Package Deal
 
  By Dianne Ryder
   Proper packaging of materiel is an essential part of the Defense Logistics Agency’s mission. Members of a specialized team at DLA Distribution Warner Robins, Georgia, ensure the job is done right, no matter how unique or challenging the item.
“We get materiel coming in from different depots that’s not packed in accordance with the standard operating procedure, or dunnage — the materials to keep it preserved or mission ready,” said Jonah Blunt, material examiner and identifier for the Preservation, Packaging, Packing and Marking section.
Bobby Small, branch chief of the special assets division, explained the process in brief: “Items are sent to the PPP&M area for packaging. The packer verifies the materiel is packaged correctly and forwards it to the ware-house for storage.” 
Several months ago, DLA Distribution put together an ad hoc, multifunctional team, including Blunt and packer Christie Williams. The group received a “Team of the Quarter” award for packaging and re-warehousing 1,800 work orders, consisting of about 6,000 units of materiel from one PPP&M section into one major PPP&M functional area. The project freed up several thousand square feet of warehouse space for use by central receiving or other functional areas at DLA Distribution Warner Robins Depot.
Everything that comes into the packers’ hands is checked and often repackaged, based on packaging requirements for the item. Williams has been on the job less than a year, but Small said she has risen to the challenge.
“I perform a variety of tasks, including packaging and repackaging of non-hazardous material, such as selecting the proper container, using the correct method of packaging and cushioning and following the specific packaging procedures for the materiel,” Williams said. “It’s important to the warfighter they receive the correct materiel on time and properly packaged.”
Most of the materiel the packaging specialists pack are parts for aircraft, tanks and other vehicles. Pylons, which are used to hold fuel tanks on the aircraft, require extra cushioned packaging, Williams said.
“We have to have bags inside and pack it a certain way, so it won’t get damaged,” she said.
The packers also affix a label to the package that includes information in accordance with Military Standards and Department of Defense Standard Practice Military Marking for Shipment and Storage guidance. Labels also include the national stock number, part number, serial number, nomenclature, quantity, unit of issue, military preservation method and date of unit preservation, as well as the Contractor and Government Entity, or CAGE, code.
Blunt has been with PPP&M for several years and uses a number of standards to help him perform tasks more efficiently.
“I use technical specifications and websites to pack various types of DoD equipment to meet the requirement, as well as packaging and marking regulations to ensure equipment is in a serviceable condition for the customer.”
Two websites he uses are the Web Federal Logistics Information Service and Special Packaging Instructions Retrieval & Exchange System. WebFLIS provides essential information about supply items, including the NSN, item name and company data through a web interface connected to FLIS data. SPIRES is used to identify the design, materials required and construction of wood and fiberboard containers for Air Force materiel.
Small noted another tool that helps the packers is a new conveyor system. The old system hampered the way materiel was received and distributed to the packers, he said.
“Once we get the materiel in, we look it up in the Distribution Standard System, which will tell us what the method of packing is for that particular item,” he said.
“In the past, [materiel] wasn’t coming in where we could segregate it quickly. We redesigned the area so it’s not cluttered and we can get the materiel to the packers in a timely manner.”
Small said the packers also use mechanized handling equipment, including forklifts, heat sealers for plastic barrier bags, air guns to suck the air out of a barrier bag so it can conform to the part, and auto baggers for smaller items such as nuts, bolts and washers.
Williams said the auto baggers are great time-savers.
“[Packers] used to have to count thousands of nuts and bolts by hand, but now they can just put it inside the auto bagger and it will automatically count and package them in individual packs,” she said.
Materiel from the military services, central receiving, other depots and the DLA Distribution warehouse arrives in a trailer or on a pallet in the receiving area and is routed to the packers. From there, it’s sent to separate areas for packaging, depending on the characteristics of the materiel, such as the condition code, size, need for special packaging materials (for items such as precision measurement equipment) and whether an item is 40 pounds or less, meaning it can be hand carried.
Shipment of materiel is handled differently, depending on the urgency of its delivery.
“Sometimes we get a plane that’s down and it needs a part; we have to pack that part and quickly get it to the customer,” Blunt said. In this case, the part would be sent without elaborate packaging on an emergency walk-through basis, so it can be transported as soon as possible, often within an hour if it’s a local delivery.
“It’s very important to get the part out to the warfighter in correct condition and on time,” Blunt said.
Small said he’s pleased with the progress his team has made in efficiencies, but there’s always room for improvement.
“We focus on continuous process improvement; we keep looking at our processes, and if there’s any way we can improve or make that process better, we do it,” he said. “A lot of improvements have come from the floor, so we’re always asking them to keep that in mind.”