JPPSO arranges pickup, packing, shipment, storage and delivery services of inbound and outbound personal property for all eligible military and Department of Defense (DoD) civilian personnel in Japan, Diego Garcia, Singapore and Guam.
“Last year’s peak season coincidently began during the initial COVID-19 outbreak. We had to develop ways to fully support our customers in a virtual environment while implementing our installation’s requested 50% workforce reduction through telework initiatives,” said Jack Hilaman, NAVSUP FLC Yokosuka JPPSO director. “Like many others, we’ve found ways to professionally adapt to the pandemic and we will again strive to provide our customers with the service they deserve during the peak season.”
The peak season typically runs from May to August each year. The JPPSO normally handles around 25,000 shipments per year, with over half of those shipments performed during this period.
During the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak, JPPSO implemented curbside screenings of all personnel carrying out shipments on and off base. Before shipping agents enter a home to begin packing or unpacking a customer’s household goods (HHG), JPPSO personnel will screen shipping agents by first checking for high body temperatures and ask if they’ve been experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, or if they’ve had any close contact with someone diagnosed with COVID-19 within the past 14 days.
United States Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM) recently sent an advisory instructing personal property shipping offices worldwide to prepare for a peak season unlike any other, to focus on health protection protocols and deliver quality moving and storage services for DoD customers.
In accordance with the advisory, a DoD representative will contact customers during the relocation process to verify all parties are following safety protocols, and take corrective actions if needed.
“Despite recent vaccination efforts, we will still have our guard up during this peak season. The health and safety of our customers is our highest priority and we encourage anyone utilizing our services to report their experience with our team,” said Hilaman.
At the direction of USTRANSCOM, NAVSUP FLC Yokosuka JPPSO implemented quality control inspections at the origin and destination of the household goods (HHG) chain. 50 percent of all moves will have inspectors on site during the packing, pick-up and delivery process.
“The JPPSO team has outperformed expectations over the past year under COVID-19 constraints,” said Capt. Edward Pidgeon, NAVSUP FLC Yokosuka commanding officer. “We stand ready to assist our mission partners with their permanent change of station (PCS) under any circumstances.”
The pre-peak season strategy synchronization is an annual event for the JPPSO Japan team and it will conduct a post-peak season after action review later this year. This effort is part of a larger initiative by the DoD to improve the quality of HHG moves, particularly during peak season. It is expected that this initiative will streamline operations, increase accountability and create positive effects in the PCS process for military members, DoD civilians and families.
NAVSUP FLC Yokosuka is one of eight FLCs under Commander, NAVSUP. Headquartered in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, and employing a diverse, worldwide workforce of more than 22,500 military and civilian personnel, NAVSUP's mission is to provide supplies, services, and quality-of-life support to the Navy and joint warfighter. Learn more at www.navsup.navy.mil, www.facebook.com/navsup and https://twitter.com/navsupsyscom.