At the tactical level, one need only look at the various elements of readiness reporting reviewed by senior leaders to discern that the fundamentals of logistics directly affect the majority of elements that define readiness across the servicespersonnel, equipment, and supply readinesswhich in turn directly affect the ability of the services to meet the recurring needs of ongoing deployments and generate the forces needed for war. The Importance of In-Transit Visibility on U. S. Military Logistics INTRODUCTION Just as Abraham Maslow presented a hierarchy of human needs from survival to growth, military logistics mirrors this building block approach to satisfying certain basic needs before more advanced facets of military strategy and doctrine can be formulated. Vision, sure. Keeping the Army's equipment ready to go takes a lot of personnel and financial resources: 20 percent of the soldiers in a heavy division (almost as much as the supply and services, transportation, and medical personnel combined) and an estimated $11 billion across the Army in fiscal year 2003. On deeper inspection, however, the differences are profound. To add a qualification at this point I don't count insurgencies or stay behind forces as defensive forces or defensive operations. 8. Field Marshal Viscount Slim, Defeat into Victory: Battling Japan in Burma and India, 19421945 (New York: Cooper Square Press, 2000), pp. U.S. Department of Defense, Joint Chiefs of Staff, Logistics, pp. The mix of ships encompassed all four of MSCs programs, and included the U.S. Maritime Administrations Ready Reserve Force, and more than four times the normal daily number of commercial ships. In addition, the success of every new system and concept, every new technology and military organization, must be evaluated against the commensurate evolution and revolution in logistics sustainability. The force of tomorrow must be ready to defeat a peer competitor in a broad battlespace that requires security for each logistics movement, the ability to off-load across various widely distributed locations, with minimal infrastructure, and in a communications-degraded environment. Logistics is perhaps the most complex and interrelated capability provided by todays military. Military operations involve multifaceted threats, many with differing agendas, reactive capabilities, and adaptive competencies in a non-static environment. Logistics, the means of strategy and tactics, determines what is practically possible in war. Of these ships, 26 were operated by federally employed mariners and 141, or 84 percent, were crewed by merchant mariners employed by commercial companies under contract with MSC. One such measure is deploying task-organized units, also referred to as provisional units. Currently slated to graduate in . The report also offers recommendations for improved distribution monitoring. I love these famous logistics quotes! Fuel, ammunition, food and water, and medical supplies are all critical needs on the front lines. But when you go to war, you need to have both toilet paper and bullets at the right . The ability to measure effectiveness against efficient performance is critical. Military logistics is a mission-critical part of operations, and with global tensions becoming strained, improved planning, execution and contingency becomes a high a priority for all government defences agencies across the world. If you believe and have prepared your followers, the . As a result, the logistics enterprise is rarely debated outside the logistics profession with the same intensity as other more publicized warfighting needs, especially the need to regain our military technological advantage over major competitors like China and Russia, are debated. During the height of Operation Iraqi Freedom, MSC had 167 of its 214 active ships directly supporting the war. Logistics contributes to cost reduction and efficiency improvement By proactively monitoring inventory levels, Logistics management helps businesses to decrease expenses in a variety of areas, from shipping prices to the amount of storage space required. Logistics and supply-chain management Alexander's 35,000-man army could carry no more than a 10-day supply of food when remote from sea transport.1 Yet, This trend is very similar across the industrial capacity capabilities that produce aircraft and major land-component warfighting systems. 24. 29. Shipbuilding History, Large Naval Ships and Submarines, http://www.shipbuildinghistory.com/navalships.htm (accessed July 27, 2018). During World War II, from 1939 to 1945, the United States delivered 1,089 warfighting ships to the fleet that today would be classified as battle force ships. U.S. Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM) provides daily examples of what it takes to keep U.S. forces and their sustainment moving around the world. To say the least, the challenges of military logistics are unique. Transitioning Army Logistics Officer, looking to pursue new goals and passions outside of the Military. The Military Ensures Our Freedom and Safety Around the World From the battlefields of the American Revolution to the front lines of Eastern Europe, American service members have been ensuring the freedom of America and its allies for centuries. The ASLP will achieve the goals of that vision by transforming Army logistics from a system based predominately on redundancy of mass to one based on velocity mobility and information. Lacking something as simple as power generation capability on a ship, on the ground, or on an aircraft can prevent a unit from establishing the command and control capabilities that are vital to modern warfighting. However, the word's main importance was first understood during World War II and then started to be viewed and applied to logistics as a scientific subject. The planning done by the German general staff, and the recognition of the importance of railway-based logistics in moving the mobilized reserve, was such that their plans were dubbed, "war by timetable." 22. Logistics is vital to any military campaign. Within logistics, the supply function is critical to equipment readiness. It is of vital importance for any military operation and, without it, operations could not be carried out and sustained. This research brief highlights the likely changes that will arise in global mobility requirements for UK Armed Forces between now and 2040. The term, first used by Henri Jomini, Alfred Thayer Mahan, and others, was adopted by the U.S. military in World War I and gained currency in other nations in World War II. The most junior personnel in logistics today are going to have to come up with creative ideas on how to set and sustain a theater of operations for logistics, resupply and repair in a new world. 10. Nevertheless, changes that positively influence the agility, survivability, responsiveness, and effectiveness of logistics systems can and must be made. Perhaps not so obvious is the interconnectedness of supply readiness to all other aspects of unit readiness. Is the Defense Acquisition System Postured to Solve National Defense Strategy Operational Problems? See, for example, The Honorable Mark T. Esper, Secretary of the Army, and General Mark A. Milley, Chief of Staff, U.S. Army, statement On the Posture of the United States Army before the Committee on Armed Services, U.S. Senate, 115th Cong., 2nd Sess., April 12, 2018, https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Esper-Milley_04-12-18.pdf (accessed May 30, 2018); The Honorable Richard V. Spencer, Secretary of the Navy, statement on Fiscal Year 2019 Department of the Navy Budget before the Committee on Armed Services, U.S. Senate, April 19, 2018, https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Spencer_04-19-18.pdf (accessed May 30, 2018); Admiral John M. Richardson, Chief of Naval Operations, statement on Fiscal Year 2019 Navy Budget before the Committee on Armed Services, U.S. Senate, April 19, 2018, https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Richardson_04-19-18.pdf (accessed May 30, 2018); General Robert B. Neller, Commandant of the Marine Corps, statement on The Posture of the United States Marine Corps before the Committee on Armed Services, U.S. Senate, April 19, 2018, https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Neller_04-19-18.pdf (accessed May 30, 2018); and The Honorable Dr. Heather Wilson, Secretary of the Air Force, and General David L. Goldfein, Chief of Staff, U.S. Air Force, USAF Posture Statement: Fiscal Year 2019, Department of the Air Force presentation to the Committee on Armed Services, U.S. Senate, 115th Cong., 2nd Sess., April 24, 2018, https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Wilson-Goldfein_04-24-18.pdf (accessed May 30, 2018). Importance of Logistics 5. Logistics survivability upgrades can achieve reduced targetability of the logistics force through development of manageable electronic signatures, a reduced logistics footprint, and improved distribution with reduced static inventory. While not a new consideration in designing a force for tomorrow that remains relevant today, the development of integrated, agile, technologically advanced, and effective logistics systems that drive efficiencies into every corner of the military is increasingly essential in todays dynamic, fast-paced, and ever-changing national security environment. For the want of a nail the shoe was lost, / For the want of a shoe the horse was lost, / For the want of a horse the rider was lost, / For the want of a rider the battle was lost, / For the want of a battle the kingdom was lost, / And all for the want of a horseshoe-nail. Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richards Almanack, https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/poor-richard-s-almanac (accessed May 30, 2018). To the lowest war fighter, logistics support must . Managing logistics is extremely crucial as it helps the organisations to gain deep insights of the supply chain. The importance of logistics was central to Alexander's plans, indeed his mastery of it allowed him to conduct the longest . Strong operations professional with a Master of Science - MS focused in Human Resources Management & Development (CIPD) from The University of Salford. Therefore, to ensure military readiness, it is important to evaluate . Mathematical optimization of a common, periodically updated authorized stockage list for each of the U.S. Army's three types of ground brigade combat teams provides improved performance in support of equipment readiness and reduced transition costs. By C.J. Broyles leads research on improving repair, Kenneth Girardini is a senior operations researcher at the RAND Corporation. The military is also going full steam ahead on hardware acquisitions, but when it comes to Revolution in Military Logistics (RML), most, particularly in the military circles, are in a denial mode. These historically rooted truths of the centrality of logistics to success in war are reflected in the 2018 National Defense Strategy (NDS) in which Secretary of Defense James Mattis notes the criticality of logistical preparation to the resilience and agility of U.S. forces in any setting. While 10 percent of the cargo was delivered by other means, primarily aircraft, understanding the magnitude and significance of sea-based sustainment is critical to understanding what it takes to deploy and employ the U.S. military. With a single command, the soldiers needed can be supplied by the drone wherever they are. It is largely self-evident that bringing new technology into military organisations is challenging. The U.S. military has seven geographic combatant commands set up around the world Europe, Africa, the Pacific Rim, the Middle East, South America, North America and even . 17. A logistics management system underpins that effort and includes inbound and outbound transportation management, warehouse management, fleet management, order processing, inventory control, supply and demand forecasting, and managing third-party logistics (3PL) service providers. RAND has long provided guidance and effective solutions to military supply and logistics decisionmakers, resulting in significant savings, improved readiness and combat support, and unit flexibility. Having better-trained commanders is a force multiplier. Logistics. "There's an old expression that is sometimes true in the logistics business: parts is parts," Hooper says. Ultimately, change must ensure both speed and reliability of logistics systems that build trust from the tactical level to the strategic level. Mattis, Summary of the 2018 National Defense Strategy of the United States of America, p. 6. Supply readiness has been the subject of various testimonies to Congress regarding the readiness of the force on land, in the air, or on the sea. Supply and logistics operations are important for the world's armed forces, fulfilling the needs of fighting and administrative units. From the farthest tactical edge to the economic system of the nation, military logistics has far-reaching implications for the nation and the military element of national power and therefore affects every aspect of organizing, training, equipping, deploying, and employing the force. USTRANSCOM conducts more than 1,900 air missions during an average week and has 25 ships underway and 10,000 ground shipments operating in 75 percent of the worlds countries. Experienced Logistician skilled in Logistic Support, Logistics Management, Military Logistics, Inventory Management, and Safeguarding. From the food on your table, through the clothes on your body and all the way to your business product or services. This can be done by developing the means to transfer logistics data systems seamlessly from digital-based processes to analog-based processes and back. Many of its theories and applications have been efficiently put into practice in the business world. Topic: Logistics Quotes. The hybrid logistics attributes that Dana describes are a mixture of legacy and evolving technologies. There is no option to fail, and there is no hope of unlimited resources. Military logistics is undoubtedly one of the most important parts of all the critical operations. The problem is made worse by the complexity of dealing with both old and new technologies in a single logistics enterprise. Responsiveness can be improved by leveraging industrial-base support from the point of manufacture to the tactical edge forces. Alexander the Great noted with dark humor the importance and complexity of logistics during his campaigns of conquest nearly 2,400 years ago: My logisticians are a humorless lotthey know if my campaign fails, they are the first ones I will slay.13 Alexanders ability to move a force from Greece to India and back, conquering adversaries in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia and leaving functioning outposts along the way, attests to his logistical prowess. Read this work not for its focus on the sea but for its focus on national power. The success of military logistics during the past 16-plus years of overseas combat operations is partly to blame for anyones assumption that continued logistical success in the ever-changing national security environment is a given across the entirety of the military logistics enterprise. Logistics always over-promises and under delivers. The end for which a soldier is recruited, clothed, armed, and trained, the whole objective of his sleeping, eating, drinking, and marching is simply that he should fight at the right place and the right time. Military readiness is the capability of the military force to meet the requests of their designated assignments or missions. In this interview, they discuss what made them want to join the service, what led them to research, and how their military experience guides the work they do at RAND. U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Logistics Agency, DLA at a Glance, http://www.dla.mil/AtaGlance.aspx (accessed May 29, 2018). The U.S. has only 23 designated Strategic Seaports17 commercially operated and six under military controlthat make it possible to sustain overseas forces daily and keep them sustained during wartime. These are far from back office functions and are truly what sustain the force and support its warfighting readiness. It should be noted, however, that in the years since these tremendous accomplishments, the size of the force available to execute these missions has shrunk considerably. Logistics essentially undergirds operational capability in support of national security. The U.S. joint force's ability to move materiel and people across oceans and continents is unique among militaries. See Esper and Milley, statement On the Posture of the United States Army, April 12, 2018; Spencer, statement on Fiscal Year 2019 Department of the Navy Budget, April 19, 2018; Richardson, statement on Fiscal Year 2019 Navy Budget, April 19, 2018; Neller, statement on The Posture of the United States Marine Corps, April 19, 2018; and Wilson and Goldfein, USAF Posture Statement: Fiscal Year 2019, April 24, 2018. Military logistics has been part of the history of mankind and has evolved to become a science of application to different processes of the Operational Forces. 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