A new Bechtel Pueblo Team project manager is on the job at the Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant.

“I’m glad to be here,” Todd Ailes said. “I will be supporting the PCAPP mission and will continue the good foundation that outgoing manager Ken Harrawood has set with safety and with being good stewards of taxpayer money.”

Before arriving at PCAPP, Ailes was the site manager for a Pantex plant in Amarillo, Texas, overseeing daily aspects of plant operations involving nuclear weapons, plutonium pit storage, high explosives and general administration. He also worked 12 years with the U.S. Navy’s Nuclear Propulsion Program. Ailes has worked in the nuclear industry for more than 35 years.

“I’ve asked the workforce to join me in welcoming Todd Ailes as the new BPT project manager,” said Ken Harrawood, outgoing project manager. “I began turning things over to Todd last week and even though my last day was Nov. 11, I have made myself available to assist in what I expect to be a seamless transition.”

With the fast-approaching 2023 treaty obligation to destroy the remaining U.S. chemical weapons stockpile stored in Colorado, plant closure will be one of the biggest focuses of Ailes’ tenure. One of the most prominent facets of the plant closure process will be transitioning the workforce after the project concludes.

“We need to support and assist our employees when we reach that point,” Ailes said.