He was the support automotive maintenance officer for the 82d Brigade Support Battalion, 3d Brigade Combat Team, 82d Airborne Division, serving in Tikrit, Iraq, when he wrote this article.

However, as I see it, this policy has some fundamental flaws. 0000005494 00000 n Vision: Many maintenance and supply managers order nearly anything with a national stock number (NSN) just in case their unit needs it in the future, and this practice is costing the Army millions in transportation and supply expenditures. I recommend that the Logistics Support Activity provide the database m~�@�V�ϓ�&�ߵ�z�,@Y��]��%o�fY(�����ߖi���"J���T8�G�j��p(��eG# ���SU&��5�]��s�f�h}�#+�!H�"Pqr�Zh�i4. a tailor-made listing for every unit in the Army.

System Flaws 0000187079 00000 n We can anticipate and forecast what our warfighters will need with the same level of accuracy expected from a field artilleryman targeting the objective. xref This includes engines, transmissions, transfers, differentials, radiators, generators, windows, brakes, calipers, water pumps, and so forth. To reduce some of the temptations of units to order so much nice-to-have but unneeded stuff, the Army needs to have a serious talk with the Defense Logistics Agency. Mr. James Amato To change the mindset and culture of our motor sergeants and maintenance officers, the Army should first resource them for success and then train them on the implications of their actions. And topping off the list of supplies is the “gee-wiz” stuff people order, like computers, plasma screen televisions, LCD [liquid-crystal display] monitors, plasma cutters, air compressors, knives, camelbacks, and every special The first thing the Army can do to get expenditures under control is to implement budget controls during extended combat operations. 0000002896 00000 n 0000001422 00000 n Do you have (or anticipate) new equipment and want to know what parts you need to be able to support it? Bench stock is 30 days of supply (DOS) and is low cost, high use, consumable Class… So, we have units ordering everything they can think of for every fleet of equipment they support. 0000003340 00000 n BENCH STOCK-(ORGANIZATIONAL SMALL ARMS PARTS STORED IN THE ARMS ROOM AT THE ARMORER’S DISPOSAL) SUBMACHINE GUN, 5.56mm, PORT FIRING, M231 NSN: 1005-01-081-4582 TM 9-1005-309-23&P LOC SMR NSN NOMENCLATURE PRICE U/I CIIC ARC RC MATCAT SCMC CODE CODE CODECODE CODE CODE 0000001175 00000 n Deliver objective analysis, experimentation and data across the entire life cycle to ensure readiness today and a more lethal future force tomorrow. degree from Campbell University and an M.B.A. degree from Florida State University. One main difference between the Army and Walmart is that Walmart does not expect the store manager to determine what to stock.

Let’s look at class IX supply procedures for units deployed in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Enduring Freedom. The current shop stock and bench stock policy is a relatively simple way to reduce Army inventory cost. Furthermore, by implementing an Army centralized shop stock and bench stock policy, we eliminate any ambiguity about how many lines of shop stock or bench stock a unit can have because we have created

Eradicating just-in-case ordering is going to be difficult to accomplish without first resourcing units with adequate shop stock and bench stock to support them. Is your Unit preparing for a rotational deployment? Next, the Army would quantify the optimal stockage requirements in the form of an algorithm or program for each unit in the Army, based on its equipment density and operational requirements. Then it would push that shop stock and bench stock list down to the unit level and require the units to stock those exact items. Forecast the effects of anticipated changes in unit equipment or operating conditions. Consequently, a “just-in-case” requisitioning mentality prevails.