MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan -- For the past year, Defense Logistics Agency has worked to find a solution to a dilemma, which has caused confusion and misunderstanding among its employees, customers and stakeholders.
As a global community operating in 41 states and 16 foreign countries, including overseas operations in Europe, the Pacific, Africa, Afghanistan, Iraq and Kuwait, DLA came up with a solution to change its identity and present to the world a cohesive, collaborative and forward-thinking organization.
The change is to be established among other Defense Reutilization and Marketing Offices and field sites all over the world.
The Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service and the local Defense Reutilization and Marketing Office, agencies of DLA and longtime partners to war fighters worldwide, took on a new name and are now called DLA Disposition Services as of July 19.
The name has changed, but the mission has stayed the same: to provide the best value logistics support to America's Armed Forces in peace and war, around the clock and around the world.
Navy Adm. Alan Thompson, director of DLA, wanted to change the name to reflect to the customer that DLA's global enterprise is a seamless operation and one entity, said Felix Leon, forward logistics specialist with DLA Troop Support Pacific.
The DLA Disposition Services carries out its mission to deliver great customer service to include the reuse, transfer, donation, sale or disposal of excess property.
"If you go to your supply unit, you will see vehicles, trailers, buses, ambulances, anything from desks to medical equipment, aircraft parts and other supplies,” said Edward Ryley, site manager of DLA Disposition Services here. “Any excess property has to be turned into us.”
DLA Disposition Services plays a significant role in protecting national security through the disposal of excess and unusable supplies.
“There’s a big picture involved in it,” said Ryley. “Aircraft parts, especially, have to be destroyed because of their military application. They can’t be reused or given to a foreign country or even our enemy.”
There is an extensive process involved in handling excess, lost, or unclaimed supplies used by units and service members.
“Items that are abandoned by somebody must go through a board,” said Ryley. “If it is deemed the owner
cannot be found, then it becomes government property.”
While DLA Disposition Services takes care of the disposal of supplies, DLA Troop Support, formerly called Defense Supply Center Philadelphia, operates from the other end, providing units and service members with vital supplies.
DLA Troop Support is divided among four main commodities: construction and equipment, medical material, subsistence, and clothing and textiles.
The construction and equipment supply chain,oversees maintenance, repair and operations services for DLA.
Its purpose is to supply various types of heavy equipment, lumber, plumbing and electrical supplies.
The medical material supply chain provides military and federal agencies with vital medical products and services to include pharmaceuticals and biological products, antibiotics, analgesics, antihistamines, blood derivatives and vaccines.
"When a hospital expands, it's our mission to provide the hospital with the supplies needed to continue their mission," said Leon.
The subsistence supply chain provides operational rations products, dining hall support, food service equipment, and chow to units stationed and deployed.
"If a unit goes on an exercise, I can deploy with the unit and support the unit through their exercise by supplying things like (military meals ready to eat) and other equipment," said Leon.
The fourth commodity of DLA Troop Support is the Clothing and Textiles supply chain which supports America’s warfighters with clothing, to include uniform items, utilities and individual equipment items.
“The main thing that everyone needs to know is that we are part of DLA and we are here to serve,” said Ryley.
Many more changes are slated to take place throughout the enterprise as DLA continues to support the mission and look for new ways to unify its soul purpose: to serve the warfighter.