Hanscom officials kick off combat support system Published Oct. 14, 2009 By Capt. Geoff Buteau 66th Air Base Wing Public Affairs HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE, Mass. (AFNS) -- Logistics leaders here to discuss the initial setup of Release 1 of the Expeditionary Combat Support System during a town hall meeting in the Hanscom Air Force Base Conference Center Oct. 6. ECSS, a commercial off-the-shelf software program tailored for the Air Force to bring 240 separate logistics-management software programs together, is the largest enterprise resource planning operation ever implemented, affecting nearly a quarter of a million people, said Mike Davis, a program manager on the project. ECSS, which began June 30, plays into the Air Force's logistics umbrella strategy called Expeditionary Logistics for the 21st Century, whose goals are to increase equipment availability and reduce the operational and support costs of the logistics mission, said Greg Laing, the Hanscom AFB change-agent coordinator for the program's implementation. The goal of the meeting, according to Mr. Laing, was for individual organizations to become familiar with how Release 1 of the ECSS will specifically affect their mission and work environment, as the base tests it through July 2010. Hanscom AFB officials are then scheduled to use it for day-to-day operations under a pilot status until mid to late 2011, after which the pilot status is lifted, 600 other locations begin using the program, and the program becomes standard practice. These organizations have been aware of ECSS since approximately 2004, but it's not until organizations start testing the programs that questions begin to arise, he said. The town hall meeting was an opportunity to ask those questions. The audience asked how the new logistics processes would figure into the planning for future acquisitions, how organizations affected by the Base Realignment and Closure list would participate in the ECSS before and after leaving Hanscom AFB, and what specific aspects of the logistics mission would be affected by the operational cost-cutting goals referenced in both eLog21 and ECSS information. Fielding most of the questions were representatives from Computer Sciences Corporation, a systems integration company specializing in enterprise application development and management. CSC is responsible for adapting the product to meet Air Force logistics needs. Also speaking to those in attendance were the Air Force visitors from Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, responsible for working with CSC on the ECSS implementation. Kim Brown, a logistics analyst with the Air Force Global Logistics Support Center, clarified the overall goal of ECSS for the audience. "ECSS is more than IT solutions; that's a really small part," she said. "It's really a transformation of future (logistics) processes." 66th Air Base Wing and Mission Support Group leaders were in attendance, along with representatives from the Electronic Systems Center acquisitions and contracting communities, New Boston Air Force Station, and other organizations that receive logistical support from Hanscom AFB. The full implementation of ECSS is scheduled for 2015, which encompasses Release 1, 2, 3 and 4. While Hanscom AFB is the test base for Release 1, Hill AFB, Utah, will pilot 2 and 3 and Maxwell AFB, Ala., will test 4, Mr. Laing said. Release 1 focuses on implementing ECSS into base-level functions by mid to late 2011 in three pilot phases, Mr. Laing said. Phase A includes vehicle management and tool accountability; Phase B includes equipment management, communications security and small arms accountability; and Phase C includes supply systems and warehouse functions.