European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 12, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Thursday april 12, 1990 the stars and stripes a a a Page 9 Field support unit delivers the goods with its new system Over Here a amps John Millar pfc. Phillip Christner updates lists of computer parts at other 3rd inf div units. By John Millar Wurzburg Bureau a Atzingen West Germany a col. Frederick Hoose likes to think of his unit As the dominoes pizza of repair parts. Hoose the commander of the 3rd inf dives support come believes his unit should be Able to get spare parts to the divisions tankers infantrymen and others on the Battlefield within four hours. Not quite As Quick As dominoes but not bad. To do it Hooser a staff has had to redesign the Way the army supplies a if i can reduce what we carry and still maintain. Readiness then Bingo we have a pretty powerful  a col. Hoose its Battlefield maintenance units. Division staffers came up with what they Call the Battlefield parts distribution system which uses a mixture of communications computers and couriers. Currently units at various Levels carry limited amounts of repair parts. And just As a pizza parlor does no to make 50 pies in the Hopes that people will Call Hoose said his unit can to keep sending parts to the front lines hoping someone will need them. A we  afford to lug that around the Battlefield i  afford to Send it Forward and taxpayers  afford to pay for it a Hoose said. The current parts system can also be slow. According to capt. Gil Villa who supervises the movement of the commands support items units needing a part on the Battlefield May have to wait for the supplies to catch up. Even High priority requests could take overnight depending on the circumstances he said. And if the part can to be found through the Normal Supply Chain it could take up to 28 Days for delivery from the United states. Most wars wont wait that Long. In the new system soldiers Are linked by computer and can Check on whether the divisions units have the parts they need. And at each Supply level trucks Are reserved for the sole purpose of speeding available parts to those who need them. For example an infantry company that needs a Bradley fighting vehicle fuel pump can use the battalions computer to see if any of the other units has the part. If one of them has it a truck will be sent to pick it up and to deliver it to the unit in need. As the search reaches higher command Levels the number of possible locations where parts May be found increases. A across the division there Are More than 120 of these Little pockets of parts a Hoose said about company level Supply inventories. A and there Are a lot of common  because similar units use the same parts the new system allows units to Stock less. A having the parts Forward is Good so when a tank Breaks close to the enemy you be got the part and you can fix it a Hoose said. A but when you consider you be got to be agile and Mobile its kind of bad because the More parts you have to carry around that Zanoth or truck you have to  ideally All parts in the division would be kept in the same place and delivered As needed. A but that a no Good. Because then you a have this huge pile and always have to move it around a Hoose said. The new system is a Compromise. Some parts arc kept at the front lines Quick Access is assured for those that Arentt. And having fewer parts to lug around the Battlefield should be particularly useful for the smaller less expensive forces envisioned for the future. A a we re going to have to be very agile carry a very Light Load. If 1 can reduce what we carry and still maintain the same kind of readiness then Bingo we have a pretty powerful system Quot he said. The four hour parts delivery time also gets systems Back into Battle quicker according to capt. Roberta Woods the commands project officer for the revamped Supply network. A this system allows us to put maintenance technicians Back in the business of diagnosing and repairing instead of scrounging parts a she said. While a pizza parlor charges a Little More for Home delivery Hooser a new parts system  Cost the taxpayer a dime. The computer systems used Are those already fielded by the army and the required software was programmed by the divisions automation experts. Again at no Cost. The division also had the communications equipment used to link the systems together and the trucks used for delivery Hoose said. A with the assets that we be got the soldiers we have we re not having to go Back to the army and say a jeez this is a neat idea and by the Way Here a the $6 billion Bill for it a a Hoose said. The division is already working on adapting the new concept for the whole army. Hoose believes division level commanders in particular a will be hungry for the system. A was the dollars go Down for training if they can reduce the amount of training dollars they have tied up in repair parts that a More training they can do for less  d. _ a amps John Millar spec. Brian Boggs carrying a requested part and pfc. William Hansen will jump into a waiting humvee and deliver the pan