In Charles Dickens' world, clerks sat hand-writing notations into giant ledgers. The logistics system of the Afghan National Army isn't all that different.
Huge warehouses at the ANA's central supply depot in Kabul hold about $4 billion worth of assorted stores - everything from weapons to vehicle parts, clothing, food and medical supplies for a force of more than 300,000.
That's all recorded by hand into huge paper ledgers.
The ANA supply system has yet to computerise, let alone move to RFID - radio frequency identification - inventory tracking used by modern defence forces.
Captain Adam Duff, one of 10 Australians in a US-led team mentoring Afghan logisticians, says they are quite capable at the fundamentals.
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"For the basics of receiving something, getting it onto a shelf and being able to find it later and give it out to who needs it, they have got that down," he told AAP.
But there are a range of problems. Low literacy among Afghan soldiers hinders the supply effort, as does lack of basic computer competence. Stuff doesn't get where it's needed as speedily or reliably as it should.
"They are very good at warfighter level and they are more than capable of running that piece themselves. They won't be able to sustain that if they can't get their logistics working properly and effectively," Captain Duff said.
The ANA is certainly aware it needs to lift its game. It plans to place the best and brightest of its new officers into logistics.
The ANA also faces logistics challenges its allies don't.
For example, to maintain pressure on insurgents over winter it needs to keep security forces in the field and to do that, they need to be supplied with firewood at hundreds of remote bases and checkpoints.
While Australian troops will leave Oruzgan Province by the end of the year, some 400 will stay on in a variety of missions to mentor Afghan forces to improve their capabilities.
That includes those mentoring at the Afghan central supply depot. The current deployment runs to mid-January with another six-month rotation after that.
