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June 2004 Welcome to The CTMA Connector, a monthly newsletter designed to provide news and ideas about the Commercial Technologies for Maintenance Activities (CTMA) program. The CTMA program is a joint Department of Defense/National Center for Manufacturing Sciences (DoD/NCMS) effort promoting collaborative technology development between industry and the DoD maintenance and repair facilities. This newsletter highlights ongoing projects, serves as a forum for promoting new project ideas, and provides other news of interest to the program. Our goal is to stimulate your participation and solicit your input. Feel free to submit items for the newsletter as well as any suggestions to make it more useful. More information about the program can be found at http://ctma.ncms.org/. To subscribe or unsubscribe to the CTMA Connector, send a message to listserv@listserv.ncms.org with "subscribe CTMANewsletter" or "unsubscribe CTMANewsletter" in the subject line. The Anniston Army Depot is one of the most active military facilities in the CTMA program. We asked the Commanding Officer, Colonel Gerald Bates, a few questions regarding the Depot and their needs: What are your largest workloads at the present, and how do you see this changing in the future? Repair and overhaul of heavy combat vehicles and their components to support ongoing military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan is the largest workload. This also includes any support for the deployed forces on an emergency basis similar to the Armor Survivability Kits for the HMMWV. Little change foreseen in the near future. Long-range plans will be directed towards the fielding and maintenance of remaining legacy and Future Combat Systems (FCS). What do you see as the key technology areas you will require to service future workloads? Key technological areas will be those with the potential for reducing costs and improving efficiencies associated with the many processes involved with the overhaul and repair of both legacy and FCS weapons systems. Major areas for legacy system support are those that improve or replace existing processes with more cost effective solutions. Some of the major technological areas for FCS support are titanium manufacturing & welding, composites repair & manufacturing and processes which reduce environmental & safety risks. How can the CTMA program help you increase your readiness and reduce your costs? Keep the depot informed and continue to provide an effective forum for showcasing new technologies with potential applications that will benefit the many different processes for overhaul and repair of ground combat systems. How else can industry or other DoD facilities help you achieve your goals? Many ongoing efforts by the aerospace and nautical industries, public and private, have potential applications to Anniston Army Depot’s work. Continued communication between the services and private industry is beneficial to all. Any effort directed towards establishing joint information exchange and collaboration is valuable. Recently Completed Project: Extending Advanced Distributed Learning Initiatives through Maintenance Activity Mentoring Systems – Phase II (MMS II) This project tested the effectiveness of distributed learning technologies for maintenance activities. A Maintenance Mentoring System (MMS) was developed by L3 Communications (formerly EER Systems) as part of the MMS II project. The MMS was pilot tested at the Naval Air Depot (NADEP) Cherry Point, North Carolina to provide timely and accurate procedural and required reference information to the F-402-408B Harrier aircraft engine assembly workers. The MMS provides a window-based electronic performance support system on portable computers viewable with a non-proprietary web browser. The MMS integrates data and procedures from technical manuals with other job-related materials (e.g. schematics, wiring diagrams, instructive videos, parts data, and audio snippets). This data is arranged according to a technician’s natural work sequence and immediate information needs, eliminating time-consuming cross referencing. Additionally, the MMS was to facilitate the implementation of ISO 9000 by improving the ability of the workers to interact with and provide improvements to the existing process and procedures. Didactics, another collaborative team member, conducted an independent effectiveness evaluation of the MMS implementation at the NADEP and compared it to the traditional paper-based approach. The objective was two fold: to determine the extent to which the MMS was effective at capturing experience knowledge thereby reducing the time for artisan certification, and to determine any savings in time for engine repair and assembly. Following the evaluation, findings were recorded, conclusions were made and recommendations were provided. Conclusions were:
For further information, contact the NCMS project manager, Mike Gnam, 734-995-4971. Calendar Items:
We appreciate your feedback. Please contact Chuck Ryan with suggestions or input on other topics that would be of interest to you in this newsletter. The CTMA Program is sponsored by the Department of Defense; the content of this newsletter does not necessarily reflect the position or policy of the government; no official endorsement should be inferred. | ||||
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