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# Year in review: West region

By Jake JoyDLA Disposition Services Public Affairs

                BATTLE CREEK, Mich.  –              
From the deserts of New Mexico to the frozen tundra of Alaska, personnel from across the Defense Logistics Agency Disposition Services West region provided high-level warfighter support to agency customers in 2023. 

“I think the team’s effort was outstanding,” said Director Chris Buchanan. “There was a lot of heavy lifting done, and a lot of sites going through different types of transitions – they overcame and adapted to every challenge put in front of them.” 

There was no bigger adaptation asked of field locations in the past year than the continuing implementation of DLA’s Warehouse Management System. Buchanan said that, so far, adopting WMS has gone very smoothly for West locations, and he attributes that success to a resilient workforce, consistent interaction, and employee buy in.

“We kept the communication lines open, always,” he said, noting that region leadership made a point to take part in all the preparation meetings and to visit each site prior to its WMS activation. “We listened to all their questions and concerns and made them a part of the process and part of the planning. So, it was very much a team effort and not just a headquarters-driven initiative.” 

Across the West’s California sites, prime examples of team unity could be found. One team effort took place at Camp Pendleton, where site staff adopted the soldiers, sailors, and airmen of Disposal Support Unit 3 as it made the base its new home for drilling and training. The DSU-3 jumped right into hands-on training during its first visit there as its reservists processed more than 1,200 individual line items. DLA Joint Reserve Force Director Maj. Gen. Tripp Bowles visited during the inaugural meeting at the field site and, according to area leadership, praised the cohesion he observed in the new Pendleton/DSU-3.

At sites nationwide, the protection of natural resources is a high priority for DLA, and Central California’s San Joaquin site environmental program earned recognition for securing a perfect score during its environmental review. Site leadership said the stellar mark was a direct result of comprehensive teamwork and employee consistency in following standard operating procedures without deviation.

The Sierra site, in the northeast part of the state, also transitioned to WMS and inspected well, receiving no facility inspection discrepancies and no safety inspection findings for the second year in a row. In addition to maintaining a robust Reutilization, Transfer and Donation program, they also took in about 13.5 million pounds of equipment for demilitarization.

The desert hub in Barstow had a hand in a wide variety of efforts, including working with the Army Corps of Engineers on the turnover of about 450 truckloads of border wall materials, accepting nearly 1,400 vehicles and bulk property items from Marine Corps Logistics Base Yermo originally worth almost $300 million, and providing dozens of range hard targets to the Nevada Test and Training Range at Nellis Air Force Base. 

In Washington, the Joint Base Lewis-McCord site continued supporting Navy submarine decommissioning officials’ work destroying submarines and provided oversight and coordination for the removal of more than 18 million pounds of scrap by truck and floating barge. 

Arizona’s Tucson hub assisted customers like the Air Force 355th Wing Command and others at installations like Fort Huachuca, Luke AFB, Yuma, Camp Navajo, and Fort Bliss. The team closed out an 80-million-pound demilitarization contract and had almost 11,000 lines of sales items. They provided $26 million in reuse materials, $9 million in transfer items, and $28 million in donation items to excess property customers. 

Up north, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, the Alaska team helped clear out a decade worth of rolling stock that had accumulated at the local Modernization Displacement and Repair Site also known as the “Cannibalization Point” for the work warfighters performed there in stripping vehicle components to maintain their fleets. The disposal team increased turn-in appointment opportunities to assist the effort. 

“This was a big deal for the customer,” said Alaska Area Manager Chris Milazzo. “It allowed them to clear out their yard to make room for storage. We were glad to be able to flex our appointments and schedule to accommodate warfighters.”

Looking ahead to 2024, Buchanan said the region will maintain focus on some larger-scale challenges, including the evolution of the workforce’s familiarity and comfort level with WMS. Another focus area remains the continuing alignment with the offices and personnel of DLA Document Services, which was placed under the DLA Disposition Services operational umbrella for the first time in 2023. 

“We’re linked in now, but we need to integrate to an even greater depth,” Buchanan said, hopefully producing a working relationship that helps maximize the seamlessness of the DLA customer experience.

There will also forever be a push to try and improve communications with used property and hazardous waste turn-in customers. Buchanan said that when region property disposal experts can coordinate and advise units “on the ground level” during their preparation for large-scale turn ins, the outcome is much more consistently smooth. 

“I’m very blessed to have the team that we have out here – they’re a bunch of overachievers,” Buchanan said. “They’re pushing and reaching and striving for more. It’s an honor to serve with them.” 

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