Bench stock 'vending machines' saving time for AMC's maintenance Airmen

  • Published
  • By Laura McAndrews
  • Air Mobility Command Public Affairs
SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. (AFNS) --  If you've ever gone to a vending machine to get your favorite beverage or snack, imagine using that same technology to dispense a particular part or tool you could use to fix a plane.

In Air Mobility Command, through an initiative between maintenance Airmen and the command's Air Force Smart Operations for the 21st Century Office, such a possibility is taking place with the implementation of automated bench stock dispensers. The initiative is an effort to alleviate maintenance Airmen's frustrations over long wait times to get items they need to do their jobs. A number of AMC bases already have been outfitted with the dispensers.

"Imagine an upright refrigerator," said Tech. Sgt. Darwin Lowery, a crew chief from the 6th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at MacDill Air Force Base, Fla., "with 10 or 15 doors and once you punch in a code a door will open to the equipment you need."

Generally, aircraft maintenance technicians have to wait in a line for a composite tool kit member to check out bench stock items. The problem occurs when there are a lot of people needing help at the same and there are not enough people to assist.

Mr. Rod Hersom, a former maintenance Airman who now works with AMC's AFSO21 office, said it's simply a matter of efficiency. 

"For instance, if I'm checking in a toolbox in one window, I can't get someone else the screws they need because it's just me, one person working two windows," he said. "The dispensers make this process more efficient."

Since the 6th AMXS maintainers received their automated bench stock dispensers, Sergeant Lowery said it has helped reduce the lines and wait times for maintenance Airmen getting bench stock items in a timely manner.

"If you're day shift and you're trying to get a part when swing shift (Airmen are) trying to check out their tools, you can have up to 20 people in line." said Sergeant Lowery. "With the dispenser, you just walk up to it, scan your card, get what you need and get back to work."

"It's like a vending machine for aircraft hardware," added Senior Master Sgt. Gregory Kuhn, 6th AMXS support flight superintendent. "It's a real time saver."

The machines can hold a variety of items including screws, washers, nuts, bolts and even light bulbs. Items such as precious metals and O-rings, because they have a shelf life, still need to be obtained at the counter.

"We still have to stock the machine, but the machine even keeps track of the inventory," Sergeant Kuhn said. "If its inventory is low, it tells us what we need to re-order."

Sergeant Kuhn said since his unit started using the automated bench stock dispenser in late 2007, they have calculated an annual savings of 592 man hours, reduced stock replenishment time by 50 percent, freed up 16 square feet of shelf space and reduced the bench stock inventory time by 50 percent. He also sees even more potential for automated bench stock dispensers in the future.

"What if the machine would automatically call supply saying it needed 10 more widgets," Sergeant Kuhn said. "All we'd have to do is pick the order up and put it into the machine."

Col. Mark McLean, chief of the AMC AFSO21 office, said the initiative is helping improve operations and eliminate waste, both objectives of the AFSO21 process.

"The dispensers help eliminate waste," Colonel McLean said, "with the waste being waiting time. The automated bench stock dispensers are just an example of how Airmen are taking the lead in finding ways to make the Air Force more efficient. That's what AFSO21 is all about."