Base program turns rags to riches

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Anthony J. Hyatt
  • 325th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  Most people have heard the fairy tale where a person turns his rags to riches, well in this case the Air Force Repair Enhancement Program here accomplishes this by turning trash into money.

The idea is simple. AFREP collects and repairs miscellaneous aircraft parts, electronics and practically anything else people throw away once they break, instead of buying completely new parts.

The money saved by AFREP falls into two categories cost savings or cost avoidance. Air Force Instruction 21-123 states that cost savings are earned when a repaired item is turned into supply and a credit is captured. In contrast, cost avoidance refers to items repaired and returned with no credit.

"Each year AFREP saves Tyndall thousands in cost avoidance and in some years millions is cost savings by repairing assets locally and quickly turning the items back into the supply system," said 1st Lt. Patrick Nobles, 325th Maintenance Group executive officer.

"These actions are critical to keeping the aging fleet of the F-15 eagles viable," said Lieutenant Nobles. "It's not just the F-15s that utilize the program, but AFREP is very involved with the F-22 programs and getting them established."

One item that has been recently repaired by AFREP is the flex shaft. A flex shaft is an assistant to the actuator to help move the exhaust nozzles on the F-15 engine. The engine requires five flex shafts per engine, in case one of the flex shafts stops working while a jet is flying the other four can compensate.

"Previously, engine shops were turning in flex shafts to supply and just discarding them," said Senior Airman Kimoreen McKenzie, 325th Maintenance Operations Squadron AFREP technician. "AFREP researched the cost-and-supply demand level to determine if the base has a need for them. Supply now transfers them to our account so AFREP can send them off to a vendor to get repaired.

Since AFREP starting repairing flex shafts, the Air Force has saved a total of $25,190.21, said Airman McKenzie.

The AFREP program saved Tyndall AFB more than $1 million dollars in fiscal year 2007. Half of that was returned to the wing.

Some items that were purchased with AFREP money in 2007 were new carpeting, new furniture, paint and new air conditioning systems in government vehicles according to Master Sgt. John Goerke, 325th Maintenance Group AFREP superintendent.

"Our AFREP program is a great benefit to the wing," said Col. Brett Haswell, 325th Maintenance Group commander.

In addition, AFREP helps in more than one way.

"Not only does it save the Air Force money, but it also saves a countless number of waiting hours," said Sergeant Goerke.

"We recently repaired a cable test set for a cost avoidance of $10,000," said Sergeant Goerke. "If the test set would have been ordered, the wait time would have been nearly a year."

AFREP technician get creative when repairing parts.

"Our Airmen get a chance to show their ingenuity and resourcefulness, while earning funds for wing and maintenance group projects," said Colonel Haswell. "If it wasn't for that funding, we wouldn't be able to expand our maintenance capabilities."