Squadron Owned Equipment: Replacing consumables

[N Harmon]

I would like to know how other units who have squadron-owned gear handle the replacement of consumables in said gear. Do you make the person who borrows the equipment responsible for replacing things like MREs, batteries, etc? Or does the unit purchase replacements? I can see pros/cons of going either way, but am curious what other units do.

[Eclipse]

It depends on the reason.

MRE's?  I'd make the person eating them replace / pay for them.

Batteries?  Depends on the use - some might be replaced via mission 108's, some from the budget of the activity.

[cap235629]

I would say things for PERSONAL use should be replaced by the user (MRE's Batteries for personal gear)

[arajca]

Batteries for ISRs would depend on whether the radio is issued to a member or kept at the unit ans handed out at activities. If the former, the member should buy the batteries. If the later, the unit should.

If you're talking about the batteries for the CAP purchased EFJ handhelds, they can be replaced through the NTC, Communications Equipment Repair Request system.

MRE's would depend on whether the squadron said they would provide the food for a particular activity or not. Either way, make sure it is clear if you are expecting the member to replace MRE's.

[Eclipse]

Batteries for ISRs would depend on whether the radio is issued to a member or kept at the unit ans handed out at activities. If the former, the member should buy the batteries. If the later, the unit should.

Why should where the radios are kept change who pays for batteries?  Why should a member with issued radios pay for them?

CAP radios can't be used for anything but CAP business on CAP activities, any of which, mission or otherwise, should have a budget
or a pass the hat.  I've bought plenty of batteries over the years, but that doesn't mean it should be the SOP that the person issued
the device is responsible for the cost of using it.

[N Harmon]

I would not consider the rechargable battery on an EFJ handheld to be "consumable", but I'm not a logistics person so I do not know.

I am not sure I would like to have different rules for different consumables; a la members have to buy replacement MREs, but the unit will replace flashlight batteries, light sticks, and matches. I would like it to be consistent.

And the MREs I am referring to would be the one in the squadron-owned 24-hour pack that our members are allowed to use. If the activity provided food, I would expect the pack to come back with either the original MRE or a replacement.

It seems that other units do not have set rules concerning this, so maybe I am over thinking it. What I am trying to avoid is a situation where someone signs out 24-hour gear with missing or unusable items. I am looking at ways to make refit part of the return process. And I agree 100% with Andrew that this needs to be clear up front.

[Eclipse]

I would say it is reasonable that anything checked-out should come back complete and ready for use - the first 3 "R's" checked off, but who pays for what, I think will vary, unless you have a big unit ops budget.

Rather than rehash my opinion on this, I would suggest that the "powers" decide and publish a unit SOP, that way no one will be confused or caught off guard.

[whatevah]

The only consumable gear my squadron had was batteries. The member had to keep it ready for use, so they would have to replace the batteries immediately.  However, they could file for reimbursement from the unit if they wanted to.  Talking about L-Per batteries here.  The squadron owned GPS was an antique from the days when civilian units weren't very accurate, so members would use their own. They'd provide their own batteries (usually rechargeable).   For unit-level bivouacs and such, radio batteries were provided by the unit since it was a unit "cache" of radios.  The member that stored (key word!) the radio cache was not the sole user so wasn't responsible for them, we kept a couple packs of fresh batteries in the tote box and would buy new as needed.  Usually right before the event.

I don't see why food would be "issued" by a unit.  You're going to eat regardless of where you are.  Plus, different people have different food likes and requirements.

[Eclipse]

I don't see why food would be "issued" by a unit.  You're going to eat regardless of where you are.  Plus, different people have different food likes and requirements.

I thought that as well, and a lot of people wouldn't have access to MRE's anyway, or would replace a "good" one with their least favorite.

IMHO the 24 gear should be sans food which would be brought by the user.

[N Harmon]

Rather than rehash my opinion on this, I would suggest that the "powers" decide and publish a unit SOP, that way no one will be confused or caught off guard.

That is precisely what I am doing, but I wanted to get a feel for what other units did.

Also, we're not just talking MREs and batteries here. We're talking bandaids, duct tape, leaf bags, matches, chem lights, paracord, sunscreen, bug spray, flag tape; there are a lot of consumables in 24 hour gear. Not all of it is going to be used every mission, but nonetheless it is all there.

I think the sensible thing is to have the unit buy a suitable inventory of replacement consumables, and then do one of two things: Either have my unit pay for all replacements, or else require the member to replace by either buying a replacement or reimbursing the unit for replacement.

[jks19714]

In our cadet squadron, it is a matter of contributions of "stuff" or the cadet/family coming up with the money.

Fortunately, our ES officer is a resourceful fellow and is able to offer the cadets a group purchase of the items we don't have in stock.

Even so, it's an astonishing amount of gear, especially if the cadet is going to NESA or HMRS.

john

[arajca]

For cached 24 hour packs, I recommend having a checklist with what is in each kit. Make it the member's ultimate responsibility to restock the kit, but if the unit has a supply of pieces/parts they can use that. It the consumed item(s) cannot be replaced from the stash, the member needs to procure it. The member would need to personally do the restock, not leave it for the ESO or LG to tell them what they need to provide at some later date.

Then take it a step further and seal the kits with zip-ties if possible once they have been inspected. Makes it easy to see at a glance if the kit in the cache is ready or not.

[N Harmon]

Then take it a step further and seal the kits with zip-ties if possible once they have been inspected. Makes it easy to see at a glance if the kit in the cache is ready or not.

I like that idea a lot.

[phillybiker]

 Zip ties are the way to go. thats how we do it and the system works well