DAU collaborates with Lean Academy at Dover AFB.

Professor Marty Sherman from the Defense Acquisition University West Region and Professor Steve Brown of DAU's Capital and Northeast Region recently partnered with instructors from the University of Southern California, University of Alabama Huntsville, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, to deliver a Lean Academy to the U.S. Air Force 436th Airlift Wing at Dover Air Force Base, Del.

This Lean Academy represented a significant milestone for the university, as it was the first Lean Academy taught at an operational military organization since DAU joined the Lean Aerospace Initiative (LAI) Education Network (EdNet). LAI is based at MIT and is a consortium of government, industry, and academic organizations committed to the Lean transformation.

Twenty-eight servicemembers attended the class, ranging in rank from colonel to airman and representing every facet of maintenance. After brief introductory lessons, the students toured ILC's Dover facilities and witnessed firsthand the successes realized from the implementation of Lean. This was followed by simulations and exercises geared toward giving the students hands-on training with the use of various Lean tools. In the capstone exercise, the students developed a top-level Value Stream Map and then out-briefed their product to the Wing Maintenance Officer.

The Lean training allows for real-world problem-solving analysis and application. The tremendous success of this effort has led to the scheduling of additional Lean Academy offerings at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, and Eglin AFB, Fla.