|
Military
Affairs Update:
The Hart-Dole-Inouye Federal Center . . .
Continuing
a tradition of service
Just as the Cereal City has long been known as the "Breakfast Capital,"
it has also evolved into a military logistics capital. For more
than 40 years, local elements of the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA)
have helped sustain America's armed forces and support many other
areas of the federal government.
Products
and services provided by the Defense Logistics Information Service
(DLIS), the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service (DRMS) or
the Defense Logistics Agency Systems Integration Office (DSIO-J)
help manage the data that supports more than 7 million active supply
items from their original purchase to the day they are no longer
needed by the government. Anything -- big or small -- can be thought
of as an item, including replacement parts and components.
Much
of the work relates to identifying, classifying and describing items
and producing the easiest and timeliest tools for people to locate
the items they need, understand what they are and determine the
best ways to acquire them. The information is used by both the people
who need items and those who maintain the inventories they are ordered
from--whether it is a new item coming from a supplier or supply
depot or a used item from DRMS' online excess inventory.
Since
1952, public law has required standardized item naming across the
military services. This led to the creation of DLIS and later to
the consolidation and centralization of all Defense Department cataloging
in Battle Creek.
Logisticians
who are seeking a single commercial naming standard for international
use actively seek the expertise of DLIS catalogers. DLIS has longed
served as the U.S. National Codification bureau, assisting NATO
members, sponsored nations and Pacific area logisticians by sharing
U.S. methods for assigning names as a foundation for other nations
to build their systems. The systems help countries with different
languages share equipment much like musicians who speak different
languages can read and understand the same musical notes. Information
specialists also help ensure everyone's data remains interchangeable.
Besides
cataloging supply items, DLIS also catalogs suppliers through its
Central Contractor Registration (CCR) system. Any manufacturer or
business that wants to sell to the government must first register
in the CCR system, which also enables automated payments. Many other
DLIS programs, products and systems provide product and supplier
information. They also oversee a world-class customer contact center
that provides 24/7 support around the world.
Improving
the flow of information also helps streamline how used items are
shared and redistributed. The DRMS website (http://www.drms.dla.mil/)
was one of the first government sites to harness online databases,
enabling customers to search a global inventory of reusable items
in seconds rather than days of sifting through local catalogs.
Reusing
items through DRMS field offices can extend a military unit's operating
funds by avoiding the cost of new replacements. And, if the reusable
items are located close to overseas customers, their delivery can
often be expedited. Besides making inventory information available
sooner, electronic property accounting also helps items remain in
place until claimed by a new user. Moving information instead of
property is part of a continuous DRMS effort to reduce costs without
reducing service to customers. The DRMS commercial venture contract
also reduces costs by transferring the costs of selling reusable
property to the public to a commercial vendor. The arrangement enables
the government to recover money from the proceeds of such sales
after the vendor has deducted its sales costs.
The
DRMS "greening" programs enhance environmental policy compliance
by encouraging recycling or the return of items for remanufacturing.
These programs build on successes from precious metals recovery
and the demanufacturing of electronic components. As more government
buyers take advantage of environmentally friendly products identified
by DLIS in the Federal Catalog System, recycling should become easier.
The
heavy reliance DLIS and DRMS place on technology has changed DSIO-J
from its past role as a software developer into a resource for combining
commercial and standard government computer systems. There is already
a movement toward resource planning, which combines an organization's
information onto a single computer system that can serve everyone's
particular needs. Such techniques help DLA merge its many business
areas through commercial software that offers the private sector's
best practices.
Experts at DSIO-J also help shape computer systems as needed to
make them better suit individual needs and make them run more efficiently.
Analysts here are evolving into business engineers, working closely
with customers to identify needs and develop strategies for meeting
them. More information is available at www.dlis.dla.mil
about DLIS and www.drms.com
about DRMS.
Businesses
not registered in CCR should visit www.ccr.gov
to learn more.
|