DLA taps Lockheed in military automotive parts deal

Lockheed Martin Corp. will oversee the inventory and distribution of automotive parts used on all U.S. military ground vehicles under a Defense Logistics Agency contract potentially worth $5.6 billion over 10 years.

Under the contract, Lockheed Martin will manage the supply chain that ensures delivery of maintenance and replacement automotive parts to warfighters in set periods of time, company officials said today. The supply chain strategy requires achieving these objectives while minimizing inventory and employing a highly efficient distributed network.

To achieve its mission, the company draws on standing pricing agreements with more than 350 suppliers that produce more than 1,200 different parts. Many of the suppliers are small businesses, Lockheed Martin officials said.

The company’s supply chain management approach includes total asset visibility, information and progress-tracking metrics. The company uses the same approach to manage logistics and warehousing for tires used by all U.S. military aircraft.

DLA awarded an initial four-year base contract to the company through the Fleet Automotive Support Initiative-Global program.