Operations and Supply Chain Management Commons^™

Benchmarking Customer Service Practices Of Air Cargo Carriers: A Case Study Approach, Patrick D. Lozon, Michael B. Mcdaniel

Theses and Dissertations

This study used the benchmarking process incorporated in a case study approach to determine what the Air Force could learn from the commercial air cargo carriers in regard to customer service practices. The air cargo industry leaders were determined through a previous study to be United Parcel Service, Federal Express, Emery Air Freight, Airborne Freight, DHL Airways, and Burlington Air Express. In addition, the 437th Aerial Port Squadron APS at Charleston AFB South Carolina was the Air Force representative in the benchmarking study. Interviews with air cargo managers were conducted at each carrier’s main hub and at Charleston AFB. The …

Organic Maintenance Performance Measurement: A New Approach, John S. Nehr, William G. Queener

Theses and Dissertations

The growing role of Air Force Air Logistics Centers ALC in complex, multiyear developmental programs increases the need for effective cost and schedule performance measurement. In order to effectively manage these activities, timely and accurate cost and schedule information must be collected and compared with an established baseline. The ALCs need a new management technique which facilitates this type of performance measurement. A proven approach to cost and schedule performance measurement in weapon system acquisitions is Earned Value EV. This approach, required of contractors who are subjected to the CostSchedule Control Systems Criteria CSCSC, allows the program manager to obtain …

Worldwide Warehouse: A Customer Perspective, Hugo A. Quintero, Carlos A. Valadares

Theses and Dissertations

Under a global climate of increasing economic difficulties and declining defense budget, every opportunity for better use of available resources must be explored. The Worldwide Warehouse WWW Program is being developed as a solution for the excess inventory problem experienced by the Foreign Military Sales FMS countries. The rationale behind the program includes the idea of releasing resources tied to inactive inventory so those resources can be used to improve support and readiness of active inventory. The purpose of this study us to determine to what extent the WWW Program, as initially defined, is perceived by its intended customer the …

An Investigation Into The Pitfalls, Consequences, And Best Practices During The Evaluation, Negotiation And Award Phases Of A Source Selection In Afmc Product Centers, Scott A. Savoie

Theses and Dissertations

Source Selection is the process used by the Federal government to select contractors for large, complex and important requirements. Recent studies have indicated that the in experience of source selection personnel continues to be a significant problem in source selections. Air Force Federal Acquisition Regulation Appendix AA requires that lessons learned be compiled at the conclusion of every source selection. Unfortunately, there has been little success in organizing this information into a coherent training guide. This research attempts to fill this gap by using source selection experts to identify source selection pitfalls, their consequences, and the best practices to avoid …

An Assessment Of Forecasting Methods: Cooperative Logistics Supply Support Arrangement (Clssa) Investment Items, Jeffrey S. Grafton, Earl W. Sollmann

Theses and Dissertations

The United States (US) promotes collective security in the Free World via the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program. FMS customers prefer to acquire weapon system logistic support through FMS rather than by direct commercial vendor support. Ninety-seven percent of the follow-on logistics requirements are submitted via a special program called Cooperative Logistics Supply Support Arrangement CLSSA. CLSSA, while sound in theory, has been a poor performer. The USAF must modify the CLSSA program or risk losing future FMS to competing nations. Modifying CLSSA to utilize an automated forecasting process will greatly improve customer service. Efficient and timely logistic support is …

Logistics Control Facility: A Normative Model For Total Asset Visibility In The Air Force Logistics System, Eric C. Lorraine, Michael E. Michno

Theses and Dissertations

Computer simulation was used to evaluate the impact of a Logistics Control Facility LCF with a Total Asset Visibility TAV system on the AF logistics systems ability to support a weapon system. For this study, the B-1B was chosen as the weapon system of interest. Two performance measures, expected fully mission capable rates and expected pipeline quantities, were used to evaluate the simulation results. Two-sample tests were used to compare the current logistics configuration of the B-1B with the same configuration, but with an LCF controlling the movement of assets. The expected FMC rate performance measure showed significant results while …

The Role Of The Federal Government In The Civilian Conversion Of Military Installations: A Case Study Of Gentile Air Force Station, Jodie L. Eshbach, Calvin S. Hall

Theses and Dissertations

In 1988, the Department of Defense DOD began a massive series of military base closures. Communities affected by these closures must contend with regulations of numerous agencies which impact the closure process. Since 1961, DODs Office of Economic Adjustment OEA has assisted communities in their attempts to recover from effects of base closures. In the 1980s and 1990s, the governments level of involvement increased it added the Air Force Base Conversion Agency AFBCA and the Base Transition Office BTO to assist communities recovery efforts. Through a review of historical data, a case study of the conversion activities at Gentile Air …

Automated Manpower Rostering: Techniques And Experience, C. M. Khoong, Hoong Chuin Lau, L. W. Chew

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

We present ROMAN, a comprehensive, generic manpower rostering toolkit that successfully handles a wide spectrum of work policies found in service organizations. We review the use of various techniques and methodologies in the toolkit that contribute to its robustness and efficiency, and relate experience gained in addressing manpower rostering problems in industry.

The Application Of A Readiness-Based Sparing Model To Foreign Military Sales, Karen M. Klinger

Theses and Dissertations

Current Foreign Military Sales FMS models provide stock levels that result in a very low system availability or a funding requirement that exceeds the overall budget. The purpose of this research was to determine if an inventory model exists that can be used in FMS reparable sparing to provide a more efficient and economical inventory purchase. The Aircraft Sustainability Model ASM is such a model, providing the most aircraft availability possible from a given inventory investment by computing the optimal number of spare parts to buy for each item. FMS data was obtained from two sources - the International Data …

Running With The Pack: Jit & Automation For Small Manufacturers, Thomas E. Phillips, John R. Ledgerwood

Publications

While both just in time (JIT) concepts and automation programs have been widely implemented and highly successful in large manufacturing companies, many smaller manufacturing companies have wondered whether it would be economically feasible to utilize these same techniques and derive these same benefits. When JIT is adopted by small manufacturers, it provides them with advantages over traditional manufacturing systems, such as lower cost, quality improvements, higher productivity, and less working capital tied up in inventory. Small US manufacturers must understand the basic principles and philosophy of JIT and update their production equipment if they are to be competitive in today's …

A Heuristic Approach To Determining Cargo Flow And Scheduling For Air Mobility Command's Channel Cargo System, John Fitzsimmons Jr., John Walker

Theses and Dissertations

This research investigated a heuristic approach to schedule aircraft for the channel cargo system of the Unit States Air Forces Air Mobility Command AMC. Given cargo frequency of visit requirements, a fleet of aircraft, and possible routes, the objective of this research was to develop, implement, and test an iterative procedure to efficiently schedule and load aircraft in order to maximize the flow of cargo through the channel cargo system. Once a level of flow was established, attempts were made to minimize cost in terms of cumulative weighted time-in-system CWTIS. A minimum cost flow heuristic, incorporating a successive shortest path …

An Efficient Approach To Solving The Optimal Control Of Arrivals Problem, John R. Simeoni

Theses and Dissertations

The optimal control of arrivals problem is one which has many applications in both defense and industry. Simply stated, the problem addresses how to schedule a finite number of customers in a finite number of equal length time slots, where each customers service time comes from a specified probability distribution. There are two cost components, one based on total expected customer waiting time and the other based m the expected amount of time the server stays open beyond its scheduled completion time. Currently, solutions have been developed to the optimal control of arrivals problem, but they are computationally slow and …

Growing Lettuce, Margaret Graham

Horticulture published reports

The commonly cultivated lettuce, Lactuca sativa, is an annual belonging to the sunflower family. It has been cultivated for over 2500 years, and is a popular salad vegetable.

There are three main subspecies commonly grown.

• IL. sativa ssp capitata - Head type - Crisphead is a lettuce with a firm head and brittle leaves. It is the major lettuce type grown in Australia and is also known as iceberg lettuce. - Butterhead (buttercrunch, mignonette) lettuce has soft, pale leaves and a delicate buttery flavour. It is of major importance in Europe, where it is grown as a greenhouse crop.
• L. …

Transportation Of Animals And Welfare, D. B. Adams

Transport of Farm Animals Collection

All forms of transport are potentially hazardous for animals, regardless of whether travel is between or within countries, or by road, rail, air or sea. However, experience shows that animals can be transported under suitable conditions without harm to their welfare.

The provision of suitable conditions and the establishment of a mutually satisfactory framework for regulating the international transport of animals depends on an understanding of welfare needs and of the biological basis for disease, stress and suffering. The author examines the biological aspects of this framework.

The capacity of animals to adapt to the different demands of different forms …

Evaluation Of Air Force And Navy Demand Forecasting Systems, Christian J. Dussault

Theses and Dissertations

In March 1993, the JLSC selected the Navys Statistical Demand Forecasting System as the standard DOD forecasting system. The purpose of this study was to evaluate and compare the performance and accuracy of the Navy Statistical Demand Forecasting system, relative to the Air Force Requirements Data Bank forecasting system in an Air Force environment. To compare the performance of each forecasting system, the research used three different approaches. The first approach looked at time series components and evaluated how each forecasting system reacted to different data patterns. From this approach, it was found that under the presence of a trending …

Bulletin 4270 - Meat Quality In Beef Cattle, Brian Mcintyre

Bulletins 4000 -

Meat quality is the sole concern of the consumer once the product reaches the supermarket shelf. Breeding, feeding or any other factors that may have been important to the beef producer have no influence over the buyer's choice. Meat quality can be divided into two components — appearance and eating quality.

Bulletin 4272 - Growing Bananas In Carnarvon, Terry Hill

Bulletins 4000 -

The banana industry in Carnarvon began with small plantings. plantings in the 1940s. Since that time the industry has grown and become the mainstay of the region's horticulture industry.

In 1991, there were 360 ha planted to bananas and the industry was valued at $18.2 million. The major market for the crop is the Perth metropolitan area and Carnarvon remains the major supplier to this market. In recent years the development of a banana industry in Kununurra has resulted in increased competition, particularly in the winter months.

The industry is sited on land bordering the Gascoyne River, close to the …

An Investigation Of The Defense Logistics Agency's Dedicated Truck Program, Theresa O. Cantrell, Walter Van Daele

Theses and Dissertations

In 1990, the Department of Defense purchased medical materiel from the Defense Logistics Agency totaling approximately 1 billion dollars. Congress has directed the Department of Defense to examine civilian health-care practices to reduce the costs. Just-in-Time inventory management is one of those practices. Research on Just-in-Time inventory for military facilities raised several concerns about its capability to support the military mission. However, there are many facets of Just-in-Time management that can be adopted without compromise of wartime capabilities. This research identifies the results of the change in the Defense Logistics Agencys policy on delivery of medical materiel to Department of …

An Analysis Of The Root Causes Of Delays And Deficiencies In The Development Of Embedded Software For Air Force Weapon Systems, Jay R. Hopkins, Curtis De Keyrel

Theses and Dissertations

The importance of embedded software, used in every subsystem of ah major weapon systems used by the United States Air Force, has increased drastically over the last decades. However, in spite of the regulations currently in existence, developing and acquiring software which meets the user requirements within the original cost and schedule estimates continues to be difficult. At the same time, the Air Force has pushed to improve the development process with the Total Quality Management TQM program. The primary method used to improve the process has been to create metrics, collect data on these metrics, and then perform a …

Identification Of Problems Hindering Logistics Support Of Commercial- Off-The-Shelf Computer Equipment, Jessie J. Rowe Iii, William Z. Zeck

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to identify the specific problems currently hindering Air Force logistics support of COTS computer equipment and to recommend a support concept to overcome these problems. These objectives were accomplished with a literature review and a survey of logistics support experts. The survey asked the experts to identify problems hindering logistics support of deployable COTS computer equipment and to rank associated logistics support elements in order of importance. One hundred surveys were sent out and thirty- three were returned. Data analysis indicated that the logistics support elements that are most problematic for the logistics support …

Computerized Vehicle Routing Programs And Their Effect On Vehicle Utilization In The Air Force, Rex E. Adee, William G. Howard

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to determine if a commercial computerized vehicle routing program improves vehicle utilization for an Air Force base transportation organization. First, the researchers investigate current routing procedures of Air Force base transportation organizations. Second, researchers identify a commercial computerized vehicle routing program that enables the authors to conduct a comparison of vehicle utilization rates between an Air Force base transportation organization and commercial computerized vehicle routing programs. The study reveals that implementing a computerized vehicle routing program in place of a manual routing procedure does not improve vehicle utilization. However, the study reveals some limitations …

Quality-Based Supply Management Indicators, Michael O. Cannon, Brian B. Yoo

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this thesis was to determine if current supply management indicators provide supply managers with quality measurement tools. This research developed the Quality-Based Metrics Framework, consisting of customer focus and continuous process improvement with underlying supporting elements of time and cost. A literature review determined an appropriate framework for improving logistics indicators. Interviews with supply analysts and a review of pertinent publications identified the most commonly used supply management indicators. A focus group of highly experienced senior supply officers determined the usefulness of currently used indicators in terms of the framework. Using the input from the focus group, …

The Future Sbss: Migration Of Sbss Functions From A Mainframe Environment To A Disturbed Pc-Based Lan Environment, William D. Rath, Scott A. Vesper

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this thesis was to determine the technical feasibility of a PC-based Standard Base Supply System (SBSS). The SBSS is currently run in a mainframe environment; however, the current hardware contract will be reviewed in 1997. At that time, a decision as to what hardware implementation best serves Base Supply needs must be made. This document evaluates various possible PC- based SBSS Local Area Network (LAN) architectures, as well as provides an initial direction for implementation. The current mainframe-based Regional SBSS implementation serves multiple bases via long haul networks and may not effectively satisfy Air Force/base level requirements. …

A Comparison Of The Disaster™ Scheduling Software With A Simultaneous Scheduling Algorithm For Minimizing Maximum Tardiness In Job Shops, Barak J. Carlson, Christopher A. Lettiere

Theses and Dissertations

The Theory of Constraints (TOC) is the foundation for a computerized scheduling system called DISASTER. Although this system has proven successful in many manufacturing settings, it has potential limitations due to the sequential heuristic process by which it schedules constraints. The objective of this thesis was to determine the extent to which these limitations impact the due date performance of schedules created by DISASTER. This objective was addressed by developing an algorithm to simultaneously schedule multiple constraints in a job shop environment and provide the optimal schedule for minimized maximum tardiness. This algorithm was used to obtain solutions for a …

Benchmark Production Scheduling Problems For Job Shops With Interactive Constraints, Stewart W. James, Bruno A. Mediate Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

United States Air Force (USAF) depots have expressed interest in utilizing DISASTER production scheduling software to schedule their maintenance operations. DISASTER attempts to increase system throughput by building effective schedules for system, constraint resources. However, when a system contains multiple, interactive constraints, DISASTER builds the constraint schedules one at a time. Since each successive schedule must adhere to timing restrictions imposed by previous constraint schedules, the quality of the schedules produced by DISASTER is dependent upon the sequence in which the constraints are scheduled. This thesis first developed a set of benchmark problems which provide a diversity of scheduling scenarios. …

Scheduling A Medium-Sized Manufacturing Shop: A Simulation Study, Daniel J. Mcfeely

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the application of simple-to-use, low cost scheduling methods to the operating environment of a medium-sized manufacturing shop. Computer simulation was used to evaluate eighteen different scheduling algorithms, each the result of the combination of a loading and a sequencing rule; due date setting was not considered since due dates are exogenously set. The loading rules investigated were Minimum Machine Required, Lowest Average WIP, and Lowest Average Aggregate Priority Level. The sequencing rules investigated were Priority, EDD, FIS, SPT, Slack, and Slack Ratio. The scheduling algorithms were evaluated against performance measures of mean tardiness, mean flowtime, mean percentage …

An Enhanced Process Model Of The Intransit Segment Of The Air Force Logistics Reparable Pipeline, Raul T. Mireles, Steven D. Pearson

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is an in-depth study of the intransit segment of the United States Air Force reparable pipeline. Previous research has not adequately discussed the role of the intransit segment in the overall pipeline. As a result, this thesis identifies the characteristics of this particular segment by discussing the following topics: various intransit components, reparable asset flow times, intransit's role under two-level maintenance, intransit constraints, and data sources used to manage asset movements within the pipeline. The study uses a thorough literature review, personal interviews, and an evaluation of asset flow time data to compare current standards to what actually …

The Logistics Of Waging War 1982-1993, Alan J. Will, William G. Wheeler

Theses and Dissertations

This research effort provides material for use in updating the book The Logistics of Waging War. This particular book gives a logistics overview of part American Military conflicts but had not been update since 1982. Our objective was to research the logistics aspects of the major military operations since 1982. These operations included: Operation Urgent Fury in Grenada (1983), Operation Just Cause in Panama (1989), Operation Desert Shield in Saudi Arabia (1990), Operation Desert Storm in Iraq and Kuwait (1991), and Operation Desert Farewell in Saudi Arabia (1992). Also included in this study is a review of the Air Force …

Repair Process Improvement At The Ogden Air Logistics Center, Landing Gear Division: A Case Study In The Application Of The Theory Of Constraints, David A. Maddox, Susan L. Martz

Theses and Dissertations

This study explored the nature and extent of success that resulted from the implementation of the Theory of Constraints (TOC) in a depot repair environment. The actions taken to implement TOC were determined. Performance measures which defined success were identified and data were collected and summarized to demonstrate performance before and after implementation of TOC concepts. Improvements in flowdays and work-in-process (WIP) were determined to be attributable to the TOC effort. In addition, the unique characteristics of probabalistic repair and supply system variability were noted as those characteristics that posed the greatest challenges to implementing TOC in a remanufacturing environment. …

An Investigation Into The Effects Of Process Variation In The Base Processing Segment Of The Depot-Level Reparable Pipeline, Harold D. Hites, Mark Schultz

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to identify and provide pipeline managers with the knowledge and tools necessary for reducing process variation associated with retrograde asset flow time. Several Air Force studies have been devoted to researching portions of the pipeline process. Our study continues this trend of investigations by studying the Base Processing Segment. This study demonstrates the potential for analyzing the Base Processing Segment of the depot-level reparable pipeline using Statistical Process Control. Retrograde asset flow time data collection methods and current management practices were examined. Control charts were used in the passive mode to analyze and determine …