Reverse Logistics in Afghanistan

 
     The Army's logisticians are highly regarded for their ability to efficiently and effectively push supplies to the front lines in support of the warfighter.  However, as supply requests become more and more expansive and the push-system of logistics is exacerbated, the amount of retrograde (residue and unserviceable equipment) begins to pile up.  This becomes particularly problematic when you consider the small operating facilities like Forward Operating Bases (FOBs) and Combat Outposts (COPs) that have become the norm in Afghanistan.


     In Army Sustainment Magazine's November-December 2012 issue, Captain Donnahoe highlights how each brigade combat team receives approximately one million tons of supplies per month.  The development and integration of reverse logistics in the region has helped logisticians effectively dispose of equipment such as refrigerators, heating and air-conditioning units, air compressors and battle damaged vehicles.  Army Regulation 711-7 defines reverse logistics as a process through which unserviceable items are returned through the original supply chain for "credit, reworking, recouping, restocking, or disposal."



Piles of scrap items and unserviceable equipment decrease work space and

create hazardous work environments on COPs across Afghanistan.

    
     In the bigger picture, reverse logistics provides numerous benefits for the Department of Defense including the ability to endorse a cleaner environment through recycling and seek potential financial recovery of equipment.  This latter benefit is particularly important today as sequestration and budget cuts across the Defense Department will likely affect our operations abroad.  Statistics provided by the Defense Logistics Agency suggest that in fiscal year 2008 they were able to reutilize approximately $2.2 billion worth of equipment through DOD.  To accomplish this, logisticians are forced to develop logistics plans and supply chains that allow for daily supply pushes to outlying COPs in support of the warfighter while simultaneously icluding retrograde channels that promote the removal of unserviceable equipment from the battlefield.


     Logisticians in Afghanistan have worked to develop more efficient retrograde lanes in support of reverse logistics operations, particularly through the use of helicoptor landing zones.  This has helped units be more proactive in submitting air movement requests, improved in-transit visibility of material movement, and helps ensure no aircraft missions return empty handed.  In addition to reporting supply requests in an aquisition, request-based supply system, reverse logistics encourages units to also report their requirements for retrograde.  These requirements become the logisticians goals and builds a relationship between the provider (force sustainment) and customer (warfighter) where coordination is paramount.
              


Once retrograde requirements are reported and movement requests

are submitted, transportation and aviation units are tasked to remove

residue and unserviceable equipment from the front lines. 

     Reverse logistics has far reaching effects on both our current battlefield capabilities and our future combat effectiveness in Afghanistan.  Further developments in the field of reverse logistics can vastly improve the quality of life of soldiers, set up follow on units for success and maintain operating bases that are free of retrograde and waste.  In order to be successful moving forward, there must be coordination between both parties and each must respect the goals of forward and reverse logistics as a means of optimizing sustainability.