VESTED INTEREST
round of ballistic and fragmentation tests, conducted at Aberdeen Test Center, MD, to be available in late summer 2015. Te tests conceivably could show that these inserts remain effective for up to 15 years.
KIT DEVELOPMENT With scientific proof of longer service lives for soft-armor ballistic inserts, the team used the consistent size and shape of the inserts to develop the Gen III IOTV Conversion Kit, which uses exist- ing quantities of soft-armor inserts rather than buying new complete IOTV sys- tems. Tis strategy allowed continuous refreshment of technology through pro- curement. Instead of having DLA sustain the IOTV by procuring Gen II IOTVs in UCP, the agency will modernize at the same time as it sustains by procuring the Gen III Conversion Kits.
Te IOTV Conversion Kit takes the soft-armor ballistic inserts from existing IOTV inventories and places them into a new carrier, creating the latest-generation vest. A Gen III IOTV ordered from DLA costs $791 per system, but the average unit cost of a Gen III Conversion Kit is $413. Te benefits of the conversion kit are threefold:
1. Resets the shelf life of the IOTV system for up to another seven years by replacing the outer carrier and components that wear out first.
2. Offers all of the benefits of the latest generation of the IOTV, par- ticularly the significantly enhanced quick-release system.
3. Provides an opportunity to change the camouflage pattern used on the IOTVs from UCP to OCP.
In an example of close cooperation between PEO Soldier and DLA-TS, pro- curement of the first quantities of the Gen III IOTV Conversion Kit occurred
28
PRICELESS PROTECTION
Soldiers from the 3rd Army Augmentation Unit go through Interceptor Body Armor sets as a part of predeployment checks July 7, 2014, at Fort Bliss, TX, in preparation for a yearlong deployment to Kuwait. Having the protection of body armor is worth its weight in gold—having upgraded body armor at a fraction of the price of new equipment is priceless. (U.S .Army photo by SSG Kai L. Jensen, 76th Operational Response Command)
before transitioning to sustainment. Today, all active IOTV contracts are now modified for either the Gen III IOTV Conversion Kit or the Gen III IOTV complete system. Tis offers the ability to procure conversion kits to upgrade more than 400,000 Gen I and II IOTVs as well as the UCP IOTVs currently in inventory.
CONCLUSION With a cost savings of $56 million dur- ing the recent procurement of conversion kits and the potential to realize more than $150 million in savings if the entire inventory is converted, the government is providing the best possible system in a fiscally responsible manner, an achieve- ment that resulted directly from effective and continuous coordination between DLA-TS and PEO Soldier.
Te legacy of this effort will be measured in the increased capability provided to the Soldier. Te conversion kits deliver the best capability, at the right time and in the right camouflage pattern to protect the American Soldier.
For more information, go to http://www.
peosoldier.army.mil/.
MAJ CHRIS GETTER is the assistant product manager for soft body armor under PEO Soldier’s PdM SPE. He has an M.S. in engineering management from Missouri University of Science and Technology and a B.S. in construction engineering manage- ment from Oregon State University. He is Level I certified in program management.
Army AL&T Magazine April–June 2015
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