Operation Warp Speed chief showers praise on FedEx, UPS - Freight Waves
U.S. Army Gen. Gus Perna is not one to be awestruck by a well-executed logistics plan. But he’s enamored with FedEx Corp.’s and UPS’ performance during the first week of distribution for Pfizer Inc.’s COVID-19 vaccine.
The military is a no-excuses, bottom-line world: Get the job done. And Perna has spent years helping manage the Defense Department’s massive logistics requirements, most recently as commander of Army Materiel Command. He also logged time at the Pentagon as Army deputy chief of staff for logistics, ran supply centers for the Defense Logistics Agency and directed logistics for U.S. forces in Iraq, among other stints.
You might say he’s seen it all.
Still, FedEx and UPS have impressed the chief operating officer for Operation Warp Speed, the industry-government partnership tasked with organizing a nationwide supply chain in record time to help quell the worst pandemic in 100 years. Rather than deploy military assets to deliver vaccines, OWS has harnessed the capabilities of commercial industry, supplemented with the Defense Department’s procurement and planning capabilities.
U.S. Army Gen. Gus Perna is not one to be awestruck by a well-executed logistics plan. But he’s enamored with FedEx Corp.’s and UPS’ performance during the first week of distribution for Pfizer Inc.’s COVID-19 vaccine.
The military is a no-excuses, bottom-line world: Get the job done. And Perna has spent years helping manage the Defense Department’s massive logistics requirements, most recently as commander of Army Materiel Command. He also logged time at the Pentagon as Army deputy chief of staff for logistics, ran supply centers for the Defense Logistics Agency and directed logistics for U.S. forces in Iraq, among other stints.
You might say he’s seen it all.
Still, FedEx and UPS have impressed the chief operating officer for Operation Warp Speed, the industry-government partnership tasked with organizing a nationwide supply chain in record time to help quell the worst pandemic in 100 years. Rather than deploy military assets to deliver vaccines, OWS has harnessed the capabilities of commercial industry, supplemented with the Defense Department’s procurement and planning capabilities.
