The second criterion for developing a sustainment COP is depicting operations in the AO that affect sustainment operations. This visual representation should be the baseline from which the rest of the COP is built and can be based on the output from the intelligence functional cell during mission analysis. These measurements should be communicated and nested in operation orders to help inform the commander and enable timely decisions.
If there is not enough information to make inclusive and relevant assessments, the sustainment community in theater should establish internal measurements. If colors are used, it is important to provide a clear definition of what each color represents.Ī staff's understanding of how the commander visualizes information can go a long way in making the sustainment COP effective. Once sustainment elements are identified, operation orders should provide criteria such as stockage objectives or daily requirements in order to assess the capabilities and critical commodities employed or distributed through the AO. For an ESC, the sustainment COP should include regional hubs and distribution nodes such as logistics support areas, central receiving and shipping point yards, and aerial ports and seaports of debarkation across the AO, with special focus on the joint support area.įor a sustainment brigade, the depiction should be more focused and pay special attention to the sustainment forces within the division AO, including nondivisional units in the division support area. Important red (enemy) and blue (friendly) activities also should be depicted. The first criterion for a relevant COP is a terrain-oriented visual depiction of sustainment entities in the area of operations (AO).
Is the ESC or sustainment brigade able to deliver a commodity or service in time to maintain momentum or extend operational reach? Is the lead time associated with a particular commodity or service going to slow the pace of operations? If the sustainment commander and staff understand that time factor, they can more easily plan and manage expectations. This time starts prior to the commodity entering the theater of operations, continues as it transits the supply chain, and concludes with its delivery to the end user.Įssentially, a commander and staff must understand how long it will take to influence operations. For an ESC, lead times typically range from 96 to 120 hours, while sustainment brigades require 48 to 96 hours to get supplies to customers.Ī way to decipher the time factor on a COP is to map the time it takes for a commodity or service to travel from start to finish. A unit commander requires time to make decisions and deliver support or commodities to the end user. To be effective, a sustainment COP must focus on efforts and commodities over time. It is used to identify future gaps, shortfalls, or excess capacity within the sustainment network. The sustainment COP synchronizes requirements with capabilities over time and provides a single framework that represents the current situation. The sustainment COP also provides context that commanders can use to describe and direct future operations. The sustainment COP is how sustainment forces visualize and assess the effects of sustainment on the battlefield. Over the course of several warfighter exercises, Operations Group Sierra identified that developing a sustainment COP is a common challenge. The sustainment community's challenge is to sustain the other warfighting functions throughout the operation by increasing operational reach, providing freedom of action, and prolonging endurance.Ī sustainment common operational picture (COP) provides sustainment commanders with a clear picture of the sustainment situation at any given time and is critical to increasing operational reach, freedom of action, and prolonged endurance. Its Operations Group Sierra provides observer/coach trainers to instruct expeditionary sustainment commands (ESCs) and sustainment brigades during warfighter exercises.ĭuring a warfighter exercise, the decisive action training environment replicates phase III of joint operations against a near-peer competitor.
The Mission Command Training Program based at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, is the Army's only worldwide deployable combat training center. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL 2 / 2 Show Caption + Hide Caption – (Photo Credit: U.S. 1 / 2 Show Caption + Hide Caption – (Photo Credit: U.S.