ARMY AL&T
In the acquisition process, S&T comes before Milestone A, leading many involved in the acquisition process to think, “We don’t count toward acquisition” said Freeman. “We support this whole acquisition process, but we’re not perceived as supporting it. We are an integral part of the acquisition process. … It’s not about the color of the money. It’s about the contribution and result,” she said.
New metrics may help the S&T community prove its value. Measuring aptitude in the technical capabilities S&T provides to warfighters, the data and information S&T provides to decision makers, and the quality of the research, development, and engineering conducted in S&T laboratories and centers will show that S&T is a vital part of the acquisition process supporting Soldiers, said Freeman.
This will be imperative during budget discussions, Freeman said.
Faster and Affordable Acquisition
On the topic of ensuring that the acquisition process keeps pace with current technology, Vice Chief of Staff of the Army GEN Peter W. Chiarelli cited the development of the new
ground combat vehicle as an example of acquisition innovation. “The ground combat vehicle represents one of the most important combat and acquisition decisions we’ll make over the next seven years,” he said. “We are building a vehicle that will be capable of operating in all environments, across the full spectrum. … How we’re trying to build it will also make it revolutionary.”
Chiarelli said that the Army is aiming to accelerate the timeline of the ground combat vehicle from the traditional 10- to 12-year cycle to 5-7 years, recognizing that the key to doing so is designing a platform that is versatile, able to accom- modate a wide range of configuration and capability changes and incremental improvements over time.
Cost and schedule constraints should be established early for all programs, said Vane. There are advantages, he said, to “buying fewer, more often”— purchasing for a deploying unit and targeting the next increment for the next deployments two to three years later. This approach allows for tech- nology improvements and changes in threat and political leadership along the way, Vane said. “If we were to account for that, perhaps we could get ahead of where we’re at in developing systems.”
DOD’s Efficiency Initiatives, which require that the Army save 2-3 percent by “doing more without more,” are another way DOD will save money. The savings will then be used for capability, O’Neill said.
The Global Picture Key S&T concerns include cyber warfare, biotechnology, bionics, and nanotechnology. Cyber crime is a threat not only to the U.S. economy, but also to the Nation as a whole. “Biotechnology, bionics, and phar- macology create massive potential for convergence and bio-interfacing between humans, enhanced comput- ers, and cognitive power,” said Vane. “Nanotechnology offers revolution- ary capabilities in materiel, medicine, manufacturing, and food production. Technology can make flawed, injured brains work better.
“Humans are our most adaptive sys- tems,” Vane said. “They adjust, they gain advantages, and they want to sur- vive. … How can we help to get that human to have the overmatch advantage needed on the battlefield of tomorrow in this era of persistent conflict?”
S&T development is vital to addressing these challenges, “not only to make that human more efficient and effective, but also across the board to maintain the overmatch if our country wants to retain the position it has within the world in areas of diplomatic, informational, mil- itary, and economic power,” he said.
Vane emphasized the importance of knowing not only what our enemies are developing in S&T, but also what our allies are developing.
Based on global trends and operational lessons learned, TRADOC produced
The ground combat vehicle represents one of the most important combat and acquisition decisions we’ll make over the next seven years. How we’re trying to build it will also make it revolutionary.
— GEN Peter W. Chiarelli, Vice Chief of Staff of the Army
APRIL –JUNE 2011 5
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