WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) today congratulated Sandia National Laboratories for receiving one of the top five awards at the 39th annual Department of Energy Security Protection Officer Team Competition (SPOTC).
Overall winner for the DOE full team was Idaho National Laboratory and the winner of the super team event was Savannah River Site. Overall winner for the DOE 3-man team was Sandia National Laboratories. The overall winner for the non-DOE team competition was Bruce Power from Canada. Bruce Power also won the non-DOE super team event.
The awards were presented at an awards ceremony last night at the Amarillo Civic Center following this year’s competition, hosted by NNSA’s Pantex facility in Amarillo, Texas.
The competition included participating teams from DOE and NNSA facilities, the U.S. military and local law enforcement. The annual competition is managed by the DOE Office of Health, Safety and Security’s (HSS) National Training Center in Albuquerque, N.M., and is hosted by DOE and NNSA facilities across the U.S.
“I applaud all teams who competed this week in the annual Security Protection Officer Team Competition especially the Sandia National Laboratories team who received one of the top awards,” said Brad Peterson, Chief and Associate Administrator for Defense Nuclear Security. “The competition brings together some of the best teams from across the national security enterprise to showcase the expertise of our protective forces. I commend HSS for sponsoring the event and for Pantex for hosting the week-long competition.”
This was the first time Pantex hosted the SPOTC since 2000. Each day this week, Pantex updated the SPOTC website and utilized its social media in advertising the competition. Pantex took third place overall in the competition.
“This competition provides an opportunity to spotlight the extraordinary skills of the men and women who dedicate their lives to protecting the department’s facilities, said Glenn Podonsky, Chief DOE Health, Safety and Security Officer. “It truly takes an exceptional individual to be a Security Police Officer and that is what the Department of Energy has in the Security Police Officer staff – exceptional, professional people. We are all very proud of who they are and what they do for this Department and ultimately for this country. I would like to congratulate all of the participants and thank them for their service.”
The competition courses that were set up by Pantex are representative of the skills necessary for a response to a security event at a DOE/NNSA facility and are directly correlated with the concepts taught at the National Training Center. The most successful teams are those that are able to analyze the situation presented by the course and meet the physical and marksmanship challenges in the shortest period of time.
Plans are currently underway for the 2012 Security Protection Officer Team Competition tentatively scheduled for the DOE Savannah River Site in South Carolina.
For more information and results visit the SPOTC website at www.spotc.doe.gov [1].
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Established by Congress in 2000, NNSA is a semi-autonomous agency within the U.S. Department of Energy responsible for enhancing national security through the military application of nuclear science in the nation’s national security enterprise. NNSA maintains and enhances the safety, security, reliability, and performance of the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile without nuclear testing; reduces the global danger from weapons of mass destruction; provides the U.S. Navy with safe and effective nuclear propulsion; and responds to nuclear and radiological emergencies in the U.S. and abroad.
