DOING YOUR HOLIDAY SHOPPING? - AAFES QUALITY ASSURANCE TEAM PUTS SAFETY AHEAD OF SALES

  • Published
  • By Army and Air Force Exchange Service
DALLAS, Texas --  When military families shop for the holidays or any time of year, the last thing they should have to worry about is the safety or quality of the products they purchase. At the Army and Air Force Exchange Service, selling you safe products is a top priority.

Thanks to a small army of AAFES quality assurance professionals, many worries are alleviated long before a product hits the store shelves.

Consisting of 41 associates across the globe, the AAFES quality assurance team's mission is to provide troops and their families with the highest possible level of consumer protection for the full range of merchandise available at AAFES locations worldwide. AAFES quality assurance accomplishes this mission through a wide range of quality control systems, including inspection; product testing and analysis; feedback and recalls; supplier quality assistance; social compliance; and sanitation.

"Military shoppers should expect nothing less than safe, reliable and high quality merchandise when shopping their (exchange)," said Tom Rebman, AAFES director of quality assurance. "This command's quality assurance team is at work every day to ensure the exchange facilities' products have passed the most rigorous and thorough of inspections."

Last year, a quality assurance test revealed that a toy being sold by the exchange contained a high lead count. After receiving the results, AAFES quality assurance associates quickly contacted the Consumer Product Safety Commission to initiate a nationwide recall.

"This recall is just another example of the diligent work the AAFES quality assurance team does to protect military families," Rebman said. "From our lab at headquarters to the distribution centers and suppliers' facilities, our team of inspectors, veterinarians and even a gemologist work day in and day out to bring the safest and most reliable products to every member of the military family."