Cost Benefit Study on the Use of Aluminum Versus Wooden Skids in Transporting Industrial Plant Equipment

摘要

The Air Force used aluminum skids for shipment of Industrial Plant Equipment (IPE) prior to the establishment of the Defense Logistics Agency's Defense Industrial Plant Equipment Center (DIPEC) in 1963. When DIPEC was established, the aluminum skid inventory was transferred to DIPEC and became the nucleus of the DIPEC skid inventory. A study conducted b DIPEC in 1974 perceived an economic advantage to the government through more extensive utilization of aluminum skids. As a result, Management of Defense-Owned Industrial Plant Equipment (IPE), was changed in 1975 to require use of aluminum skids in shipping IPE; in specified circumstances, such as weight of IPE exceeding 48,000 pounds, use of wooden skids was required. In 1980, another study determined that the cost to operate the program which provided 1,054 aluminum skids annually was $307,800 and that use of wooden skids to satisfy the same need would cost $460,500 annually. This was equated to an annual savings of $152,700 through the use of aluminum skids.