A supply convoy snakes its way through the mountains of Afghanistan. (U.S. ARMY)
The DLA, with a staff of 25,000, supplies parts, fuel, clothing, medical supplies and construction materials to troops and works with the logistics support organizations in each of the services.
DLA has been working closely with Oshkosh Defense on getting the MRAP All Terrain Vehicle (MATV) to Afghanistan, and the company is well on its way to the production goal 1,000 vehicles per month, said Vice Adm. Alan Thompson, DLA's director.
"They are pouring into Afghanistan now," Thompson said.
Oshkosh is set to build 6,219 MATVs for the military.
The agency is also preparing its supply chains of fuel, medical supplies and clothing for the buildup.
"With clothing, this is obviously a very important element of DLA support," Thompson said. "When you look at troop buildup, obviously, we've been at work for a number of months building up the sustainment supplies for the troops and looking across the country where we have those supplies located, and I think we're going to be in very good shape to handle the inflow of troops there."
But Afghanistan's lack of infrastructure will present challenges, such as the difficulties of trucking in construction materials.
"As you look at the base infrastructure in Afghanistan," Thompson said, "it truly is unlike most other places on the Earth - very austere, little infrastructure, dirt roads, frequent insurgent attacks, land mines everywhere. So it'll be very, very challenging when we operate from a logistics perspective, particularly challenging from a standpoint of transportation. So we work very closely with U.S. Central Command and U.S. TransCom to move materiel in by boat, surface and air.
"One of the things that we work very closely with TransCom on [is] ... facilitating mutual ground lines of supply for what we call the Northern Distribution Network through the central Asian states, and this is proving to be a critical enabler in moving much of the construction supply for buildings, that sort of thing, into Afghanistan," Thompson said.
As far as DLA's distribution network in the region, he said, "There's a very mature distribution capability in Iraq. We're repositioning and downsizing that in anticipation of a withdrawal of U.S. forces that will occur in the spring or early summer of next year."
DLA urgently needs a facility in Afghanistan, he said, "so we're hard at work in bringing a facility to life in the southern region of Kandahar that can provide that back-up support to the Army and Marine Corps units in the months ahead."
In the meantime, DLA will also rely on its existing distribution center in Kuwait, he said.
Thompson also touched on DLA's role in helping Iraqi and Afghan security forces develop their own logistics organizations, the first time DLA has taken on this role, he said. DLA has met with leaders from the two countries to agree on a framework for DLA's role in helping build the logistics organizations.
"It will be important, especially for Iraq, to leave the country not only with a working military, but one that can sustain itself in the future," Thompson said.
Thursday, December 03, 2009
DTN News: Afghanistan TODAY December 4, 2009 ~ U.S. Supply Chain Ready For Afghanistan Troop Surge
DTN News: Afghanistan TODAY December 4, 2009 ~ U.S. Supply Chain Ready For Afghanistan Troop Surge
*Source: DTN News / Int'l Media
(NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON, USA/KABUL, Afghanistan - December 4, 2009: The U.S. Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) is well-prepared for the surge of 30,000 troops President Barack Obama is planning for Afghanistan, despite the country's austere environment, the agency's director told attendees at a conference on military logistics Dec. 2.A supply convoy snakes its way through the mountains of Afghanistan. (U.S. ARMY)
The DLA, with a staff of 25,000, supplies parts, fuel, clothing, medical supplies and construction materials to troops and works with the logistics support organizations in each of the services.
DLA has been working closely with Oshkosh Defense on getting the MRAP All Terrain Vehicle (MATV) to Afghanistan, and the company is well on its way to the production goal 1,000 vehicles per month, said Vice Adm. Alan Thompson, DLA's director.
"They are pouring into Afghanistan now," Thompson said.
Oshkosh is set to build 6,219 MATVs for the military.
The agency is also preparing its supply chains of fuel, medical supplies and clothing for the buildup.
"With clothing, this is obviously a very important element of DLA support," Thompson said. "When you look at troop buildup, obviously, we've been at work for a number of months building up the sustainment supplies for the troops and looking across the country where we have those supplies located, and I think we're going to be in very good shape to handle the inflow of troops there."
But Afghanistan's lack of infrastructure will present challenges, such as the difficulties of trucking in construction materials.
"As you look at the base infrastructure in Afghanistan," Thompson said, "it truly is unlike most other places on the Earth - very austere, little infrastructure, dirt roads, frequent insurgent attacks, land mines everywhere. So it'll be very, very challenging when we operate from a logistics perspective, particularly challenging from a standpoint of transportation. So we work very closely with U.S. Central Command and U.S. TransCom to move materiel in by boat, surface and air.
"One of the things that we work very closely with TransCom on [is] ... facilitating mutual ground lines of supply for what we call the Northern Distribution Network through the central Asian states, and this is proving to be a critical enabler in moving much of the construction supply for buildings, that sort of thing, into Afghanistan," Thompson said.
As far as DLA's distribution network in the region, he said, "There's a very mature distribution capability in Iraq. We're repositioning and downsizing that in anticipation of a withdrawal of U.S. forces that will occur in the spring or early summer of next year."
DLA urgently needs a facility in Afghanistan, he said, "so we're hard at work in bringing a facility to life in the southern region of Kandahar that can provide that back-up support to the Army and Marine Corps units in the months ahead."
In the meantime, DLA will also rely on its existing distribution center in Kuwait, he said.
Thompson also touched on DLA's role in helping Iraqi and Afghan security forces develop their own logistics organizations, the first time DLA has taken on this role, he said. DLA has met with leaders from the two countries to agree on a framework for DLA's role in helping build the logistics organizations.
"It will be important, especially for Iraq, to leave the country not only with a working military, but one that can sustain itself in the future," Thompson said.
A supply convoy snakes its way through the mountains of Afghanistan. (U.S. ARMY)
The DLA, with a staff of 25,000, supplies parts, fuel, clothing, medical supplies and construction materials to troops and works with the logistics support organizations in each of the services.
DLA has been working closely with Oshkosh Defense on getting the MRAP All Terrain Vehicle (MATV) to Afghanistan, and the company is well on its way to the production goal 1,000 vehicles per month, said Vice Adm. Alan Thompson, DLA's director.
"They are pouring into Afghanistan now," Thompson said.
Oshkosh is set to build 6,219 MATVs for the military.
The agency is also preparing its supply chains of fuel, medical supplies and clothing for the buildup.
"With clothing, this is obviously a very important element of DLA support," Thompson said. "When you look at troop buildup, obviously, we've been at work for a number of months building up the sustainment supplies for the troops and looking across the country where we have those supplies located, and I think we're going to be in very good shape to handle the inflow of troops there."
But Afghanistan's lack of infrastructure will present challenges, such as the difficulties of trucking in construction materials.
"As you look at the base infrastructure in Afghanistan," Thompson said, "it truly is unlike most other places on the Earth - very austere, little infrastructure, dirt roads, frequent insurgent attacks, land mines everywhere. So it'll be very, very challenging when we operate from a logistics perspective, particularly challenging from a standpoint of transportation. So we work very closely with U.S. Central Command and U.S. TransCom to move materiel in by boat, surface and air.
"One of the things that we work very closely with TransCom on [is] ... facilitating mutual ground lines of supply for what we call the Northern Distribution Network through the central Asian states, and this is proving to be a critical enabler in moving much of the construction supply for buildings, that sort of thing, into Afghanistan," Thompson said.
As far as DLA's distribution network in the region, he said, "There's a very mature distribution capability in Iraq. We're repositioning and downsizing that in anticipation of a withdrawal of U.S. forces that will occur in the spring or early summer of next year."
DLA urgently needs a facility in Afghanistan, he said, "so we're hard at work in bringing a facility to life in the southern region of Kandahar that can provide that back-up support to the Army and Marine Corps units in the months ahead."
In the meantime, DLA will also rely on its existing distribution center in Kuwait, he said.
Thompson also touched on DLA's role in helping Iraqi and Afghan security forces develop their own logistics organizations, the first time DLA has taken on this role, he said. DLA has met with leaders from the two countries to agree on a framework for DLA's role in helping build the logistics organizations.
"It will be important, especially for Iraq, to leave the country not only with a working military, but one that can sustain itself in the future," Thompson said.
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