HERLONG, Calif. – Five Sierra Army Depot industrial artisans joined a team comprised across U.S. Army Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command in helping an armor battalion improve its equipment readiness, at the National Training Center in Fort Irwin, California, Aug. 25-31, 2022, in preparation for the battalion’s deployment to Europe.
The Sierra Army Depot team – composed of Jason Haggerty, Operations Support Division chief; Raul Rodriguez, mobile equipment operator; Chris Kendall, mobile crane operator; John Combs, mechanical equipment repairer; and Robert Mendoza, equipment operator; performed maintenance and repairs on several vehicles – some that had been non-mission capable for two years. Resulting in improving the battalion’s vehicle readiness from 50 to 80 percent – as the battalion prepared to deploy in support of Operation Atlantic Resolve.
“The work the Sierra Army Depot team accomplished at the National Training Center underpins our reputation for quality and readiness,” Lt. Col. Amy Cory, Sierra Army Depot commander, said. “They exemplified Sierra Army Depot's mission with responsive sustainment solutions supporting the Army and Joint Force.”
The work included repairing and replacing several components of multiple M2A3 Bradley Fighting Vehicles. The team also repaired a medium tactical vehicle and assisted another armored battalion in repairing two Humvees. The team also completed more than 100 quality inspections on vehicles and equipment as well as cross-trained with a group of Soldiers on quality assurance.
The mission provided an opportunity for Sierra Army Depot to take its skillset on the road, and display what the depot does for the U.S. Army and the Department of Defense on a daily basis from its location in northern California.
“We take great pride in providing critical skills and supplies to units on a daily basis,” Cory said. “We are also very proud of our ability to rapidly deploy those skillsets and supplies in support of unit readiness.”
The mission also served as an opportunity for depot personnel to get first-hand experience through the eyes of the customer. The parts that were used to repair the vehicle components came from Sierra Army Depot through the depot’s parts pull and parts harvest process.
“As soon as I saw the package, I knew it was one of our parts,” Haggerty said. “So, I got the experience of being our own customer.”
The experience enabled depot personnel to be able to evaluate and improve depot processes from the customer’s perspective.
“It allowed me to be able to critique our own process,” Haggerty said. “I got to see how it was packaged up, and what were the inconveniences of the packaging, was it aesthetically pleasing, and so on. It’s not often you get to be on the receiving end of your own stuff.”
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