When it comes to sustaining readiness, Army leaders say the service must reign in the costs of maintaining equipment and divest itself of outdated gear.

Life cycle costs of maintaining equipment account for 70 percent of a product's cost, Hon. Heidi Shyu, assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics and technology said. Shyu opened the panel discussion titled "Sustaining Army Readiness to Live in Complex World," April 2, at the Association of the United States Army's Institute of Land Warfare Global Force Symposium and Exposition.

"The cost…is not in the design, not in procurement. It's the sustainment piece and typically we overlook that," Shyu said.

Shyu, speaking largely to industry representatives near the close of the three-day symposium, said more needs to be done in the design phase to increase reliability, focus on ease of use and reduce maintenance on upcoming products.

"We're good at hanging on to old equipment just in case we need it. We have some old stuff that hasn't been touched in years, in some case it's World War II era," she said. "We're spending money on stuff we don't need to sustain."

The Army is currently reviewing its entire portfolio under a 30-year plan called the long-range investment requirements analysis, or LIRA.

The Army's Chief of Staff for Logistics Lt. Gen. Gustave Perna said he welcomes the review that will include eliminating not only the old equipment, but also the requisite funding and training requirements.

"The challenge is not an easy one. But with the right leaders...we can execute," Perna said. On top of that challenge, he said, is the task of projecting expeditionary logistics into the next battlefield.

The Army's Organic Industrial Base plays a large role in sustainment and Army Materiel Command's Deputy Commanding General Lt. Gen. Patricia McQuistion said the Army has invested billions of dollars over the past three years to modernize the 23 sites that include arsenals, depots and ammunition plants.

"There's a major endeavor going on to invest in systems we will retain," McQuistion said. For those industries who want to partner with the Army and its organic industrial base, she touted the facilities and their safety and manufacturing upgrades. "We need to collaborate, not compete. We are investing in these facilities so you don't have to."

Panel members looked to the future and the logistics decisions that lay ahead.

Perna noted with increasing requirements, the Army won't be able to sustain its old model. "We need to build and sustain readiness over time by getting in front of the problem and talk about life cycle issues early on to ensure we understand all the implications of what we bring into the Army."

Bringing the political perspective to the discussion was long-time professional staffer on Congress' House Armed Service Committee Vickie F. Plunkett who painted a bleak picture of the defense budget moving forward.

"In this schizophrenic budget environment, how are you going to pay for all this?" Plunkett said. "How will you buy different things differently in a fiscal environment that vacillates year to year?"

But Plunkett also offered a glimmer of optimism in a proposed acquisition reform bill now available on the committee's website for review and comment.