MARINE CORPS LOGISTICS BASE BARSTOW, Calif. -- A batch of 50, M-923 and M-925, five-ton trucks arrived at Maintenance Center Barstow from U.S. Army Reserve units around the country to undergo a pre-repair inspection used to assess the amount of damage that has been inflicted on the vehicles, and whether it would be better to repair the truck or return it to its owner.
Following the inspection, certain trucks will qualify for repair by the Maintenance Center Barstow crew, while others would be sent back to their respective units.
The Army Reserve Command most likely decided to send these trucks to MCB due to the reputation that Cost Work Center 723's Inspection and Repair Only As Necessary program has around the Department of Defense, said Jeff Berndt, heavy mobile equipment mechanic for CWC 723. Their reputation is one that guarantees fast efficient service for a very reasonable price.
The IROAN program, currently taking place at the maintenance center, is meant to give clients a quick repair of their lightly damaged equipment, and that is most likely why the Reserve Command sent their vehicles here, said Berndt.
Unfortunately, sometimes the trucks that are delivered to CWC 723 for the IROAN program cannot be repaired, Berndt said.
"They say they send us trucks that are repairable, but they really aren't. I'd say out of 100 trucks, only about 20 are repairable," said Bobby Stonebraker, heavy mobile equipment mechanic for CWC 723.
A five-ton truck needs a minimum of four batteries to conduct a levels check, but some of the trucks don't even have that many, Stonebraker said. When this happens, the truck would not even be considered for the IROAN program.
The reserves have old equipment that are hand-me-downs from active duty units, said Morris Little, heavy mobile equipment mechanic for CWC 723.
There was one truck that had a bunch of pieces of metal come out of the oil tank after the oil was drained from it, Stonebraker said.
With the use of the IROAN program though, units are able to get their equipment in serviceable shape quickly and for a low price, said Berndt. It's just better when the equipment they send are repairable and can be done inexpensively.