The Department of Defense’s Office of Inspector General has recommended that the DOD undersecretary for acquisition and sustainment direct the U.S. Army and other service branches to perform an in-depth assessment of their processes for making spare parts forecasts that they submit to the Defense Logistics Agency.
Such reviews should include information on how the services can improve the spare parts forecasting process and a plan of action containing milestones and areas for improvement, DOD OIG said Thursday.
The recommendation was made after an OIG audit found that the Army overstated its forecasts for spare parts by over $200 million and ordered another $148 million worth of parts that it did not forecast in fiscal year 2021.
The audit sought to assess whether the Army submitted to DLA accurate spare parts estimates for its depot maintenance programs.
According to the report, the Army’s average spare parts forecast accuracy rate was only 20 percent in FY 2021.
An analysis of DLA data on spare parts forecasts showed that other service branches overstated by $767 million their estimates for some spare parts and ordered $355 million in additional spare parts they did not forecast.