|
TARGETED ACTION: Duties like issuing bullets at firing ranges may be outsourced to private firms to let SAF personnel focus on combat training. -- ST PHOTO: LAU FOOK KONG
|
IN WHAT would be a first for the army, private companies could some day supervise soldiers as they practise gunning down targets at outdoor firing ranges.
Jobs such as issuing live bullets, counting scores and retrieving empty brass cartridges - duties traditionally borne by the army - may be outsourced, according to recently released documents.
While the Singapore Armed Forces has outsourced administrative tasks like cooking and cleaning, this would be the first time it has asked private companies to supervise shooting practices.
Details of the plan were contained in the 'request for information' issued last Monday by the agency that manages defence contracts for the Ministry of Defence (Mindef).
The Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) asked companies for quotes on how much it would cost to run a 100m rifle range at Safti, next to Pasir Laba Camp on the western edge of Singapore.
The range covers 16,150 sq m, about 1.5 times the size of a soccer field, and has 54 electronic targets. It is one of 16 outdoor shooting ranges used by the SAF for small arms live-firing practices, said the DSTA.
A DSTA spokesman told The Straits Times that the agency was exploring ways to 'enhance the operation and maintenance of the outdoor rifle ranges'.
Though a formal tender may be some months away, outsourcing of non-core jobs is something the SAF has embraced since the 1970s.
For example, a manpower crunch in the 1980s led Mindef to outsource cookhouse duties to private contractors.
Mindef has also outsourced some cleaning tasks in SAF camps to private companies, as well as maintenance work for aircraft and vehicles.
The move to outsource firing-range duties would free up SAF personnel to spend more time on combat training.
A range session for a company-sized unit of about 130 soldiers needs 22 personnel to staff positions such as supervising officer, ammunition dispenser, sentry and medical orderly, said the DSTA.
The outsourcing could also open up new business opportunities for former soldiers. In its request for information, the agency said it preferred retired or operationally ready National Servicemen for the jobs.
dboey@sph.com.sg
|
