Chapter 308: The Army’s “first Row”
The new model of converting the Cook Platoon to a Central Kitchen is a relatively big change, requiring kitchen renovations and re-arranging work tasks.
It would take at least half a month to complete everything, and even the fastest estimate would be a week before getting on track.
Chen Jun decided to inspect after completion, temporarily handing over the work to the Support Company’s Deputy Company Commander, who would personally oversee the Cookhouse’s transformation.
Immediately after, led by Xu Zhiqiang, Chen Jun and Shi Jin arrived at the “Supply Platoon”.
Previously, the Supply Platoon had only forty people, ranking second to last among the Support Company’s platoons, with only ten more people than the Sanitation Platoon.
After expansion, it underwent a big change, with numbers jumping to sixty people.
Climbing from the bottom to the front.
Because fuel is the biggest item in mechanized troops, and two Fuel Squads couldn’t handle the fuel supply for eight companies, an extra Fuel Squad was specifically added.
The three Fuel Squads total thirty warriors, and operations are now fairly stable.
Chen Jun thoroughly toured the Fuel Squad several times, specifically checking their work log, and inquiring about relevant situations from warriors in each squad.
The problems found were still there, but much better compared to other platoons and companies.
All minor issues.
For example, fuel trucks and fuel tankers are just right under normal conditions with no issues, but if a vehicle breaks down, it affects fuel supply.
If a company doesn’t replenish fuel in time, it delays normal training.
To solve this minor issue, Chen Jun decided to add more on the original basis, ensuring the Fuel Squad has sufficient spare vehicles.
Even if two or three break down at the same time, it won’t affect normal training.
Everything in the Pilot Combined Arms Battalion is in exploration, and higher expenses than regular troops is normal; Chen Jun felt the superiors wouldn’t have objections.
Besides that, there were a series of minor problems, all noted down in detail by Shi Jin.
Later, after making time to solve the minor problems, Shi Jin, as Battalion Sergeant Major, would be responsible for execution, allowing Chen Jun to be more relaxed, while further elevating Shi Jin’s right to speak in the battalion.
Making all battalion warriors deeply realize that the sergeant major, big or small, is still an official.
Leaving the Fuel Squad, next door was the Ammunition Squad, and the Logistics Squad providing various sundries for the entire battalion; situations were even better than the Fuel Squad.
The nature of these two squads’ work inherently lacks urgency.
Supplies last a long time once provided.
Each company sends lists of required ammunition and supplies to Battalion Headquarters for approval, then picks them up themselves with vehicles using the approved receipts.
These two squads just receive receipts, tally the corresponding items; handling is done by each company.
Essentially like warehouse administrators, not much intensity.
Even to support eight companies in the entire battalion, just two full ten-person squads are fully sufficient, and work intensity is relatively light.
Chen Jun just instructed the two squad leaders that inbound and outbound inventory registration must be detailed, never keeping sloppy or muddled accounts; basically nothing else to say.
“Isn’t this only fifty people? Where did the other ten go?”
Chen Jun toured the entire Supply Platoon and found that even including the platoon leader, there were still nine warriors he hadn’t seen.
“Report to Deputy Battalion Commander, the Supply Platoon is quite special; its supply work is unstable.”
Company Commander Xu Zhiqiang quickly explained: “For example, if many companies are shooting at the target today, the Ammunition Squad might be busy; tomorrow if several companies do field exercises at the same time, fuel demand might be high.
And each squad’s work has certain technical aspects; drawing personnel from other squads for duty might cause accidents due to unfamiliarity with equipment.
So to eliminate such accident possibilities, the platoon leader formed an Emergency Squad with ten people.
This Emergency Squad has no assigned area, with enough time to learn skills from each squad, so when needed, the Emergency Squad can be mobilized anytime to fill temporary personnel gaps.”
The Ammunition Squad needs familiarity with various ammunition types, and storage and maintenance conditions for bullets, artillery shells, grenades, rockets, etc.
The Fuel Squad needs familiarity with various refueling matters and use of storage and refueling equipment.
The Logistics Squad’s various supplies also require familiarity.
If not familiar with these, temporary duty really might cause accidents; even small things like issuing wrong ammunition or adding wrong fuel would seriously affect training.
So having a batch of professionals for duty is indeed a very good plan.
Later generations, to solve personnel replenishment difficulties, Heavy Combined Arms Brigades all attach an extra Replacement Battalion, full of fully professional proficient warriors; whichever battalion lacks manpower can immediately get supplements.
Though huge gap in numbers, they share the same ingenuity.
The effects are similar!
The combined arms unit’s multi-arm coordination combat characteristics mean each branch of service is familiar with different domains, making personnel supplements a big trouble.
How to quickly supplement missing professionals is the most thorny problem for combined arms units.
Chen Jun hadn’t even intervened yet, and the Supply Platoon figured out a solution on its own, and a pretty good one at that, making Chen Jun very satisfied.
A unit ultimately can’t rely on just one person; everyone thinking of methods to progress together is the best solution.
…
The Supply Platoon’s refinement was the lightest; Chen Jun basically just walked a circle without using much brainpower, improving his mood quite a bit.
But arriving at the Maintenance Platoon for inspection revealed quite a thorny problem.
When Chen Jun made the plan, he considered from a conventional angle: daily training vehicle damage shouldn’t be severe.
So the Maintenance Platoon had only fifty people, plus platoon leader making fifty-one.
However, reality differed greatly from imagination.
This year, the Combined Arms Battalion is doing intensive training; various training intensities are very high, a big test for people and equally for vehicles.
Especially as a fully mechanized unit, whenever the troops move, wheels follow.
Under at least ten hours of high-intensity training daily, even with military quality assurance, each company’s vehicles can’t withstand such usage.
The result is that as training continues, faulty vehicles keep increasing.
Initially, each company had backup vehicles to substitute, sending faulty ones to Maintenance Platoon, keeping training on track.
Since companies didn’t have urgent demands, Maintenance Platoon could barely keep up with repairs.
But it only lasted less than two months.
The Maintenance Platoon’s repair workshop piled up with faulty vehicles, even the parade ground outside fully parked with them, all sent by companies awaiting repair.
Each company’s backup vehicles were now insufficient, causing training to lack available vehicles.
Even overcoming minor faults for use, any vehicle that could still run continued to the training ground, but companies’ training support vehicles were less than seventy percent.
Normal training couldn’t unfold; things would only get worse.
Chen Jun wasn’t in the battalion then.
Gao Cheng, to prevent his Combined Arms Battalion from being dragged down by this, about four months ago first mobilized his connections.
Personally telephoned his father, describing the Maintenance Platoon’s dire situation.
Gao’s Father highly valued the Pilot Combined Arms Battalion, agreed without a word, and within a week drew thirty professional repairmen from various places, dispatching them to expand the Maintenance Platoon to three squads.
Maintenance Platoon went from five squads to eight squads, numbers surging to eighty people.
Becoming the Support Company platoon with most personnel.
Even the regiment’s platoon with most personnel.
The thirty repairmen drawn from various troops had top-tier skills, able to repair tanks, armored vehicles, and various military vehicles.
It effectively solved the problem, quickly reducing accumulated faulty vehicles.
Steel Seventh Battalion could then train normally.
However, while the training dilemma was solved, a new problem arose.
Same as the Cookhouse.
That is, requiring Maintenance Platoon high-intensity work: normally over eleven hours daily repairing vehicles, and over fourteen hours standard during high training volume.
It could be said…
Over these past three-plus months, everyone’s daily mode in Maintenance Platoon, besides eating, drinking, excreting, sleeping, the rest was repairing vehicles.
Without maintaining this high intensity, faulty vehicles would gradually increase again.
Only by keeping this high intensity could it balance with faulty vehicles from Steel Seventh Battalion’s daily training.
Though soldiers can endure hardship, and extra work for training results is justifiable.
But Chen Jun wanted a healthy, virtuous cycle Combined Arms Battalion model, promotable as the entire army’s standard.
This exploitative desperate effort mode would definitely cause problems over time.
Company Commander Xu Zhiqiang knew, and Gao Cheng always knew.
But they couldn’t think of good solutions, nor keep requesting more personnel from superiors due to high work intensity.
Maintenance Platoon already had eighty people; adding more would make it a Maintenance Company establishment.
So the entire battalion knew the situation; without a way, no solution, could only maintain status quo to ensure training first.
Now that Chen Jun discovered it, he couldn’t let it continue.
He must solve this problem!
What is a Pilot Combined Arms Battalion?
Constantly finding problems in training, thinking of ways to solve and perfect various issues, avoiding pitfalls for later troops.
That’s the meaning of a pilot!
“Since no way to add more personnel, then on existing basis think of methods, make maintenance mode more scientific, work in smarter ways to reduce work intensity.”
Chen Jun’s words were straightforward, but Xu Zhiqiang and Shi Jin didn’t understand.
More precisely.
They didn’t know what method was smarter.
“Deputy Battalion Commander, no fear of you laughing, I’m at my wits’ end anyway; I’ve thought for months upfront, couldn’t find any clue; these heavy dark circles didn’t come from little lost sleep over this.”
Company Commander Xu Zhiqiang smiled self-mockingly, unafraid of Chen Jun scolding him for uselessness; he’d been tormented enough, heart-weary and uncaring.
“Scientific work methods? I understand each word, but together I really don’t, though…”
Shi Jin chuckled and said: “I believe as long as Deputy Battalion Commander is here, no problem can’t be solved; you’ll definitely think of a method.”
“Yeah yeah, Deputy Battalion Commander you’re no ordinary, the entire army’s most excellent youth cadre; if you can’t solve it, anyone coming would just stare helplessly.” Xu Zhiqiang joined in the flattery.
“Alright, you two stop blowing; keep going and I’ll float to the sky.”
Chen Jun smiled and glared at them, then pondered a moment and said: “Don’t say, I do have a good idea that might solve it.”
“Really?”
Xu Zhiqiang’s eyes lit up instantly, full of anticipation looking at Chen Jun: “If this problem can be solved, I’ll definitely sleep well tonight; these dark circles can finally fade.”
“My idea is this…”
Chen Jun slightly organized his thoughts, then expounded at length.
Roughly, Chen Jun inspected Maintenance Platoon everywhere, checked work log and related records, discovering a key piece of information.
That the Maintenance Platoon’s maintenance mode was very conventional parallel style.
The eight squads had no division of labor at all, just the troops’ common big pot rice mode, everyone together repairing vehicles.
Just queuing from start to end, repairing one by one.
And when companies had faulty vehicles unable to drive over, needing Maintenance Platoon to tow back, whoever was free went.
At first glance no issue; troops always do work together, rest together when done.
But this traditional big pot rice mode actually had many drawbacks, greatly reducing work efficiency.
Efficiency down, work duration skyrockets.
Ultimately becoming the current situation: everyone in long hours daily, no slacking, yet efficiency not high.
Chen Jun’s solution was adjustments targeting these two major aspects.
First, scrap the big pot rice mode, conduct unified assessment of the eighty repairmen, confirming each’s most adept domain.
Group those best at tank repair together, armored vehicle together, off-road vehicle together, various military vehicles together.
After subdivision, repairmen repair what they’re best at; maintenance speed will definitely greatly increase.
Assuming faulty vehicle numbers unchanged.
Faster speed means shorter work time.
After this heavy medicine, Chen Jun had another heavy dose.
That is, from these eight squads, specially take out two squads as dispatch squads, dedicated to on-site maintenance; minor faults fixed on the spot, no towing back to Maintenance Platoon, saving lots of time.
Achieve minor faults: dispatch quick repair; major faults: tow back for specialist repair.
Chen Jun believed these two heavy medicines together, executing this more scientific new work mode, would absolutely rejuvenate the Maintenance Platoon.
