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Big IDEA pays off for tech sergeant at Scott

  • Published
  • By Samantha Crane
  • 375th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
Scott Air Force Base, Ill. --  On July 22, Tech. Sgt. Bryan Mertzlufft received a $10,000 check for his big IDEA.
Mertzlufft, Air Mobility Command warfare systems, was awarded the incentive check through the Air Force Innovative Development through Employee Awareness, or IDEA, Program for an initiative which is estimated to save AMC more $6.2 million.

"Please accept my thanks for being one of those people who are not afraid to step forward," said Lt. Gen. Rusty Findley, vice commander of Air Mobility Command, during the presentation. "It's people like you who are taking care of business."

Mertzlufft came up with his IDEA when he noticed that a knob on the AAQ-24 Control Indicator Unit, or CIU, on the C-17 had a high tendency of breaking off due to its location.

"The CIU was being repaired under a firm, fixed-price contract," said Mertzlufft. "Because of this, the repair cost $27,000 per unit with the manufacturer regardless of the issue."

Mertzlufft came up with the idea to fix the knobs locally by aircraft maintainers for only $160.

"Once approved, I submitted a request to the IDEA Program to substantiate Air Force savings," said Mertzlufft.

After more research, it was determined that Mertzlufft's IDEA would have saved the Air Force $2,281,400 in fiscal year 2010 for repair costs alone. In addition to the repair costs, keeping the work local also saved on shipping costs and hours previously used to remove and replace each CIU for every repair.

"This new procedure will reduce the time needed from four hours used to take out the entire CIU to just 30 minutes of repair time freeing up more than 600 hours annually to apply to other unit aircraft maintenance needs," said Mertzlufft. "Ultimately, this reduces the aircraft downtime and provides a valuable asset to the war on terrorism."

The AF IDEA Program is an incentive program which recognizes submitters for their approved ideas that benefit the Air Force through streamlined processes, improved productivity and cost savings. Approved initiatives generating tangible savings for the Air Force often result in grand-scale rewards to individuals credited with ownership of the idea, who may be eligible for cash awards ranging from $200 to $10,000 based on validated first year savings.

For more information on the IDEA program, call 256-4611. E-mails concerning the IDEA program can also be sent to scott.idea@scott.af.mil.