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News | Dec. 29, 2021

Shop service centers recognized for outstanding support to Oklahoma Air Logistics Center

By Cathy Hopkins DLA Aviation Public Affairs Office

Defense Logistics Agency Aviation at Oklahoma Commander Air Force Col. Jason Kalin recognized employees in his shop service centers in September for their outstanding support of the Air Force’s Air Logistics Center on Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma.

DLA Aviation at Oklahoma has 22 SSCs in 11 different locations on the base serving Oklahoma ALC maintenance groups by putting material as close as possible to the artisans working the production lines that keep the aircraft flying.

“The closer and more accurately we put this material where it is needed, the quicker the maintainers are able to use it to repair end items for the aircraft,” said Samuel “Carl” Eggleston, chief of the Material Management Division with DLA Aviation at Oklahoma.

One measure of success within the SSCs is fill rate.  Fill rate is a measurement of [parts] issued from the SSC to the customers. Fill rate tells DLA Aviation how well material is being positioned for our customers.  The fill rate goal for the SSCs is to have a part in the center and be able to issue it when requested 75% of the time.

DLA Aviation at Oklahoma starting tracking fill rate in July 2015 and at that time it averaged 65% across the SSCs. The metric is hard to meet because variability in orders make predictions troublesome, said Eggleston.

The SSCs have met the metric 11 times since they started tracking it, with two of those times being this fiscal year.  This year the shops exceeded the goal, once in August by reaching 76.2% and then again in September with a fill rate of 76.73%., resulting in a rolling 13-month average of 72.16%.

Eggleston said he sees a direct correlation between the success they have achieved with SSC fill rate and optimization efforts.

Optimization is how well material is being forward stocked; is the right material at sufficient levels to meet our customers’ monthly need.

In October 2018, the first-time optimization was tracked, the metric was 25.9%.  While there is no active metric goal, in August DLA Aviation at Oklahoma recorded its second highest optimization rate at 60%.  The highest ever was in September when it hit 64.26%.

Eggleston believes the optimization rate has increase because of the activity’s efforts to provide guidance to the SSCs through standardized reporting, changes to rules of engagement, sharing best practices and showing leadership support.

“Everyone played a role in increasing these metrics, offering help, support and lessons learned to each other,” he said.