Original Date: 04/26/2004
Revision Date: 01/18/2007

United Defense, L.P. Armament Systems Division Aberdeen improved its Tooling and Supply Management by implementing a procurement system that uses one major supplier for most of its maintenance, repair, and operations supplies.

Previously, United Defense, L.P. Armament Systems Division (UDLP ASD) Aberdeen used an ad hoc, back-door purchasing program from various suppliers for its Tooling and Supply Management. This process resulted in a lack of standardization, disruption of production flow and utilization, return and warrantee issues, and minimal after sale support. To improve its Tooling and Supply Management, UDLP ASD Aberdeen instituted a maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO) procurement system which identified overhead cost items and pre-designated 32 storage cells for those items. A KanBan card system and bar code scanners are used to order supplies. The scanning system allows any given item to be ordered no more than once in a day. If that same item is scanned the following day, the item is flagged for management’s review. UDLP ASD Aberdeen is also moving away from multiple suppliers to one major supplier for MRO supplies. This supplier ships daily, with orders presorted by storage cell. By developing a relationship with one supplier, UDLP ASD Aberdeen improved order accuracy, warranty, and technical support, decreased delivery times, and increased fill rate to 87%.

UDLP ASD Aberdeen’s Tooling and Supply Management system enabled the facility to reduce its inventory for MRO supplies to two-week levels, thus reducing the need to stockpile and use space. It has also reduced processing time in purchasing, receiving, and accounting; increased accuracy of orders; reduced obsolescence; and encouraged standardization.

For more information see the Point of Contact for this survey.