The transitioning of the Defense Transportation System toward complementing best practices in supply chain management efficiently and securely.

THE TRANSITIONING OF THE DEFENSE TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM TOWARD COMPLEMENTING BEST PRACTICES IN SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT EFFICIENTLY AND SECURELY
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Abstract
The Defense Transportation System (DTS) is in dire need of restructuring so as to better manage and improve its supply chain. To achieve this end, the U.S Department of Defense needs to predict and pre-empt problems long before they actually happen. Thus DoD needs to focus more on the enhancement of its domestic transportation management practices by incorporating private sector best practices to better enhance efficiency, transportation logistics and management and further integrate private sector transportation practices that can improve transportation efficiency and effectiveness. For this to happen, the top level management at DoD needs to commit themselves towards the implementation of best SCM and transportation practices aimed at cutting costs and boosting efficiency. ThusDoD will need to adopt transportation functions within its logistics division by decreasing the number of carriers and further leverage on high quality carriers to boost transportation system stability.
Introduction to the topic, problem or thesis statement
Thesis statement: The ability of the Department of Defense to effectively and efficiently manage its transportation system has been largely hamperedby the large number of carriers, lack of standardization, redundancy in automation and insufficient funding for oversight and transitioning among other factors(Prajogo, Oke & Olhager, 2016). Nonetheless, DoD has made significant progress toward decreasing the total number of carriers by contracting high quality and high performing carriers. The Defense Transportation Command (DTC) also needs to adopt some of the strategies used by the commercial sector which includes benchmarking of transportation systems, processes and realignment of costs with those of the private shipping firms (Page, 2016). This would help reduce redundancies while promoting cost reduction and efficiency through standardization and realignment of the Defense Transportation Systems (DTS)by incorporating commercial industry best practices.
Defense Transportation Systems (DTS) can be defined as the collection of transportation systems, activities and carriers that either work under the U.S Department of Defense or are contracted by the Department of Defense(Tseng, Burns, Simpson & Berkowitz, 2017).The DTS encompasses commercial and organic aircrafts, warships as well as other contracted commercial carriers working for the Defense Transportation Command. It also includes all other U.S military air and ocean operational terminals both within and outside the United States.
The military supply chain also falls within the domain of the US Defense Transportation Systems and uses supply chain management practices that are markedly different from the conventional supply chain management practices used by the commercial firms (Tseng, Burns, Simpson & Berkowitz, 2017). Some of the transportation best practices not supported by the DTS include Just-In-Time (JIT) that largely roots for less inventory holdingwhereas the Department of Defenses’ supply chain supports large...