An Analysis of the Air Force Working Capital Fund’s Performance and the Pricing Strategy of the Materiel Support Division Thesis

The Air Force Working Capital Fund (AFWCF), a revolving fund established to create a more business-like environment between the Air Force and its customers, is comprised of several divisions providing depot level repairs, supplies and inventory, information technology solutions and transportation services to military customers. Since its establishment, the AFWCF has been the source of much criticism due to its inability to meet its primary goal of operating on a break-even basis. Ideally, the Fund will generate enough revenue from the sale of goods or services to cover its expenses and break-even. Instead, there is either a surplus that must be reintroduced into the AFWCF or, as most often the case, a deficit occurs. Due to regulatory requirements, the Fund must recoup these lost monies in a subsequent year. This profoundly affects the ability to accurately build the budget and reach the break-even point. This research analyzes the past performance of the AFWCF and identifies which areas are key drivers in preventing the AFWCF from meeting this goal. Lastly, the pricing strategy of the Materiel Support Division was evaluated based on commercial best practices to determine if its pricing schema lends itself to meeting the goals of the AFWCF.