To add a qualification at this point I don't count insurgencies or stay behind forces as defensive forces or defensive operations. Unlike commercial firms that can prepare by the calendar, the military must operate without knowing when the date of each event occurs and still have the ability to respond to a sudden change in the latest hot item within hours, if not minutes. But when you go to war, you need to have both toilet paper and bullets at the right . 17. The Honorable Alan Estevez, remarks at Marine Corps Association and Foundation 14th Annual Ground Logistics Awards Dinner, Arlington, Virginia, March 22, 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. Once the 2 nd World War finished, enterprises and businesses within the United States took up this word and started implementing it within normal business . New principles must be embraced to achieve the requirements for successful logistics capabilities in support of operational commanders and the National Defense Strategy. Strategy, yes. Having better-trained commanders is a force multiplier. 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. Logistics touches every aspect of military strength and is the sum of the capabilities brought to bear by all of the U.S. military services and those of a wide array of international partners.6. 30. Military Logistics: A Brief History - Logistics is a relatively new word used to describe a very old practice: the supply, movement and maintenance of an armed force both in peacetime and under operational conditions. Managing logistics is extremely crucial as it helps the organisations to gain deep insights of the supply chain. This narrated presentation describes the project, including key findings. Learn about the top 10 major importance of logistics management. There is no option to fail, and there is no hope of unlimited resources. As part of a military supply chain, the logistics manager is responsible for managing both the equipment and the personnel involved with making the supply chain work. They also are applicable across the entire U.S. military from the strategic level to the tactical level. Vision, sure. Technologies such as additive manufacturing, improved manmachine interfaces, and advanced robotics will contribute significantly to improved survivability. Add to these challenges the reduction of skilled manpower in the active and reserve forces, the increased difficulty of retaining seasoned military personnel, and a decreasing number of civilian and contractor artisans in the logistics workforce, and the need for modernizing the logistics force, from training to developing new concepts, becomes even more obvious. 24. The United States Marine Corps has implemented some proactive measures to respond to global events and crises. Logistics. This study identifies the likely changes that will arise in global mobility requirements for UK Armed Forces between now and 2040. DNA, Oxford Living Dictionaries, https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/dna (accessed May 29, 2018). Port facilities capable of handling critical munitions movements are critical to force deployment and sustainment. In January 2003 momentum was really gaining and APS-3 downloaded several ships of equipment into theater. The Merriam-Webster online dictionary defines logistics as the aspect of military science dealing with the procurement, maintenance, and transportation of military materiel, facilities, and personnel.2 The Joint Chiefs of Staffs Logistics elaborates on this definition and quotes Rear Admiral Henry E. Eccless 1959 statement that Logistics is the bridge between the economy of the Nation and the tactical operations of its combat forces. Therefore, to ensure military readiness, it is important to evaluate . They are innovative in thought and practice, with a command and control architecture that is immunized against cyber and electronic warfare threats, and data-driven through predictive analytics. 29. The ability to meet the NDS requirements requires a significantly more agile force. How do these provisional units currently source personnel and equipment requirements? In the modern era, the appreciation of logistics by Admiral Ernest J. Which successful supply chain organizations use to execute operations efficiently and increase value for their end customers. The RAND Corporation is a research organization that develops solutions to public policy challenges to help make communities throughout the world safer and more secure, healthier and more prosperous. The Military Health System needs an agile, resilient, and global network of treatment and storage facilities and transportation assets, as well as knowledge of gaps and risks that could hinder effective medical support for future combat operations. 22. 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. 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. Experienced Logistician skilled in Logistic Support, Logistics Management, Military Logistics, Inventory Management, and Safeguarding. Field Marshal Viscount Slim, Defeat into Victory: Battling Japan in Burma and India, 19421945 (New York: Cooper Square Press, 2000), pp. In the MSC Sealift Program, 106 of 115 ships, including government-owned surge sealift ships, Maritime Administration Ready Reserve Fleet ships, and chartered commercial ships, were carrying equipment and supplies for the Armys 3rd and 4th Infantry Divisions, 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions, and V Corps and the Marine Corps I and II Marine Expeditionary Forces. All you can think about . Equally absent since that time has been the need to apply combat power to preserve logistics capabilities. The same account further reflects that from January 2003 through the end of April 2003, MSC delivered more than 21 million square feet of warfighting equipment and supplies, 260 million gallons of fuel, and 95,000 tons of ammunition to the Persian Gulf area for the Army, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Navy warfighters involved in Operation Iraqi Freedom. the great importance the alliance attaches to the civil dimension and its impact on military operations. U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Transportation Command, About USTRANSCOM, https://www.ustranscom.mil/cmd/aboutustc.cfm (accessed May 29, 2018). Major-General Carl von Clausewitz, On War. 31. Taken together, collaborative services and innovation stress the importance of a vibrant military logistics community that is externally connected. Research has recognized supply chain as an important source of competitive advantage. Military 80 Penn State program trains Marines on battlefield logistics DC Velocity DECEMBER 18, 2018 U.S. forces initiated the deployment with Military Sealift Command (MSC), a USTRANSCOM subordinate command, prepositioning assets moving to Kuwait beginning in October 2002, with the off-load of increased military capability beginning in earnest in January 2003 and wrapping up in April 2003, completing the six-month force buildup. This report presents algorithms that monitor the U.S. Army logistics distribution system and automatically detect distribution issues that might affect equipment readiness. We propose interventions that accelerate concurrent development of new operational and logistics concepts. Not explicitly addressed in the NDS but fundamentally implied is the equally daunting challenge of winning the home games by having the critical militaryindustry partnerships and dedicated infrastructure that serve as the preparation and launching pads for our forces. 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. Every military has planned for operations its systems of logistics cannot support. -- In medical logistics, there are many moving parts -- each as important as the next -- to . Before they became RAND researchers, Jonathan Wong and Joslyn Fleming served as U.S. Marines. The future fight will require significantly greater responsiveness and diversity in the face of a greater threat. These 1,089 ships included 32 carriers, 10 battleships, 62 cruisers, 442 destroyers, and 563 frigates and destroyer escorts.26 Compare this to the Navys Report to Congress on the Annual Long-Range Plan for Construction of Naval Vessels for Fiscal Year 2019, which proposes the construction of 54 battle force ships during the five years from 2019 to 2024.27. 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. Researchers identified approaches the U.S. Coast Guard could take to improve crew satisfaction with precommissioning assignments on offshore patrol cutters and overall fleet readiness, then evaluated the options using five criteria. To stop the ceaseless supply of allied stuff, and . With the coming in of COVID-19, global concerns are rising, and it is necessary to take proper care of everything. More than 90 percent of the military cargo to support OIF was delivered by MSC ships. Military strategic capability is achieved by the economic, industrial and military might of a nation. The Pardee RAND Graduate School (PardeeRAND.edu) is home to the only Ph.D. and M.Phil. 101, Issue 10 (October 2017), https://www.mca-marines.org/gazette/2017/10/21st-century-logistics (accessed May 29, 2018). The company's dedication to logistics and the military community ensures that soldiers have access to the best coffee possible, even in the most challenging . Answer (1 of 4): I'm as logistics officer at the IDF can tell you that no army can move for more than 72 hours without the military logistics. Availability and delivery of parts and spare components, maintenance capability and the capacity to surge increased maintenance volume on short notice, the ability to contract additional support when necessaryall of these logistical elements are essential to military effectiveness. Michael Howard and Peter Paret (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1989), p. 95. 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. In concert with the diplomatic, information, and economic instruments of national power, the military helps to implement America's national security and defense strategies, 1 but success in. The NDS focuses on investments needed to improve the ability of forces deployed abroad to maneuver against an enemy and ensure that the posture of those forces (how they are arrayed in theater) has resilience (the ability to sustain losses and remain effective). The authors propose assessing the defense acquisition system's ability to overcome the operational problems outlined in the 2018 National Defense Strategy, discuss why the approach is valuable, and suggest next steps. In its simplest form, logistics is important because it is needed to supply raw materials, goods and equipment to both the maker and the consumer. The quotes are all related to war because logistics was practically invented by the military. Supply and logistics operations are important for the world's armed forces, fulfilling the needs of fighting and administrative units. Equipment readiness is another area of concern. 13. Alan Estevez, former Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics and a career Department of Defense Senior Executive Service logistics leader, recently stated, Logistics isnt rocket scienceits much harder!5 Logistics is fundamental to the readiness of the entire Joint forcethose at home, deployed in operational settings, and permanently stationed abroadgiven that it must operate around the world and across every domain of activity in spite of enemy efforts to frustrate its operations. The intention here is to try and bring about a change in outlook on this very important area that is taken for granted. Raison D'etre Franklin Delano Roosevelt, The Great Arsenal of Democracy, address delivered December 29, 1940, Broyles leads research on improving repair, Kenneth Girardini is a senior operations researcher at the RAND Corporation. King, Commander in Chief of the United States Fleet and Chief of Naval Operations during World War II, is equally telling: I dont know what the hell this logistics is that [General George C.] Marshall is always talking about, but I want some of it.14 Similarly, in his timeless treatise on warfighting, Defeat into Victory, British Field Marshal Viscount Slim commented that building his theaters logistical infrastructure and supply reserves and maintaining his armys health were two of the three foundations of victory in his campaign in Burma and India. It is therefore important that logistics correctly assess the short-term consumption expected by combat forces; that is, the "here and now", which are essential to facilitate combat readiness and the . Three of 25 Special Mission ships were directly supporting Navy combatants with telemetric, hydrographic and acoustic data. Since military equipment and supplies must be transported from one place to another, it's hugely important to create a comprehensive, fast and dependable logistics system that would work and deliver the value and results to support defense efforts nationally and internationally. Given the evolution of competitors abilities to threaten the logistical underpinnings of U.S. combat power, force logistics planning now requires innovation in both technology and operational concepts. 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. Such facilities must also be made resilient in the face of cyber challenges, now a common feature of modern conflict. The manufacturer isn't a logistician and neither is the consumer; and both need the logistics middle man to deliver what they need. Amateurs think about tactics, but professionals think about logistics. The operational integration of these various capabilities provides the linkage between the tactical and strategic levels: a means to leverage the Arsenal of Democracy29 in the hands of the men and women who serve in harms way around the globe. The Movement Coordination Centre Europe commissioned RAND Europe to conduct a scoping study to understand constraints of operating in Africa, as well as barriers to the efficient coordination of airlift and other logistic support in the continent. The shrinking militaryindustrial base that provides the wherewithal of national power faces significant challenges because of unpredictable budgets and inconsistent program funding. 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. In addition, unmanned platforms that can evacuate the injured from the point of injury without sacrificing high-cost combat platforms and additional combat capability will be critical in the dispersed battlefield. 11. During the height of Operation Iraqi Freedom, MSC had 167 of its 214 active ships directly supporting the war. [6] Further, uncertainty permeates operational plans, making it important that military leaders make timely and effective decisions based upon available information. I-5I-6. It grants broader visibility over the movement of merchandise from construction to consumption, identifying infrastructure and operational practices that help or hinder that smooth, cost-effective distribution. "There's an old expression that is sometimes true in the logistics business: parts is parts," Hooper says. 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. Perhaps counterintuitively, a constrained ability to build new iron (ships, aircraft, and major ground weapons systems) actually increases the logistical burden and budget because the cost of maintaining older systems necessarily increases. To remain a vital contributor to military success, logistics must adapt continuously so that it bridges old systems and capabilities while embracing new technologies and concepts. Read this work not for its focus on the sea but for its focus on national power. But there are challenges all along the supply chain, addressed by different agencies and military commands in a complicated set of processes, and a collective reluctance to assume responsibility for the mission. FORT DETRICK, Md. To the lowest war fighter, logistics support must . Responsiveness can be improved by leveraging industrial-base support from the point of manufacture to the tactical edge forces. The Movement Coordination Centre Europe commissioned RAND Europe to conduct a scoping study to understand constraints of operating in Africa, as well as barriers to the efficient coordination of airlift and other logistic support in the continent. To ensure Army readiness, the enterprise will continue to focus on its global logistics reach, which includes boosting Equipment on Hand rates by moving millions of pieces of equipment to the. The importance and the proportion of military logistics have developed at the same pace as the development of the industry of defence and the reassesment of the war concepts thus being forced to face bigger demands logistics , In military science, all the activities of armed-force units in support of combat units, including transport, supply, communications, and medical aid. Girardinihas led projects focusing. Of the 141 ships, 127 ships were carrying combat equipment and cargo from the U.S. or Europe into the theater of operations or were en route to load cargo for the operation.20. 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. After the Cold War, U.S. logistics planners moved away from a focus on effectiveness to a focus on efficiency in the sense that little is left idle for significant periods and that commodities are delivered at minimum cost. Lovelace February 27, 2023. With a single command, the soldiers needed can be supplied by the drone wherever they are. These figures comprised equipment loaded in Texas, Georgia and Florida for the U.S. Armys 3rd and 4th Infantry Divisions and 101st Airborne Division, which included thousands of Abrams main battle tanks, Bradley fighting vehicles, humvees and helicopters. The importance of the global commons reigns supreme. The Air Force needs better access to contractors' technical data to sustain core military aircraft assets and subsystems. You simply cannot mount an attack or defence without a functioning logistics system. Logistics essentially undergirds operational capability in support of national security. Our logistics enterprise is absolutely vital for responding to emergencies while preparing for future conflicts." "I've been unwavering in my insistence that we cannot build a combat creditable deterrence if we do not have the logistics capability and capacity to realistically support the complex military operational plans we are likely . zdebir, drawing attention to the importance of opening the military logistics field to the civilian industry, emphasized that the defense support capabilities of Trkiye will increase with the participation of the private sector. Six months may seem a long time, but the volume of activity was immense. Logistics is an elemental component of all military operations; it is not only a major function unto itself, but also a vital consideration in every other aspect. Here is why: Logistics connects the world. Transitioning from large, centralized, unhardened infrastructure to smaller, dispersed, resilient, adaptive basing that includes active and passive defenses will also be prioritized.25. "The cost of operating and maintaining a system over its useful life is driven primarily by system design, and reliability and maintainability decisions, which are typically made before production." - Ms. Christine Fox, Former Director, Cost Assessment & Program Evaluation (CAPE) These challenges become infinitely harder when considering the vastness of the Pacific or the intricacies of meeting challenges across the depth and breadth of Europe. 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. As U.S. Marines medical logistics, there are many moving parts -- each as important as the next to! 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