DMO Officer Commanding, Strike Reconnaissance Systems Program Office, Group Captain Adrian Morrison offers On Target readers a unique insight into the impact the Defence Reform Program has had on the deeper maintenance and logisitics support of the F-111.

In 1997, the Defence Reform Program directed the market testing of the RAAF's 501 Wing which was responsible for the deeper maintenance and logistics support of the
F-111.

As a result of the market testing 501 Wing was broken into four commercial Business Units under contract to the Strike Reconnaissance Systems Program Office (SRSPO). While the contracts that were created work well at a tactical level, strategic management did not work as well in practice.

Within the new structure each of the contractors has a direct relationship with SRSPO, and SRSPO retains responsibility for management coordination.

When the Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO) enters into sustainment contracts for complex weapon systems such as for the F-111, it is not merely creating a bilateral relationship with the industry supplier. It is entering a more complex system which includes multiple supplier and customer relationships, each of which operate at multiple organisational levels. Anyone who views this relationship as simple is likely to be disappointed.

In its simplest form, the supply chain formed between a SPO, industry and a Defence customer is a triangle. Unless the SPO creates a system where all transactions come through the SPO to the customer (not the recommended solution), the system constructed means at least one of the three parties has no visibility of every transaction.

What complexities do we get as we move around this triangle?

• There are three different players, each with different goals and objectives, and different responsibilities and resources. For example, the customer wants to use their weapon system, and knows that the contractor is the person with the capabilities to actually deliver the product to them. The contractor wants to make a profit from its business activity and is subject to various commercial drivers that do not apply to the other two players. The SPO needs to control its funds and ensure that value for money is obtained for the Commonwealth.

• Each organisation has a different internal management structure. Consequently, the levels of the organisations are unlikely to perfectly map. This results in many different touch points and gateways into each organisation. The immediacy of
e-mail also compounds the problem further with information travelling at the speed of light outside the visibility of managers.

• Sustainment of a weapon system has characteristics that align somewhat to larger marketplaces rather than major acquisition projects. A significant characteristic is the volume of relatively small transactions that occur, all of which need to be managed both individually and in aggregate. Although there is a macro level of predictability in weapon system support, the performance at the micro level is somewhat problematic. There is the risk that the overall system will become chaotic unless carefully managed, as macro level managers are not easily able to pull levers which control individual micro-level demands placed on the system.

• For a major weapon system like the F-111, the customer is also a significant supplier and has responsibilities for asset accounting and asset maintenance. The performance of the customer can have a significant impact on the performance outcomes of the entire system.

• The 'industry node' in our particular triangle actually has five participants, all of which are in contract to SRSPO. The contracts do not define the actual mechanisms by which these contractors interact.

Ultimately, the overall goal of the management system is to maximise the performance of the weapon system within the available resources. Effort needs to be put into making the system more efficient to free resources to focus on priority issues within the weapon system, or to free up resources for other projects.

However, in the environment that we have created, the contractual arrangements in isolation are insufficient to achieve this goal. Consequently, to deal with the complexities of the triangle, SRSPO, its supporting industry and customer (82 Wing and Air Combat Group) have created a strategic management system focussing on relationship management. Ultimately, in order to be efficient, a system of trust has to be established, to let the system work without the added burden of bureaucracy.

In 2002, Boeing, in its role as limited prime for the F-111 weapon system proposed that an Integrated Management Team be formed between SRSPO, Boeing and 82 Wing to set strategic direction for the weapon system. This has evolved into a number of management structures which set management direction and resolve issues between the major players.

In 2004, the F-111 Support Management Board was created in order to ensure that all major players involved in the management of the F-111 weapon system were brought together and given the opportunity to contribute to overall weapon system planning and performance management.

The Board exists outside the contract structure, and has been highly successful by ensuring each player’s understanding of its roles and responsibilities is consistent.

Particular successes have been achieved in engaging industry in planning for industrial capacity, and in budget management. The board members are SRSPO, 82 Wing, Air Combat Group, Raytheon, Tasman Aviation Enterprises, Rosebank Engineering and the (in-house) Engines Business Unit.

The F-111 Integrated Management Team (IMT) now has a focus on setting direction for the prime F-111 platform. The IMT consists of the Officers Commanding SRSPO and 82 Wing, and the Boeing Australia manager for the F-111. Issues being addressed by the IMT include operational maintenance capabilities, status of technical publications, fuel tank management and radio performance.

Overall, the stewardship of the F-111 weapon system depends on the effective relationships that have developed between all participants. The contributions made by the managers in our supporting industry have been substantial. SRSPO particularly acknowledges the support provided by Boeing Australia, Raytheon Australia, Tasman Aviation Enterprises, Rosebank Engineering and the F-111 Engines Business Unit to the maintenance of our trust relationship.