NEW CUMBERLAND, Pennsylvania –
On his first trip as commander of Defense Logistics Agency Distribution, Army Brig. Gen. John Laskodi made stops to meet employees and tour locations in Jacksonville, Fla., Warner Robins, Ga., Albany, Ga., Cherry Point, N.C., Richmond, Va., Oklahoma City, Okla., and Hill, Utah.
At each location, Laskodi received a command brief, and toured warehouse areas.
During his time at DLA Distribution Jacksonville, Fla., Laskodi had the opportunity to see the Packing, Packaging, Preservation and Marking area, where employees are supporting the repair of the F-18 aircraft. “This is a Fleet Readiness Center Southeast top priority mission,” said Brian Burkholder, director of the distribution center. “We provide priority retail support to the maintenance lines, and one of our employees in embedded with FRCSE so we can provide optimal support.”
Laskodi also expressed interest in the retail raw metal and bar stock, and the ongoing special project to separate multiple National Stock Numbers per location into one NSN per location.
At Warner Robins, Laskodi took the time to discuss current and future challenges, including manning and Audit Readiness. He toured DLA Disposition Services and spoke with the DLA Distribution D2 team.
In Cherry Point, Laskodi received highlights on how the distribution center’s Retail Division stages material for internal customer transportation, which gives a clear transfer of custody between DLA Distribution and Fleet Readiness Center East for Audit Readiness. The distribution center is also working on efforts to consolidate stock, and challenges associated with the receipt and storage of large quantities of bulk material such as rolls of foam.
Richmond, Va., is DLA Distribution’s largest location for both digital and physical map products, and Laskodi had the chance to see the select, pick, pack and shipping process for unclassified map products and flight information products. Richmond is also DLA Distribution’s Center of Excellence for hazardous materials, and Laskodi participated in visual sampling of halon, was shown the process for selecting aerosol products, and toured the distribution center’s Ozone Depleting Substance facility.
At Oklahoma City, the distribution center’s primary customer is the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Complex, and supports programmed depot maintenance for aircraft and engines. Laskodi toured the facility and met with employees to discuss current challenges.
On his last stop at Hill, Utah, Laskodi toured a newly-redesigned storage area, which can now handle 80 percent of the distribution center’s fast moving items. He also saw the largest kitting operation in DLA Distribution, located in the Medical Set Assembly and Repair Division. The kit is known as Distribution’s “Hospital in a Box,” and the team converts containers into expandable field-ready hospitals, and then repairs and services them for reuse.
Since taking command of DLA Distribution in June, Laskodi has committed to face-to-face employee visits across the globe, and meeting with strategic partners to understand how DLA Distribution’s capabilities can be put to use to meet the services’ changing needs amidst a new military posture coupled with an increasingly fiscally-challenged environment.