Military bases struggling with personnel shortages, internal review finds

[MJP]

No one has argued that the status quo is what is required... But you have called into question the validity of incomes and positions ... That's where we are coming from.

Want an effective Supply System ? Stop tasking officers with finding one and instead task some CPOs and MWO/CWO MMTs and Tfc Techs to find that solution, we are the ones who are in it at depth every day. The CFSS does not need to be as complicated as it is. Its people who have no experience in the CFSS that are making these decisions, i.e. Officers and Engineers (LCMMs).

No offence meant MJP you seem to be the exception to my rule. And again this may be a Navy thing.

Meh there are tons of super smart SNCO and Officers out there. Much of the heavy lifting in higher level policy is officers and civilian though although there is good number of key MWO/CWO/CPO2/1s that are technical in there

If you want your input to matter get involved with the MISL team, they want participation in their sprints. It is super interesting stuff as they will bring AIMS, NMDS and other standalone system into DRMIS/SAP so we can have a more complete look at our supply chain and avoid disasters like this.

"The audit discovered that in many instances items were flagged as arriving late in theatre when they had in fact been received with the technicians unaware due to a lack of visibility. Citing a database that informed users when items were in transit, the report noted that it could not provide information on the expected arrival date. Coupled with the lack of visibility, the inability to predict the arrival date of materiel almost certainly had repercussions for impending operations."

Zima, S. (2012). A CANADIAN REVOLUTION IN MILITARY LOGISTICS – IMPROVING THE CF OPERATIONAL SUPPLY CHAIN THROUGH BENCHMARKING, CFC Papers. Retrieved from: https://www.cfc.forces.gc.ca/259/290/298/286/zima.pdf

 

[dapaterson]

With a number of friends who got to sort through the bazaar of sea cans at Kandahar at different times on different rotos, the amount of stuff that was present that was hidden or unknown or misdirected is mind boggling.

The enterprise (from the top down) needs to be better - which does not necessarily imply adopting wholesale industry practices, as the environments and situations where a military can be called upon to operate are radically different.

eg Q: When you're at sea. what's the difference between having the computers infested with a virus, and someone running DRMIS? A: Techs can fix the virus problem.

 

[lenaitch]

I am I the only one who read the current Material Management Tech job description and got the impression that they purchase, warehouse, and ship "obsolete stock and equipment"?

From Forces.ca:

• Manage the purchasing, warehousing, shipping, receiving, stock control and disposal of obsolete stock and equipment

Careers | Canadian Armed Forces

Search current job opportunities in the Canadian Armed Forces. Explore available careers in the Forces and find your dream occupation.

forces.ca

The never-ending 'Oxford comma' debate.

What Is the Oxford Comma (or Serial Comma)?

The Oxford (or serial) comma is the final comma in a list of things. Please bring me a pencil, eraser, and notebook.

www.grammarly.com

 

[YZT580]

First off MJP air freight is not the be all and end all, it is simply the most efficient but not necessarily the cheapest way to get necessary equipment across this country. Within country they combine with trucks and trains on local hauls. Anything more than 1 day in transit should be considered for air freight where possible and practical. But the problem with supply goes far deeper than planes as has been well illustrated by others posting here and I suspect that getting the actual ops folks to proffer solutions and then listening and implementing them would go a long way to cleaning things up.

With regards to obtaining pilots the answer is quite simple: hire them. There are dozens of qualified IFR licenses out there looking for employment. I suspect Air Transat has a few for example. So start a Air America style operation using civilian pilots and in a fleet of aircraft compatible with whatever airframe is decided upon for the Airbus replacement. Offer them a five year contract with the opportunity to enlist at the end if they decide to stay civilian or even another five year contract. They are not military, nor will they be flying into a war zone although UN supply runs could be an option. Pay rates would be low as these are not high time airline types but entry level wannabes.

Air Canada used to run a DC8 freighter across Canada every day in each direction. Emulate their operation. Start on the east coast going westbound in the morning with one aircraft whilst another starts on the west coast as early in the morning as possible to go eastbound. You will need a minimum of 5 airframes to enable trans oceanic flights when necessary.

 

[MJP]

First off MJP air freight is not the be all and end all, it is simply the most efficient but not necessarily the cheapest way to get necessary equipment across this country. Within country they combine with trucks and trains on local hauls. Anything more than 1 day in transit should be considered for air freight where possible and practical. But the problem with supply goes far deeper than planes as has been well illustrated by others posting here and I suspect that getting the actual ops folks to proffer solutions and then listening and implementing them would go a long way to cleaning things up.

With regards to obtaining pilots the answer is quite simple: hire them. There are dozens of qualified IFR licenses out there looking for employment. I suspect Air Transat has a few for example. So start a Air America style operation using civilian pilots and in a fleet of aircraft compatible with whatever airframe is decided upon for the Airbus replacement. Offer them a five year contract with the opportunity to enlist at the end if they decide to stay civilian or even another five year contract. They are not military, nor will they be flying into a war zone although UN supply runs could be an option. Pay rates would be low as these are not high time airline types but entry level wannabes.

Air Canada used to run a DC8 freighter across Canada every day in each direction. Emulate their operation. Start on the east coast going westbound in the morning with one aircraft whilst another starts on the west coast as early in the morning as possible to go eastbound. You will need a minimum of 5 airframes to enable trans oceanic flights when necessary.

Well I agree it is a plan, and in my opinion not a very viable one but a plan nonetheless. Thanks for clarifying...still not sure how much of our material requires such high priority right away travel. Required delivery date not days of travel should probably drive that IMHO


Regardless I think making our systems talk better, cleaning up processes and properly staging material especially fast moving material will go a long way to reducing some of the issues better than more air transport (of any flavour)

 

[YZT580]

Accepted, but why not explore all options and come up with a system that integrates the best instead of putting up with the status quo whilst another 10 years go by?

 

[MJP]

Accepted, but why not explore all options and come up with a system that integrates the best instead of putting up with the status quo whilst another 10 years go by?

TBH because most people on here are not the ones creating the solutions. I am involved in the process in a very small way right now and likely a bit larger one in the near future and even then like most of us I will still remain a bit player in the whole mess.

I will say that the plane thing is a likely non-starter as the National Freight Run works decently already, not perfect but with some tweaks can likely bridge some of the gap.

 

[dapaterson]

Just in time delivery too often is in fact driven by forgot to plan. The commanders who fail to plan should not be incentivized; rather,they should be permitted to fail and either (a) learn or (b) be replaced by those who can plan.

 

[daftandbarmy]

Just in time delivery too often is in fact driven by forgot to plan. The commanders who fail to plan should not be incentivized; rather,they should be permitted to fail and either (a) learn or (b) be replaced by those who can plan.