S-3 Viking SLIMs Down to Sundown
June 17th, 2006
One of the Navy’s great aircraft is now on its way out of service after a career spanning nearly 40 years. The S-3 Viking Community is currently perfecting a SLIM (Sundown Logistics Inventory Management) process to keep inventory in alignment with demand as the outstanding S-3 Vikings approach “extinction.”
By 2009, the 40 planes remaining—33 on the west coast, 7 on the east—will be gone. Six squadrons are presently operational; two are disestablishing now. VS-22 and VS-31 will be the last two deployers. The idea behind SLIM is to predict real demand over this period for parts, repair, manpower, facilities, support equipment, operations, administration and so on. As the footprint decreases, demand must be predicted accurately enough to avoid running out of resources before the Sundown occurs.
No one understands the value of this process better than the Naval Inventory Control Point (NAVICP) in Philadelphia which serves as the functional lead for SLIM.
LCDR Matt Ott, who leads the S-3 SLIM process, stated: “Our Navy, and the Navy Supply Corps in particular, has zero tolerance for waste. Had we not enacted the S-3 SLIM Team when we did, we would have sub-optimized and wasted resources—personnel, material, and financial—you name it. We are seeking to recapitalize our force structure, and Sundown efforts become a key enabler to eliminate waste and make a substantial contribution to our future force.”
The idea is to improve efficiencies, optimize resources and thereby capture cost savings in order to recapitalize other areas of the Navy. In its drive for efficiency, SLIM aligns well with the goal of the Naval Aviation Enterprise to produce the right readiness at the right time for the right cost. Inventory, repair costs, personnel and basically the entire logistics chain are currently being paired down in lockstep to the number of S-3 aircraft in the Fleet.
Two AIMDs (Aircraft Intermediate Maintenance Detachments), one at North Island and one at Jacksonville, have developed a repair and equipment transition plan, including manpower, and the plan is underway. As it unfolds, Viking aircraft being mothballed are scrutinized to ensure that the best aircraft, parts and systems remain in the inventory. NAVICP handles budget and the inventory forecasting model.
The SLIM team involves many areas of expertise. LCDR Ott: “Our goals have been to communicate across all levels with anyone involved with the S-3 Viking. We must understand the complexities; what might be good for one group may not, in the aggregate, be the best step to take in a Sundown framework.”
NAVAIR’s PMA-290 is also playing a role, since it was charged by the NAE Board of Directors not just to help execute SLIM but generalize the process for legacy aircraft. CDR Harold Fink, Deputy Program Manager for S-3s in Pax River, put it this way: “I’m a fan of anything that increases the funds available to address future readiness. Budgets are tight and the SLIM process should provide savings for any community at the end of its acquisition cycle, ultimately helping to provide the funding for our future force structure.” For others who will face the same situation, the SLIM process will be documented and published for future Sundown communities.
“We are an amazingly agile business,” said LCDR Ott. “As demand fluctuates on product lines that are very complex and involve lengthy repair and administrative lead times, SLIM has helped us understand what triggers we need continually to review and adapt to. Instead of simply reacting, in the S-3 SLIM program we are collaborating and actually orchestrating those areas we can effectively control.”
Ott continued, “We are doing very well. While delivering exceptional warfighter mission readiness in the proper context, we are also delivering value to the taxpayer by justifiably lowering expense. I see it at times as ‘only doing our job,’ but the efforts of so many leaders, the workforce, and S-3B Viking advocates are completely aligned. We all should be very proud of these combined efforts to deliver a lifetime great product.”
Commodore Joe McClain, the S-3 Viking Wing Commander, summed it up best: “The SLIM process has been a superb management tool as we slowly fade into the Sundown. Optimizing readiness by providing combat-ready aircraft to the warfighter is what it’s all about. Sharing our experiences will benefit all of Naval Aviation and significantly increase our ability to defend this great nation for decades to come.”
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