Mission Item Essentiality: An Important Management Tool for Making More Informed Logistics Decisions
PLRD-82-25
Published: Jan 13, 1982. Publicly Released: Jan 13, 1982.
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Highlights
The military services could make more informed logistics decisions in determining peacetime and wartime requirements, allocating resources, and setting repair priorities by ensuring that the more essential items receive increased management attention and funding priorities. GAO previously reported on the need for considering essentiality in determining war reserve requirements and safety levels. In response, the Air Force advised that it had developed a coding system which linked item essentiality to mission essentiality. GAO made this review to determine the extent to which the system had been implemented, what benefits had resulted, and whether the system could be used by the other services.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should orchestrate the efforts of the services in developing and implementing an essentiality-based logistics system. |
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should establish milestones for accomplishment of each of the tasks identified in the concept paper and monitor the services' progress in achieving these milestones. |
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should direct the Secretary of the Air Force to develop essentiality coding criteria which would make the coding system more responsive and would permit the logistics system to better meet user needs. |
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
| Department of the Air Force | The Secretary of Defense should direct the Secretary of the Air Force to develop essentiality coding criteria which would make the coding system more responsive and would permit the logistics system to better meet user needs. |
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
| Department of Defense | The Secretary of Defense should direct the Secretary of the Air Force to regularly review the relationship between item essentiality and system essentiality to identify and reconcile inconsistencies in these relationships. |
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
| Department of the Air Force | The Secretary of Defense should direct the Secretary of the Air Force to regularly review the relationship between item essentiality and system essentiality to identify and reconcile inconsistencies in these relationships. |
Please call 202/512-6100 for information.
|
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Inventory control systemsLogisticsMilitary inventoriesSystems managementMilitary forcesAircraftShipsWeapons systemsInventory controlStocks