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386th ELRS launches new automated fuels service

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Daira Jackson
  • 386 AEW Public Affairs

The Fuels Management Flight from the 386th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron installed a new automated fuels service on base April 29, 2022.

This new fuel service consists of two pedestals controlling two pumps each. One pedestal controls two diesel pumps, and another pedestal controls two gasoline pumps. A pedestal is a station with a display screen and a keypad where the customer enters their vehicle information before pumping gasoline into their vehicle.

“We are innovating and streamlining the way that we bill our customers,” said Tech. Sgt. Lloyd Mickens, section chief of the Fuels Information Service Center, 386th ELRS. “This new system provides immediate reporting of customer data and equipment status to the Fuels Service Center. This significantly speeds up our accounting processes, reduces errors, and allows us to identify fraud, waste, and abuse much more efficiently.”

Some additional benefits from this new fuels service include: prevents customers from putting the wrong fuel type into vehicles; accurately account for fuel and properly bill customers; and provide more refined consumption reports to foreign partners in support of the cross service acquisition agreements.

“I like this better because we get more accurate numbers for the accounting side of fuel,” said Senior Airman Kahlil Starling, fuels controller, 386th ELRS. “It's definitely better.”

Under the old process, customers wrote down their vehicle information and fuel quantities onto a form. This data was then collected at the end of each day for the accountant to go through each line and manually input the information in the database.

“Many times the accountant will come across handwriting that was illegible,” said Mickens. “They used their best judgment to determine the data. To ensure no errors, we team up with our foreign partners at the end of every month, and we would compare our fuel consumption reports to make sure that we were billing the correct amounts.”

Challenges with the old system included: ensuring paper was always out there and ensuring that people were using the paperwork and filling it out.

“I created profiles for vehicle control officers that needed their vehicles put in our service station and then I added some vehicles,” said Starling. “It took about a couple of weeks to get everything [in the system].”

Maj. Angela L. Petersen, commander, 386th ELRS applauded Mickens for his dedication to accelerating innovation and putting it into action to achieve better outcomes.

“You were able to make it happen and sync not just with the U.S. Air Force side, but with our coalition partners,” said Petersen. “To be able to make this function in the way that it's intended is important to ensuring we provide accurate fueling capabilities to all of our partners.”

The estimated daily service station diesel issues is 890 gallons and the estimated daily service station gasoline issues is 1,800 gallons.

“All work centers within the Fuels Management Flight played a vital role in revamping this Fuels Service Station,” said Mickens. “They worked hard throughout the old process and have worked twice as hard in getting the new process in place. Without them, this wouldn't be possible.”