From the U.S. Government Accountability Office, www.gao.gov

Transcript for: Poor Conditions at Military Depots 

Description: The average condition of facilities at most U.S. military
depots is poor, and the average age of depot equipment is past its
expected useful life.  GAO looked at the condition of depots and the
services' efforts to develop depot optimization plans.

Related GAO Works: GAO-19-242: Military Depots: Actions Needed to
Improve Poor Conditions of Facilities and Equipment that Affect
Maintenance Timeliness and Efficiency

Released: April 2019


[ Background Music ] 

[ Map of the U.S. shows up on the screen with logos for the Navy, Army,
Air Force, and Marine Corps ] About 80,000 people work at 21 Department
of Defense industrial depots all over the United States preparing [
Videos of ships, aircrafts, and ground vehicles come across the screen ]
ships, aircraft, and ground vehicles. Many of these facilities [ Old
photos of Depots for WWI and WWII show up on the screen ] were
originally designed and built during World War 1 and World War 2. As a
result, many facilities are not up to modern standards or large enough
for efficient work. [ An animated bar graph comes across the screen
showing the condition of the depots ] And more than half of all the
depots rely on facilities that are on average in poor condition. 

[ A photo from inside of a hanger ] For example, in one hangar,
maintainers can only work on a single FA-18 Super Hornet at a time
because the facility was never designed to handle the power requirements
of modern aircraft. If they work two at a time, the entire hangar loses
power. [ A map of a facility and its workflows shows up on the screen ]
Poorly configured facilities can cause extra work and make additional
damage more likely. For example, a weapon's system might need to travel
several miles through a poorly configured process, [ Picture of parts on
a truck being moved during maintenance ] which can expose it to
additional damage through accidents or environmental factors such as
heat and humidity. 

[ Another bar graph shows the number of equipment that are past their
service life ] In addition, most of the depots are using equipment that
is past its expected useful life. [ A photo of rags on equipment is
shown ] Old equipment is at greater risk of failure and frequently needs
repairs. And when equipment breaks down, [ A sign on a piece of
equipment that says "Condemed Equipment. No Longer in Use ] work might
have to stop. 

[ Video of machines moving in a facility and the words "GAO-19-242"
which then turns into "gao.gov" ] For more information and
recommendations on how DOD can improve facilities and equipment at its
depots, check out our report at gao.gov.