ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. – Today, U.S. Army Chemical Materials Agency (CMA)
officials announced the destruction of 60 percent of the U.S. declared stockpile under the
Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC). This milestone was achieved Saturday, April 25. CMA
reached the 50 percent milestone in December 2007 and is poised to destroy its two-millionth
munition in the coming months.
“We have increased our efficiency at destroying the nation’s chemical weapons stockpile
while maintaining the highest safety and environmental compliance standards,” said Conrad
Whyne, CMA Director. “This accomplishment is the result of a true team effort between our
storage and destruction staff consisting of both government and contractor personnel, and I
commend the dedication of the members of our highly skilled work force,” he added.
“It took eight years to destroy the first 10 percent of agent, including agent destroyed before
the CWC entered into force. Back then, the Johnston Atoll Chemical Agent Disposal System
(JACADS) was our first operating facility, and we were still mastering operations,” said Col.
Robert Billington, CMA Project Manager for Chemical Stockpile Elimination. “Since then, we
have systematically applied the lessons learned from JACADS and our other operating sites to
continually improve our efficiency,” he said.
Another big success of CMA’s chemical demilitarization program is safety. “We have worked
hard to instill a safety culture throughout the program,” said Greg St. Pierre, CMA Director of
Risk Management. “Over time, our work force has reduced our Recordable Injury Rate or RIR–
the rate of injuries per 200,000 man-hours worked which we report to OSHA–from more than
4.0 at JACADS to 0.62, our March 2009 rate. By contrast, the construction industry RIR is 6.3.
Industries with a lower injury rate are finance, data processing and libraries,” he added.
In reaching the 60 percent destruction mark, CMA has also reduced the overall continued
storage risk from the nation’s stockpiled chemical weapons by 94 percent. Much of this
reduction is due to CMA’s complete destruction of VX and GB nerve agents at its chemical
demilitarization sites, achieved in December 2008. The storage risk continues to decrease
with every new destruction milestone CMA achieves.
Destruction of chemical weapons is complete at Newport, Ind.; Aberdeen, Md.; and Johnston
Island. Operations continue at CMA’s remaining destruction sites in Tooele, Utah; Umatilla,
Ore.; Anniston, Ala.; and Pine Bluff, Ark. These sites are now destroying or preparing to
destroy blister agent. CMA continues to safely store chemical agent munitions near Richmond,
Ky., and at Pueblo, Colo. For more information about CMA
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Here is the XM982 Excalibur precision-guided artillery projectile. Soldiers are able to program map grid coordinates into an Excalibur round and use G
ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. (Army News Service, April 28, 2009) - U.S. Army Chemical Materials Agency officials announced today the destruction of 60 percent of the U.S.-declared stockpile under the Chemical Weapons Convention.
This milestone was achieved April 25. CMA reached the 50-percent milestone in December 2007 and is poised to destroy its two-millionth munition in the coming months, officials said.
"We have increased our efficiency at destroying the nation's chemical weapons stockpile while maintaining the highest safety and environmental compliance standards," said Conrad Whyne, CMA director. "This accomplishment is the result of a true team effort between our storage and destruction staff consisting of both government and contractor personnel, and I commend the dedication of the members of our highly skilled work force."
"It took eight years to destroy the first 10 percent of agent, including agent destroyed before the CWC entered into force. Back then, the Johnston Atoll Chemical Agent Disposal System was our first operating facility, and we were still mastering operations," said Col. Robert Billington, CMA project manager for Chemical Stockpile Elimination.
"Since then, we have systematically applied the lessons learned from JACADS and our other operating sites to continually improve our efficiency," he said.
Another big success of CMA's chemical demilitarization program is safety.
"We have worked hard to instill a safety culture throughout the program," said Greg St. Pierre, CMA director of risk management.
"Over time, our work force has reduced our recordable injury rate or RIR -- the rate of injuries per 200,000 man-hours worked which we report to OSHA -- from more than 4.0 at JACADS to 0.62, our March 2009 rate. By contrast, the construction industry RIR is 6.3. Industries with a lower injury rate are finance, data processing and libraries," St. Pierre added.
In reaching the 60-percent destruction mark, CMA has also reduced the overall continued storage risk from the nation's stockpiled chemical weapons by 94 percent.
Much of this reduction is due to CMA's complete destruction of VX and GB nerve agents at its chemical demilitarization sites, achieved in December. The storage risk continues to decrease with every new destruction milestone CMA achieves, officials said.
Destruction of chemical weapons is complete at Newport, Ind.; Aberdeen, Md.; and Johnston Island.
Operations continue at CMA's remaining destruction sites in Tooele, Utah; Umatilla, Ore.; Anniston, Ala.; and Pine Bluff, Ark. These sites are now destroying or preparing to destroy blister agent.
CMA continues to safely store chemical-agent munitions near Richmond, Ky., and at Pueblo, Colo.
For more information about CMA, visit www.cma.army.mil.
US Army Selects Top Inventions That Can Take, Or Save, Your Life
IEDs, or Improvised Explosive Devices, are a sad fact of war in Iraq and Afghanistan, so you'll see the influence of these deadly weapons in this list of the US Army's top inventions for 2007. Every year the Army selects the top refinements, outright new inventions, or streamlined weaponry, and pumps out a list. This year's list features several new types of Humvee armor, GPS-guided artillery rounds, and a wheeled contraption for vehicles called SPARK (above), which sniffs out IEDs before they have a chance to do any damage.
Here is the XM982 Excalibur precision-guided artillery projectile. Soldiers are able to program map grid coordinates into an Excalibur round and use GPS to guide it to target with pinpoint accuracy.
The Objective Gunner Protection Kit (OGPK) is a motorized, rotating turret mounted on top of Humvees and MRAP vehicles. According to the Army it offers protection from IED fragmentation and small-arms fire, includes transparent armor, a sling for the gunner, and super handy rear-view mirrors.
The HMMWV Egress Assistance Trainer (that's better known as "Humvee") is a mockup of a Hummer's cabin, and can be spun around to simulate an upended vehicle. Soldiers use this invention to practice disembarking from damaged or overturned vehicles before they're deployed.
New Invention Ideas for Companies
As America's leading provider of invention help services for inventors, InventHelp® has access to many new invention ideas that could be of interest to marketers and manufacturers. In addition to our database of clients' new product ideas, "The Invent Help People" provide several other services to assist companies that may be looking for products to add to their existing lines:
The Invention & New Product Exposition (INPEX®), America's largest inventor trade show, is another of InventHelp's services for companies. Held annually in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the show offers more than 1,000 new invention ideas that are available to license, market or manufacture.
Invention Place™ is an online resource that lets companies view a sampling of new inventions that have been displayed at INPEX®. Each year, inventors come from over 20 countries around the world to attempt to make contacts with companies at INPEX®. After the show, many of these inventors choose to have their innovations displayed on Invention Place™.
The Invention & New Product Exposition (INPEX®), America's largest inventor trade show, is another of InventHelp's services for companies. Held annually in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the show offers more than 1,000 new invention ideas that are available to license, market or manufacture.
Invention Place™ is an online resource that lets companies view a sampling of new inventions that have been displayed at INPEX®. Each year, inventors come from over 20 countries around the world to attempt to make contacts with companies at INPEX®. After the show, many of these inventors choose to have their innovations displayed on Invention Place™.
These online listings include a general description of each new invention idea, as well as photos, an inventor bio and video clips of the inventor describing/demonstrating his or her product. Access to these innovations is free to companies seeking new product ideas to license, market or manufacture.
If you are a marketing/manufacturing representative and you wish to learn more about the invention ideas displayed at INPEX® or on Invention Place™, please register your company by filling out our New Inventions Info Request form.
If you are an inventor and would like to find out how InventHelp® can help you try to present your inventions to companies, please complete our Inventor Information Request form or call toll-free 1-800-INVENTION.
America Drinks and Goes Home Lyrics:
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WHAT'S NEW IN INVENTIONS; When America Starts to Tinker
HE American genius, who invents at his kitchen table or in a corporate laboratory, is losing ground to innovators from abroad. Last year, United States residents were granted only 54 percent of the patents issued the Patent and Trademark Office, according to Government statistics.
Inventors are often the backbone of industrial growth, and the bulk of funds to support innovation comes from the Government. That means more dollars have gone toward military research than consumer products. ''Our Government invests in laser research for 'Star Wars','' said Richard I. Samuel, president of the Patlex Corporation, a laser company in Chatsworth, Calif. ''The Japanese invest theirs in diodes used in compact disk players.''
Twenty years ago, American inventors obtained 50 times as many patents as the Japanese, who now receive two in five, said Donald J. Quigg, commissioner of the Patent and Trademark Office. Mr. Quigg finds this a dangerous sign that America may be losing its competitive edge.
This trend bothered Stephen P. Gnass, a Beverly Hills, Calif., business consultant. He organized the Invention Convention to stanch what he saw as the ebbing spirit of Thomas A. Edison. ''The small inventor who creates most of our technology is the reason for our past successes,'' said Mr. Gnass, whose small-business clients have had innovative ideas but little success in marketing their products.
''They were all stuck on some level and couldn't quite get it all together,'' Mr. Gnass said. The Invention Convention was started to provide a forum where inventors could meet potential investors, manufacturers and distributors. Inventions are not guaranteed or tested by the convention organizers or by outside experts.
More than 13,000 visitors attended the second convention, which was held recently in Pasadena, Calif., and 185 inventors displayed their wares. Some exhibitors had little more than business cards and a single prototype, but more than a dozen have reported making deals, Mr. Gnass said.
Time Warner Is Moving Closer to AOL Spinoff
Such a move would untangle what many consider one of the worst mergers in American corporate history.
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