Rear Adm. Jorge R. Cuadros relieved Rear Adm. Maria L. Aguayo as commander, Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC), Atlantic, in Norfolk, Virginia August 2.
Cuadros is the 35th commander to oversee NAVFAC Atlantic. He will also serve as the U.S. Fleet Forces Civil Engineer and Director, Fleet Installations and Environment (N46), U.S. Fleet Forces Command.
Rear Adm. Dean A. VanderLey, commander, Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command, and Chief of Civil Engineers presided over the ceremony and awarded Aguayo a Legion of Merit for exceptionally meritorious conduct.
He praised Aguayo for a wide array of accomplishments that included the start of the Shipyard Infrastructure Optimization Program (SIOP), the Navy’s top infrastructure priority. To date, SIOP currently has over $6 billion of construction under contract and nearly $600 million of equipment in procurement, across the four naval shipyards. Two of those shipyards, Norfolk Naval Shipyard and Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, are within the NAVFAC Atlantic area of responsibility, and VanderLey cited her “being front and center, on the east coast, standing up the organization, maturing the organization and shepherding some very significant projects."
VanderLey also noted Aguayo’s masterful role in myriad responsibilities including the execution of billions of dollars in military construction, including a $600 million dry dock recapitalization in Kings Bay executed in just 15 months. Her other work included directing the inspection effort of 1,600 facilities for structural challenges, supporting resettlement of Afghan refugees during Operation Allies Welcome, and assuming the “dual hat” responsibilities as the USFF N46 director.
“Not only is she great at execution of tactical projects, but she’s also made a lasting change here at NAVFAC Atlantic,” said VanderLey. “Being aligned to the fleet, making the organization more operationally focused, to get stuff done. Lore has made a big difference there and that’s not something that’s just going to leave. Lore is the kind of officer that makes a lasting difference.”
Aguayo led NAVFAC Atlantic since 2021. Following the change of command ceremony, Aguayo retired after 31 years of service as a Civil Engineer Corps (CEC) officer.
“Lore is the kind of officer that has a compass, and it’s always spot on,” said VanderLey. “I don’t just mean a moral compass, and that’s part of it, but whether it’s character and integrity, whether it is operational, Lore just consistently knows what to do. And the reason why she can accomplish so much is because she always has her team going in the right direction from the beginning.”
Aguayo later thanked the men and women of NAVFAC Atlantic, and the USFF N46 team, both assembled on the historic grounds of Lafayette River Annex, crediting them for meeting her high expectations.
“One of the phrases you’ve heard me say and that I challenged you to do was to “lean in” and win the strategic competition race,” said Aguayo. “That phrase, “lean in”, is a call back to my love of running. It’s meant to evoke an image in your mind of a sprinter racing toward the finish line full speed, neck and neck with a competing racer. And it’s that ability of the runner to lean in toward the finish line that can give just enough edge over the competition to win the race.”
Aguayo turns over command to Cuadros at a key moment in NAVFAC Atlantic’s evolution, focused more than ever on fleet and Marine Corps alignment and engagement. Like his predecessor, Cuadros is a career CEC officer and had tours at duty stations around the globe in service of the fleet. A native of Colombia, Cuadros is unique, starting his career in the enlisted ranks before becoming a member of the CEC community. Cuadros joined the Navy in 1991, before going on to receive his commission in 1996. Last month, Aguayo presided over his promotion ceremony to the rank of rear admiral lower half.
“I’m truly in awe and really excited about the role I will have,” said Cuadros. “It’s an honor to be following in the footsteps of someone like Lore Aguayo. She has been my mentor for many years … I can think of no better person to follow.”
A registered Professional Engineer in the state of Florida, he holds a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering Pontificia Universidad Javeriana and a Master of Science in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Stanford University. Cuadros is also a graduate of the Harvard University’s Kennedy School Senior Executive Fellows Program and is a qualified Seabee Combat Warfare officer. His most recent assignment was as Chief of Staff, NAVFAC Headquarters.
More than 9,100 military service members and civil servants of NAVFAC Atlantic provide products and services across an area of responsibility stretching the entire eastern seaboard as well as NAVFAC’s forward deployed sites within the U.S. European Command, U.S. Africa Command and U.S. Central Command. In FY23, NAVFAC Atlantic executed $6.9B in nearly 14,800 contract actions.
