Photo By Spc. Rebeca Soria | Senior leaders discuss the Rapid Removal of Excess Pilot (R2E) at Fort Stewart,...... read more read more
Subscribe
To help achieve the Army's objective of modernizing all divisions and corps elements by 2030, Gen. Randy A. George, Chief of Staff of the Army, has instructed Army Materiel Command (AMC) to develop a pilot program, Rapid Removal of Excess (R2E), that will assist in reducing surplus equipment from units throughout the Army.
The 3rd Infantry Division recently completed the R2E pilot program at Fort Stewart, Georgia, Dec. 15, 2023, to maintain its position as the Army's most modernized division.
"The R2E program has been an outstanding opportunity for our units to dispose of excess equipment from our formations, motor pools, and company operation facilities," said Chief Warrant Officer 3 Danny Ettinger, the senior property accountability advisor for 3rd ID. "We have seen a tremendous response from 3rd ID and tenant units. As a result, we have successfully reduced our excess inventory by approximately 11,000 pieces of equipment. This has freed up Soldiers' time, resources, funding, and maintenance, allowing them to prioritize the mission-critical items that will aid them in future operations."
Over the past few years, the 3rd ID and Hunter Army Airfield have upgraded their equipment, leading to excess equipment for specific units. The surplus of equipment has resulted in Soldiers spending additional time on preventive maintenance, checks and services (PMCS) for equipment not essential to their mission, taking away valuable time from familiarization and training on new equipment.
The R2E program has allowed units to turn in equipment as-is, rapidly reducing surplus equipment and improving storage and maintenance accountability, including all the resources tied to that excess equipment.
Before R2E, Army units had to ensure their equipment met the 10/20 maintenance standard of being mission-capable before being transferred to another unit. However, this often posed challenges due to time constraints and competing funding requirements.
"I've been in the Army for 23 years, and R2E has been the most effective Army program that's helped remove excess equipment quickly," said Chief Warrant Officer 3 Jousha Conde, property book officer for the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd ID. "My property books from the 37 Unit Identification Code (UIC) have shrunk by ten pages. We have turned in 4,200 pieces of equipment, roughly 15% of my property book. With all that excess equipment removed, Soldiers can focus on training on the systems needed for our National Training Center (NTC) rotation and future deployments."
Equipment that has been turned in ranges from non-rolling stock and rolling stock, including generators, computer systems, automation equipment, tentage, blue force trackers, satellites, drones, nuclear, biological, and chemical (NBC) equipment, night vision goggle devices, sniper rifles, aged M4 carbines, small terrain utility vehicles, trailers, humvees, light medium tactical vehicles, route clearance vehicles and unserviceable tanks.
"For the last eight years, 1st brigade has been deployed or deploying," said Conde." “Every time we redeploy, we've gotten new equipment and didn't do anything with the old equipment. We are getting rid of almost a decade's worth of equipment in four months. This process included echelons at every level, from the individual unit to the Army Sustainment Command communicating. I've seen paperwork get approved within 12 hours of submitting paperwork so that a unit can turn in the next day."
The equipment deemed repairable and mission-essential for other units will undergo repairs at a maintenance depot. After repair, it will be returned to the Defense Logistics Agency or made available for foreign military sales.
In addition to the 3rd ID, Fort Liberty units in North Carolina also participated in the R2E program.
The Department of the Army's Headquarters will evaluate the impact of receiving equipment in its current condition to support upcoming missions. The AMC uses data at all stages of the R2E process to monitor equipment and make informed decisions. The main goal is to ensure that the program enhances unit readiness and modernization of the Army.
| Date Taken: | 12.13.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 12.15.2023 17:41 |
| Story ID: | 459868 |
| Location: | FORT STEWART, GEORGIA, US |
| Web Views: | 237 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, 3rd Infantry Division Completes R2E Program, by SGT Duke Edwards, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
