of $3.8 billion and employs 5,500 civilian and
military workers, supported by 7,500 contractors.

     One of ESC's better known programs is the AWACS (Airborne
Warning and Control System), which can track up to 300 aircraft
and ships within a 250-mile radius.

     Among its accomplishments, ESC's AWACS achieved a "sortie
effectiveness" rate of 96 percent (845 sorties, lasting 10,600
hours) during the Gulf War, and also had a 100 percent "mission
effectiveness" rate. ESC also keeps program management (overhead)
low, so customers receive back $.83 in value for every dollar of
ESC services rendered.
CONTACT: Thomas O'Mahoney, (617) 377-5104.

     ù U.S. Navy Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division, Keyport,
WA.

     The center provides test/evaluation, in-service engineering,
and fleet support for the U.S. Navy. It employs 3,300 and has a
yearly budget of $300 million. The center provided quality
training to union leaders and to senior management
simultaneously, and since 1991 97 percent of its non-management
employees have received some quality training. To date, 128
process improvement teams have been established involving 1,141
employees. Among other things, the center has generated $74.9
million in customer savings from 1986 to 1992.
CONTACT: John Ebert, (206) 396-7982.

     Finalists for the QIP Award included two additional defense
agencies and four civilian organizations:

     ù Air Force Aerospace Guidance and Metrology Center, Newark
     Air Force Base, OH.
     
     ù Red River Army Depot, Texarkana, TX.
     
     ù Department of the Interior Royalty Management Program,
     Lakewood, CO.
     
     ù GSA Western Distribution Center, Stockton, CA.
     
     ù CIA Office of Information Technology, Washington, DC.
     
     ù NASA John F. Kennedy Space Center, FL.
     
     Twenty-eight applicants competed for the 1994 QIP, including
12 civilian and 16 defense organizations. Applicant evaluations
were conducted by 48 examiners from the public and private
sectors.

     QIP winners and finalists will be honored at FQI's national
conference in July.

CONTACT: Dick O'Brien, administrator,
President's Quality Award Program, (202)
376-5047.

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