[This article was first published in Army Sustainment Professional Bulletin, which was then called Army Logistician, volume 3, number 2 (March–April 1971), pages 4–7, 38–39. The text, including any biographical note, is reproduced as faithfully as possible to enable searchability. To view any images and charts in the article, refer to the issue itself, available on DVIDS and the bulletin’s archives at asu.army.mil/alog/.]
A bold, action-oriented program to eliminate unnecessary stocks and supply echelons, reduce order and ship times, and improve asset control, Operation STREAMLINE is vital to the overall Logistics Offensive.
BUDGET REDUCTIONS, Modern Volunteer Army, Reductions in Force, Base Closures — all are frequent headlines in these changing times. Despite current constraints, the Army’s logistics mission remains constant — provide the American soldier what he needs, where and when he needs it, and in the condition required for his use. In today’s environment, this mission encompasses supporting our forces in combat while building a Vietnamese Army capable of defending the Republic of Vietnam, conducting troop withdrawals from Vietnam as directed by the President, and, as the withdrawals progress, recovering and redistributing the assets on which the readiness of the Army, worldwide, depends.
One of the primary actions included in the LOGISTICS OFFENSIVE has been Logistics Operation-STREAMLINE, an Army-wide program designed to maximize logistics efficiency, reduce costs and manpower requirements, and improve readiness through the application of new logistics management and operational concepts. The principal objectives of STREAMLINE are to reduce stockage at all levels, to eliminate excesses, to reduce order and ship times, and to apply inventory-in-motion principles.
Army-wide and Command Improvements
STREAMLINE programs have been initiated for all major Army commands, the Army National Guard, and the Army Reserve. In every case, tasks assigned for the accomplishment of the STREAMLINE objectives were based on the particular situations and challenges of each command.
Although some STREAMLINE tasks pertain to only one command, several are applicable Army-wide. For example, actions required under Department of the Army Circular 700-18, “Logistics Improvements,” to reduce the range and depth of stocks at each supply echelon have been incorporated into all STREAMLINE programs. Experience shows that the stockage of large quantities of supplies does not guarantee improved responsiveness to customers demands. To the contrary, excesses result and supply personnel are faced with inventory, maintenance, location, and shipping problems. By reducing the range and depth of stocks, management gains greater visibility of available assets and is able to concentrate more effectively on fast-moving items. The current goals of the Army commands are to reduce line items on the theater authorized stockage list (TASL) as indicated on the chart. All commands have made significant progress toward reaching their goal. The TASL for U.S. Army, Europe (USAREUR) for example, has been reduced from 171,000 to 77,000 line items with only marginal slippage in demand accommodation.
Redistribution or Disposal of Excesses
Excess assets that have accrued as a result of applying the policy contained in DA Circular 700-18 are being processed under DA Project CLEAN, another element of all STREAMLINE programs. Under DA Project CLEAN, command excesses are either redistributed to fill existing requirements worldwide or where redistribution is not economically feasible, disposal action is taken. Because of the resulting inventory increases in Army disposal yards, actions have also been initiated under STREAMLINE to reduce overall Army scrap inventories by 35 percent or 46,000 short tons and usable property inventories by 50 percent or $313 million by July 1971.
Of the five major Army command STREAMLINE programs, the first, known as Pacific Logistics Operation-STREAMLINE (PALOS), was initiated by U.S. Army Pacific (USARPAC) in late 1969. PALOS was designed to accommodate logistics support of combat operations in Southeast Asia as well as peacetime operations throughout the remainder of the Pacific Command (PACOM) area. Major projects of the PALOS program are to —
• Phase down depot operations to installation supply account or field depot type of operations.
• Establish a single requisitioning channel for all U.S. Army forces in the PACOM area, the Army of the Republic of Vietnam, and the free world military assistance forces in Vietnam.
• Integrate financial and supply management at a central location where all management functions can be performed.
Under PALOS, authorized stockage lists of wholesale supply activities are being reduced without degradation of the supply support mission, the theater maintenance program is being redesigned to capitalize on favorable labor markets, and facilities no longer required are being released or transferred. Approximately 2,700 USARPAC personnel spaces have been eliminated and budget reductions are approaching $40 million.
Direct Supply Support to Europe
Encouraged by the progress of PALOS, STREAMLINE was next extended into USAREUR with the initiation of the Europe Logistics Operation-STREAMLINE (EURLOS) program. One of the major projects under EURLOS has been the initiation of the direct supply support system in Europe. As described in an article appearing in the July–August 1970 issue of the Army Logistician, classes II, IV, and IX supplies are being shipped direct from a U.S. Army Materiel Command (USAMC) theater-oriented depot complex in the continental United States (CONUS) to selected USAREUR direct support units. Applying the principles of inventory in motion, the direct supply support concept has assisted in —
• Reducing the quantity of stocks required for the pipeline and in theater inventories.
• Providing the item manager with a greater degree of item visibility, intransit control, and management of inventories.
• Improving supply responsiveness.
• Maintaining materiel readiness.
Commissary Operations Assisted
On a smaller scale, a task has been included in the EURLOS program that applies to brand-name commissary items. In an effort to assist commissary operations, a test is being conducted to determine the feasibility of shipping brand-name items direct from CONUS to Army and Air Force commissaries in Europe. If the test is successful, the concept will be adopted throughout Europe, eventually eliminating intermediate holding levels currently in existence.
Another significant EURLOS project is a program to improve the performance of the conventional ammunition logistics system. This improvement is being realized through numerous, on-going, long-term management tasks that include —
• Reviewing and updating the basic load and mission load objectives.
• Reviewing annual training ammunition requirements.
• Establishing a valid data base.
• Identifying future storage requirements.
• Rewarehousing prestock points to obtain the desired stock positions.
CONUS Direct Supply Projected
As a means of expanding and further evaluating the direct supply support concept, a project for initiating the concept within continental United States was incorporated into the Continental Army Command Logistics Operation-STREAMLINE (CONLOS) program. Under the direct supply support system developed for CONUS, classes II, IV, and IX supplies will be shipped direct from area-oriented depot complexes to participating direct support units. As in the European, and the recently developed Korean system, the Defense Automatic Address System (DAAS) will furnish document images of each requisition and supply and shipment status to the logistics intelligence file (LTF) at the Logistics Control Office-Pacific. The LTF, the single data bank in CONUS maintaining the complete records on supply transactions of all participating units, will provide all the data required to maintain visibility of assets intransit.
“Plug-out”–“Plug-in” System
Where applicable, the procedures established for the European and Korean systems have been incorporated in the CONARC direct supply support system. This will enable the CONUS-based direct support units to perform their primary missions using procedures established for oversea commands. As a result, participating direct support units deploying from one command to another will be able to “plug-out” of the losing supply system and “plug-in” to the gaining system without degrading efficiency; current deployment retraining and orientation requirements will be reduced to a minimum.
Other projects of the CONLOS program include —
• Expanding the number of items distributed through summary accounting for low-dollar turnover items (SALTI) and self-service supply centers.
• Stationing USAMC calibration teams permanently at large CONARC installations where workload density warrants.
• Consolidating property disposal activities with other commands and agencies where economies in resources can be accomplished.
• Initiating a closed loop support management program for the distribution and overhaul of aviation materiel, a program also incorporated into the other STREAMLINE programs.
“Tailgate” Delivery
Because of their size and geographic locations U.S. Army Forces Southern Command (USARSO) and the U.S. Army, Alaska (USARAL) have provided several unique STREAMLINE projects. The relatively small size of the Canal Zone enabled USARSO to consolidate logistics support activities under one command and to initiate a “tailgate” delivery system as a means of reducing manpower requirements and transportation costs while increasing operational efficiency. Although initiated before the USARSO Logistics Operation-STREAMLINE (SOLOS) program was adopted, both actions have been cited as examples of STREAMLINE-type activities. With supported units divided between the two ends of the Canal Zone, all logistics support activities were centralized at one primary site on the Pacific side and one subordinate site on the Atlantic side. To preclude each supported unit or activity from making repeated trips to one of the centralized logistics sites, the USARSO Support Command, under the “tailgate” system, initiated direct delivery of supplies and services to the units. Not only have transportation costs been reduced but training time has been saved and accident exposure time has decreased.
Under the SOLOS program, USARSO, in coordination with the Military Sealift Command and the Military Traffic Management and Terminal Service, has begun a study to analyze the procedures currently used in the Canal Zone to receive and process materiel from CONUS. The locations of receiving terminals in relation to storage sites and supported units, coupled with the limited Canal Zone transportation network, have necessitated, to some extent, back-hauling and multi-handling. The objective of this STREAMLINE project is to reduce to the minimum these operations.
Property Disposal Consolidation Proposed
A second SOLOS study is being conducted to determine the feasibility of transferring all property disposal activities to the Panama Canal Company — the Government-owned company responsible for Panama Cannal operations. With the exception of scrap metal disposal, which the Panama Canal Company now handles for the military, USARSO is responsible for Armed Forces disposal operations. The transfer of all disposal activities would further reduce USARSO personnel requirements and operating costs.
In Alaska, the weather and terrain have had considerable impact on the development of USARAL organizational concepts and operational procedures. The rugged Alaskan mountain range separating Fort Richardson from Fort Wainwright and Fort Greely, coupled with the severe winter weather and limited lines of communication, has prompted USARAL to attempt to maintain a relatively equal logistics capability on both sides of the mountain range. Under the USARAL Logistics Operation-STREAMLINE (ALLOS), a study of the entire logistics support system and organization is being conducted. Primary objectives of this STREAMLINE project are to improve the efficiency and responsiveness of the logistics system, eliminate fragmentation of logistic functions among several commands and staff agencies, and reduce manpower and funding requirements.
The similarity between USARSO and USARAL, in that support and supported activities are located at two primary, but widely separated sites, and the results of the USARSO “tailgate” system prompted the inclusion of “tailgate” delivery systems for Fort Richardson and Fort Wainwright in the ALLOS program. Presently, customers are required to pick up their materiel from scattered supply and maintenance activities. The “tailgate” delivery system will prevent the backlog of materiel awaiting customer pickup and will reduce vehicle use, maintenance requirements, and accident exposure time.
National Guard - Reserve Program
The STREAMLINE program for the Army National Guard and the U.S. Army Reserve (REGLOS) is an extension of the objectives in the Active Army STREAMLINE programs. Administered by the Office of the Chief of Reserve Components, REGLOS has been incorporated into the revised Reserve Component Ten Point Improvement Program, a major action to improve the readiness posture of the Reserve components. Under REGLOS, logistics tasks, such as those listed below, have been selected where results will increase the efficiency and readiness of both the Army National Guard and Army Reserve forces:
• Development of a list of substitute items authorized for retention at unit level followed by redistribution or turn in of excess items.
• Improvement of the Army’s asset reporting program to attain and maintain at least a 95-percent reporting accuracy (see AR 711-5) .
• Development of maintenance missions for Reserve components units capable of handling additional work in support of either the Active Army or other Reserve units.
• Development of a program that will increase the capacity of storage facilities, improve storage practices, reduce processing time for storage operations, and increase accuracy of storage locator systems.
Logistics Operation-STREAMLINE is concerned with every facet of Army logistics and directed toward improving unit readiness and logistics management in both operational and organizational aspects. As innovations or modifications are developed they will be incorporated into the STREAMLINE programs.
Lieutenant Colonel James E. Stallard, Ill, was a member of the staff of the Office of the Director of Plans, ODCSLOG, DA. An infantry officer, Colonel Stallard served in Vietnam as a district senior adviser and later as a province operations adviser. He was a graduate of Tennessee Polytechnic Institute and the Army Command and General Staff College.
| Date Taken: | 06.26.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 06.26.2025 10:59 |
| Story ID: | 501571 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 10 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Operation STREAMLINE | The Logistics Offensive, Seventh in a Series, by LTC James E. Stallard, III, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
