Marine Corps Commandant Gen. David H. Berger and Deputy Commandant for Installations and Logistics Lt. Gen. Edward D. Banta recently announced the results of the Fiscal Year 2202 I&L awards program.  Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany was recognized as the Small Installation of the Year.

These awards recognize the outstanding achievements of the Corps' top performing Marines, civilian Marines and units in the I&L community. The winning individuals and units were recognized at the I&L Excellence Awards Dinner in Alexandria, Virginia, recently.

The award recognizes the military installation whose leaders and workforce have made the most outstanding contributions to increased productivity and overall excellence in installation management. It highlights MCLB Albany's premiere installation support of various tenant commands to include Marine Corps Logistics Command and Marine Depot Maintenance Command, the latter of which is a subordinate command to MARCORLOGCOM.

The award recognizes MCLB Albany's efforts in becoming the Department of the Navy's premiere energy efficiency installation. The base announced in May 2022 it had reached the Net Zero milestone in energy, the first DOD installation to do so. Berger and Meredith Berger, assistant Navy secretary for installations and environment, came to Albany to celebrate the achievement, the result of more than a decade of energy initiatives to reduce MCLB Albany’s energy footprint.

In conjunction with this, MCLB Albany was awarded a project in September through a General Services Administration area-wide contract to Georgia Power for the installation of electric vehicle chargers in support of an all-electric fleet of vehicles. The effort consists of 21 charge points at nine locations throughout the installation as well as underlying infrastructure to support new requirements and ease future EV charger installation. MCLB Albany is moving forward with this project after taking advantage of Georgia Power’s "Make Ready" program, through which the utility is providing funding to construct the infrastructure between the existing electrical grid and new chargers.   

MCLB Albany's designation by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration as a Voluntary Protection Program Star site for superior excellence in health and worker safety makes the base a leading recipient for this award. The installation was first recognized for its VPP Star status in 2015 and recently received recertification.

Officials with MCLB Albany announced in 2019 the DOD had selected the base as one of the first U.S. military installations to host testing and experimentation for 5G technology. The most visible byproduct has been the ongoing development of a 5G smart warehouse to leverage 5G’s ability to enhance logistics operations and maximize throughput. Marine Force Storage Command, another MARCORLOGCOM subordinate command, is overseeing the prototype and experimentation on the ongoing project.

MCLB Albany is known for its strong community partnerships, having built a bond outside the fence line notably strong compared to other military communities. It is particularly visible within the southwest Georgia education community. In the spring of 2022, the base hosted six students from the nearby Commodore Conyers College and Career Academy who interned at the installation for several weeks. The goal was for the students to learn from professionals in their chosen pathways of study including mechatronics, engineering and information technology.

These initiatives, relationships and hard work making progress possible proved crucial in MCLB Albany's receipt of this prestigious honor.