Now, instead of soldiers hauling their equipment home from a deployment, they leave it behind and the Army Materiel Command takes ownership, makes sure it returns stateside and then begins the “reset” process of preparing the PCs and servers for use on another mission, says Gen. Benjamin S. Griffin, AMC commander.

The reset initiative meshes with the roll out of the seven new Army Field Support Brigades that are down on the ground providing direct support to units worldwide. The brigades integrate field support with acquisition, technology and logistics, Griffin says.

But sustainment is more than just providing goods, services and support to troops in the field. Ultimately, there’s a morale issue. Part of meeting the expectations of warfighters is delivering on promises, says Lt. Gen. Ann E. Dunwoody, Army deputy chief of staff.

In particular, Dunwoody points to the service’s efforts to create a transparent end-to-end logistics system. Given the move to a new logistics model built on modular theater sustainment, the need to fund “log automation” is more crucial than ever, says Dunwoody, who spoke with Griffin at the recent Association of the U.S. Army conference in Washington.

Funding has been a perennial challenge. When money is needed elsewhere, funding for backend systems to support logistics programs dries up, she says. “We have created a lack of confidence among warfighters in the field because we have not delivered,” Dunwoody says. Without adequate systems support, the new theater sustainment approach will fail, she cautions.

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