COAST GUARD CUTTERS: ACTIONS NEEDED NOW TO ENSURE BETTER MANAGEMENT OF PARTS AND SUPPLIES

The General Accounting Office (GAO) was asked to examine the Coast Guard's inventory management system to identify any wasteful or inefficient practices that should be changed. GAO's review focused on the Coast Guard's inventory management system for its fleet of 240 cutters and addressed the following questions: Does the Coast Guard have the systems needed to effectively manage its inventory of spare and repair parts and supplies? If not, what initiatives does the Coast Guard have under way to improve its inventory management? Briefly, GAO found the following: The Coast Guard does not have the organizational structure or computer systems necessary to effectively management its inventory for supporting cutters. As a result, the Coast Guard does not know the value, type, quantity, and condition of many of the spare and repair parts in the inventory. Without such information, the Coast Guard cannot determine whether cutters have a shortage or an excess of parts or whether the parts are readily available when needed. According to Coast Guard officials, this lack of information has not seriously affected the Coast Guard's ability to carry out its missions, but it has resulted in costly emergency purchases and excess inventory. The Coast Guard recognizes these problems and has taken or plans to take actions to improve its inventory controls between now and fiscal year 2002. However, milestone dates have slipped for some initiatives. GAO agrees with the direction of the Coast Guard's long-term initiatives but believes that interim steps can achieve some immediate efficiencies and inventory savings and enhance the potential for the successful completion of the Coast Guard's long-term initiatives to improve its inventory controls.

• Record URL:
  • http://www.gao.gov/docdblite/summary.php?recflag=&rptno=RCED-95-62
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Report to the Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, Committee on Governmental Affairs, U.S. Senate.
• Corporate Authors:

  U.S. General Accounting Office

  441 G Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20548
• Publication Date: 1995-1

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: Appendices; Tables;
• Pagination: 18 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Cutting tools; Economic efficiency; Equipment; Improvements; Inventory control; Parts; Savings
• Identifier Terms: United States Coast Guard
• Uncontrolled Terms: Efficiency
• Old TRIS Terms: Cutters
• Subject Areas: Administration and Management; Economics; Marine Transportation;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00674245
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: GAO/RCED-95-62
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Feb 16 1995 12:00AM