NDTA Surface Force Projection Conference Recap, May 14-17

The National Defense Transportation Association (NDTA) and the Christopher Newport University Center for American Studies (CAS) presented the sixth—and largest—annual NDTA-CAS Surface Force Projection Conference (SFPC) at Christopher Newport University in Newport News, VA, May 14-17.

The conference theme, “Ready Now—Contested Joint Force Deployments to and through Strategic Ports,” focused on the readiness challenges associated with deploying forces and moving sustainment through strategic seaports around the world to the point of need. U.S. government and industry logistics experts and members of the Joint Logistics Enterprise (JLE) examined a wide range of challenges, looked for solutions, and collaborated to find ways to improve readiness.

Located on 567 acres alongside the Elizabeth River, Norfolk International Terminals (NIT) is the Virginia Port Authority’s largest terminal.

During the four-day event, attendees were invited to participate in a variety of educational and social events.  A professional developmental tour of the Port of Virginia at the Norfolk International Terminals (NIT) kicked off the SFPC, where attendees could learn about the highly advanced, semi-automated terminals from the aerial vantage point of the operations tower. This event created excitement and momentum for the rest of the SFPC agenda, which included:

• Meeting and breakout sessions: Attendees had the opportunity to network with government and industry leaders on topics such as intermodal security, port readiness, port security grants, strategic seaports, and the Joint Transportation Management System.
• Keynote speakers: Senior government, military and industry keynote speakers discussed the contested environment, deployment operations, global force projection, evolving technology and future logistics and transportation innovations.
• Panels: Moderators guided three panels on discussions related to threats to ports, maximizing deployment flows and providing data redundancy for continuity of operations.

Thank you to our sponsors, speakers, attendees, partners, exhibitors, Christopher Newport University and co-host, The Center for American Studies, for their participation and support to make this the largest SFPC yet!