Inventory Management: More Information Needed to Assess DLA's Best Practice Initiatives

Abstract

The Department of Defense (DOD) operates a worldwide logistics system to buy, store, and distribute inventory items. Through this system, DOD manages 4.3 million types of consumable items (e.g., food, clothing, and hardware), of which about 4 million are managed by DLA. Traditionally, DLA buys consumable items in large quantities, stores them in wholesale distribution depots until they are requested by the military services, and then ships them to the service facility where the items are used. Each year, DLA spends billions of dollars to provide these services. For example, in fiscal year 1997, DLA estimated that its supply costs were $12.4 billion and that its inventory on hand was valued at $9.8 billion.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Sep 01, 1998
Accession Number
ADA354442

Entities

Organizations

  • United States Government Accountability Office

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Human Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Accounting
  • Acquisition
  • Air Force
  • Air Force Facilities
  • Best Practices
  • Clothing
  • Commerce
  • Congress
  • Department Of Defense
  • Electronic Commerce
  • Geographic Regions
  • Governments
  • Maintenance
  • Materials
  • National Security
  • Test And Evaluation
  • United States

Readers

  • Logistics and Supply Chain Management.