MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan -- A period of instruction was given to Marine Wing Support Squadron 171 motor transportation maintenance Marines on operating their newly installed Humvee lift at the MWSS-171 motor transportation. maintenance garage here Oct. 1.
The construction of the lift was completed Sept. 30 on the exact scheduled date of completion.
“I noticed that our maintenance capability was degraded because our in-ground lift was not working properly,” said Master Sgt. Albert Asuncion, MWSS-171 motor transportation and maintenance chief.
Sometime last year, the old inground lift began to weaken and eventually became incapable of lifting the intended weight capacity.
“The old air hydraulic lift was broken,” said Toru Hirota, vertical transportation equipment inspector.
Once the old in-ground lift broke down, the maintenance command had to decide whether to get the lift repaired or replaced based on cost efficiency.
After months of inspection, contractors confirmed trying to repair the old lift would be more costly than replacing it.
“(The contractors) asked, ‘What kind of a lift would you like and what capabilities,’” said Asuncion. “I said I want a lift that can lift up as heavy as a (7-ton), and they told me that was way too heavy.”
Although Asuncion couldn’t get his fantasy 7-ton lift, they offered the next best thing: a 14,000-pound capable aboveground hydraulic lift.
After seeing the capabilities, the decision was made to remove the old in-ground lift and install the new Bendpak lift.
Japanese contractors began removing the old in-ground lift Sept. 15 with a maximum of nine contractors working on the project at a time.
The motor transportation mechanics are more than satisfied with the upgrade.
“It’ll definitely expedite our workflow, and at the same time. It’s guided through the means of being able to lift the vehicle versus jacking up the vehicle,” said Asuncion. “It’s more convenient for us because this particular lift can get above the mechanic. So instead of crawling underneath it, now they’re able to stand underneath it and perform the job.”
Before the construction of the new lift, maintenance Marines had to manually hoist vehicles by using a good old fashion hydraulic hand jack and jack stands, which slowed down workflow exponentially.
“Through the manual labor of a hydraulic jack and jack stands, per vehicle, it takes at least an hour to get a humvee up on jack stands.”
Not only does the new easy-to-use lift dismiss the hassle of manually hoisting a humvee and give mechanics more freedom when operating, it is also built to last.
“We perform maintenance every six months and do load tests every two to four years and replace if necessary,” said Hirota. “The machine should last at least 20 years to 30 years with no problems.”
For the motor transportation maintenance mechanics, the new lift will be a huge asset to getting the job done without a doubt.
“This will definitely increase our capabilities as far as output of maintenance being performed,” said Asuncion.
All motor transportation maintenance mechanics will have to take a class and get approved by their maintenance chief before they can operate the new lift.