IMPROVING ARMY AVIATION MAINTENANCE ONE PART AT A TIME: A LEAN SIX SIGMA APPLICATION

摘要

In the early 2000s, the Army adopted the Lean-Six Sigma (LSS) methodology for process improvement and has been training LSS practitioners ever since. As part of this training, the Army requires black-belt level candidates to successfully complete a project using the Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control (DMAIC) process. This paper presents the results of a six-month effort that applied this methodology to the turn-in process for recoverable repair parts in an Army Combat Aviation Brigade (CAB). Initial analysis found that the unit had over $1.7M in unmatched items that counted against the unit's operating budget with secondary impacts on training and readiness. Through the DMAIC process, the team conducted detailed analysis of the available data, identified several areas for improvement, and implemented controls and procedures to get the process in control and reduce the number of defects in turn-in documentation. The results of the effort were profound and reduced the un-matched items from 54% to 3% and improved the sigma quality level from 1.4 to 3.1. Additionally, the teams work recommended changes to the Army's Global Combat Support System - Army (GCSS-Army) and identified enterprise level changes to the Army's turn-in procedures that the Army's Combined Arms Support Command is adopting. The paper provides an overview of the process and its application to the problem of un-matched turn-in of parts as a case study for a successful implementation of the Army's LSS process.