Page 30 - Australian Defence Magazine July 2019
P. 30

SUPPLY CHAIN
LOGISTICS
Materiel Sustainment Agreements vs. Innovation: a case study
KATHERINE ZIESING | CANBERRA
COMMANDERS want to ensure that their forces are equipped with technologically and operationally relevant equipment so that tasks can be conducted efficiently and with an acceptable level of risk. In an era of Accelerated Warfare, the desire for innova- tion and adaption in equipping the force is understandable.
Pitted against innovation and adaption is the traditional project structure that de- lineates between acquisition and sustain- ment. Acquisition is where the non-obvious resources are located in CASG Systems
Program Offices (SPOs); project managers, engineers, integrated logistics specialists, schedulers, and legal counsel. This human capital is essential for selecting and deliver- ing the capabilities outlined in the Integrat- ed Investment Program (IIP), as well as en- suring that the capability is fit for purpose and safe and suitable for service.
Acquisition, with scope agreed under a Materiel Acquisition Agreement, is where the project team is focussed on delivering the agreed capability on time and on budget. It is not the time for innovation or adaption.
Whilst adaption is desirable, in project terms, it amounts to shifting goalposts. Ac- quisition, in project terms, is finite. When it
comes to an end, the specialist human capi- tal that ushered the capability into service are moved to the next project. Sustainment then takes over.
Sustainment is not only trickier, it is far less sexy. Product schedules are governed by Materiel Sustainment Agreements, negoti- ated and resourced annually between the capability mangers and respective SPOs in CASG. Fleet managers have far fewer humans – and not the ‘right’ type of spe- cialists – at their disposal in this phase of a program. While progress has been made, the old adage of ‘throwing the baby over the fence’ still does frequently occur.
Without supplementation from the finite
30 | July 2019 | www.australiandefence.com.au


































































































   28   29   30   31   32