Cost Wise Readiness Enabled Through Condition Based Maintenance Plus (CBM+)

Abstract

As Department of Defense (DoD) budgets continue to decrease through automatic spending cuts, Army Commands are pressured to develop, implement and manage new ways to reduce spending. The high cost of operation and sustainment (O&S) associated with the helicopters required to support the US Army's global presence significantly increases this pressure. Reducing costs within O&S activities, while managing operational readiness is achieved through Cost Wise Readiness (CWR) initiatives. Goals and objectives are to increase efficiencies, thereby increasing the value of each budgeted dollar. Even as the budgetary environment becomes more challenging, the purpose of Army maintenance remains unchanged-to generate combat power. In support of continuing this capability, Army Aviation is leading the way with ongoing efforts to implement, measure and communicate efficiencies leading to benefits. The AMCOM Logistics Center (ALC) functions as the logistics component of the US Army's Aviation and Missile Life Cycle Management Command (AMCOM) headquartered at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama. The ALC develops, acquires, fields and sustains logistics support for Army Aviation and Missile systems and associated support equipment to ensure weapon system readiness in any operation worldwide. The ALC, in support of Program Executive Offices, Project Managers, Army Depots, and partnering with industry are dedicated to provide real-time logistics support to the Soldier, Airman and Marine in training and combat. The ALC is dedicated to the development and implementation of CWR initiatives through the identification and pursuit of opportunities and investment in projects focused on reducing cost. Multiple Army offices have been instrumental in the development of technological capabilities in support of the CWR mission. One such high-tech capability includes the integration of systems which incorporate Condition Based Maintenance Plus (CBM+) into the management of logistics and airworthiness aspects of the Army's helicopter fleets. Managing costs within O&S activities is achievable through the remediation of maintenance enabled through CBM+ initiatives. Josh Kennedy et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.